In Argentina, steak is standard. To Argentineans that doesn’t mean plain though. Take chimichurri for example – the essential Argentinean sauce has bite, flavor and tons of versatility. Start with Tim’s recipe, and tweak it to your tastes when you make it a second (then third, and fourth…) time. If it’s good enough for the steak-serious Argentineans, it’s good enough for us.
Ingredients:
Instructions:
For the chimichurri
Roughly chop the herbs and finely chop the garlic and jalapeño pepper. Combine all of the ingredients – except the olive oil – in a bowl of a food processor. Pulse the food processor and slowly drizzle the olive oil into the mixture. (Don’t over-process – the sauce should have a slightly rough texture.) Move the chimichurri sauce to a bowl, and chill until you are ready to start the steaks.
For the steaks
Remove the thawed steaks from the refrigerator and allow them to come to room temperature (20 minutes or so). Meanwhile, heat one side of your grill, leaving the other side free of fire. Rub the steaks lightly with olive oil then season then liberally with salt and pepper, or your favorite steak seasoning salt. When your grill is very hot (450°F or better) grill the steaks on the hot side, turning a quarter turn after two minutes. Cook another two minutes, developing a good crust and grill marks. (If the grill flares up, move the steaks to the other side.) Turn the steaks over and repeat on the other side. Move the steaks to the cooler side of the grill, then close the grill and cook to an internal temperature of 120°F. Once they’re done, remove from the grill and plate them to rest for six to eight minutes. The steak will continue to cook about 10° while it is resting. Sprinkle with finishing salt.
For the grilled romaine
While the steaks are resting, cut the romaine in half, lengthwise – keeping the root end intact. Lightly drizzle the romaine with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. On a hot grill, place the romaine, cut side down, and cook until slightly charred. Turn the romaine and grill on the other side. The romaine should be lightly wilted and nicely charred, but not cooked through. Remove from the grill to a plate, cut side up, and immediately grate the cheese with a Microplane over the romaine.
