Salt Crusted Beef Tenderloin

 

I've heard about using a salt crust to cook a whole fish, but never for beef so I was intrigued. The meat ended up being so tender I could almost cut it with a fork! I made this as a special treat and I would definitely serve it to company at my next party! You could use top sirloin roast or top round roast instead of the expensive beef tenderloin. 

Ingredients:
2 lbs. beef tenderloin (for a larger piece of tenderloin, you'll need more salt crust to cover it)
pepper

Salt Crust:
3 cups kosher salt
1 cup water
1 tbs. chopped rosemary

Directions:
1. Cover beef tenderloin in black pepper. Heat a large pan oven high heat and sear the outside of the beef. Place in pan and allow to brown on one side for 4 minutes until beef is browned nicely, rotate tenderloin and repeat until all sides are browned.

2. While beef is searing, combine all ingredients for salt crust in a bowl and stir until combined. Mix should look like damp sand. (If you have any small cuts on your hand, make sure to wear gloves!)

3. Put 1/3 of the salt crust in the middle of a sheet pan covered in foil. Spread out the salt to make a level platform about 1/2 inch thick and about 2-3 inches loner than the tenderloin. Place tenderloin in middle of salt layer. Put rest of salt crust on top of the beef tenderloin, using your hands, make a dome of salt around the beef so it is completely encapsulated. Stick in a prob thermometer into the beef by sticking it through the end and into the middle of the tenderloin so you can make sure you get an accurate temp reading.

4. Preheat a 250 degree oven. Bake uncovered for 45-60 minutes or until beef has reach 135 degrees Meat will continue to cook slightly in salt crust. My final temp was around 145 which is normally high for me but the meat was perfectly medium rare!)

5. Allow meat to rest for 20 minutes in the salt dome. This is a great time to reheat any sauce or sides you plan to serve with it. (I did my Irish Whisky Gravy with baked potatoes and sauteed broccolini with lemon.)

6. Using the back of a spoon tap the salt crust to crack it. Use the spoon and remove the salt crust. Move beef to a cutting board wiping off all excess salt (if you skip this step final dish could be too salty). Slice and serve!

Ina's Lemon and Onion Chicken

I saw this recipe on Barefoot Contessa and it looked so simple and tasty I had to try it. Butterflying the chicken was a great way to cook the chicken evenly and get a really crispy skin. The best part was that while I cooked the chicken, I was also cooking the sauce since you serve it with the pan drippings. I served this dish with potoatoes and green beans but the next time I make it, I will switch it up to an arugula salad. I plan to make a lemon vinaigrette using some of the pan drippings. A really tasty dish I will definitely make again! 

Ingredients:
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup good olive oil
1 lemon, sliced into 1/4 inch thick rings
1 yellow onion, halved and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 (4-pound) chicken, backbone removed and butterflied
1/2 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio
Juice of 1 lemon

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

2. Place the thyme, fennel seeds, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper in a mini food processor or mortar and pestle and process until ground. Pour the olive oil into a small glass measuring cup, stir in the herb mixture, and set aside.

3. Distribute the lemon slices in a 12-inch cast iron skillet and distribute the onion and garlic on top. Place the chicken, skin side down, on top of the onion and brush with about half the oil and herb mixture. Turn the chicken skin side up, pat it dry with paper towels (very important!), and brush it all over with the rest of the oil and herb mixture. Make sure to get underneath the skin on the breast as well to season the meat directly. 

4. Roast the chicken for 30 minutes. Pour the wine into the pan (not on the chicken!) and roast for another 10 to15 minutes, until a meat thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the breast registers 155 to 160 degrees.
Remove the chicken from the oven, sprinkle it with the lemon juice, cover the skillet tightly with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. 

5. At this point make any side veggies or salad. Cut the chicken in quarters or eighths, sprinkle with salt, and serve hot with the pan juices, cooked lemon, and onion.

Skirt Steak Fried Rice

This dish is really quick to put together. Make sure you have all of your ingredients prepped before you start, you won't have time to be chopping while you're cooking. Everyone really loved this dish! It's great the next day too as leftovers!

Ingredients:
1 lb skirt steak
4 cups cooked rice
1 bunch broccolini, trimed so only the florets remain
1 large carrot, peeled and sliced on a bias
1/2 onion, medium size dice
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 eggs
1 tbs. canola oil
Soy sauce


Directions:
1. Marinate skirt steak in a few tbs. of soy sauce in a plastic bag. Allow to marinate in the fridge for an hour or two.

2. Remove steak from fridge and allow it to come to room temp as you prep the rest of the ingredients.

3. Turn a grill to high and grill the skirt steak. You'll want to cook it about 3 minutes per side for medium rare. Remove to a plate and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Slice against the grain into 1/4 inch strips.

4. Preheat a wok or large pan over medium high heat. Whisk together eggs. Put 1/2 tsp. oil in the pan. Add the whisked eggs and scramble. Remove eggs and set aside.

5. Wipe out the pan and return to the heat. Add the rest of the oil and the onions. Cook for one minute until slightly softened. Add the garlic and cook another 30 seconds. Add the carrots and broccolini and stir. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper and allow to cook together, stirring every once and a while until the veggies are almost cooked through.

6. Add the rice to the pan and allow it to toast for 2 minutes while stirring occasionally. Add a few tbs. of soy sauce and a tbs. butter. Stir everything together.

7. Add the sliced steak to the pan and toss everything together. At this point your meal is done but you could add some garnish like chopped scallions or toasted sesame seeds.

Hasselback Potatoes

I wanted a really rich side dish for my steak and found this. It was a little bit of work but ended up being really tasty. I suggest serving it with some sour cream on the side! 

Ingredients:

6 medium baking potatoes (8 to10 ounces each)
1 ounce lemon juice
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
2 tsp. sea or kosher salt
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup finely grated mixed Parmesan, gruyere and double Gloucester cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Peel all the potatoes and, as you peel them, put them in a large container with 1 gallon water and the lemon juice to keep them from browning. Once they are all peeled, remove them from the water and pat dry.

3. Then slice the potatoes about 1/4-inch apart and about three-quarters of the way through to create a series of uniform slices so that they are still joined together at the bottom. This should create a fan type finish to the potatoes.

4. Next, using a whisk, blend the butter, parsley, salt and pepper. Make sure to mix well. Dunk the potatoes into the butter mixture, making sure that the slits in the potato soak up the mixture as well. Place the potatoes on a baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.

5. After 30 minutes, remove the potatoes, re-heat any remaining butter and drizzle on top. Divide the cheese mixture over the potatoes. Bake the potatoes until the cheese is melted and the potatoes are cooked through, about 15 minutes. Once melted, remove the potatoes and serve.

Steak Wet Marinade

I pulled out my vacuum machine since some steaks were on sale. I always see on cooking competions that they will vacuum seal meat with a marinade. Since I had the tools, I figured why not give it a shot! I normally do a dry rub on steaks and try to let it sit overnight. When I see it on tv, they always use a wet marinade so I threw this together with what I had. It was really tasty and I could tell vacuum sealing it helped the marinade really penetrate the steak!

Ingredients:
4 ribeye steaks
3 tbs. soy sauce
1 tbs. balsamic vinegar
1 tbs. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. brown sugar

Directions:
1. Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a small bowl.

2. Place a steak in your vacuum seal bag and then add 2 tbs. of the marinade to the bag and roll the steak in it.

3. Follow your vacuum sealer instructions and seal the bag. Allow to marinate as long as you want but at least 30 minutes. Grill to your liking and serve!!

Skirt Steak Tacos with Roja Sauce

I saw this dish on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives and it looked so tasty I had to try it at home. Skirt steak tacos are already one of my favorite dishes but the addition of this sauce made it so flavorful! It's really great because you could grill the skirt steak in advance and make the sauce in advance. Then when you're ready to serve just slice the steak and heat it with the sauce! I unfortunately never managed to get a picture of this dish. Each time I have made it I've been too hungry to wait for the picture LOL

Ingredients:
Sauce:
4 roma tomatoes, quartered
1/2 red onion, rough chop
2 chipotles in adobo
1 tbs. adobo sauce from chipotles
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 cups chicken stock
2 tbs. butter

Skirt Steak
Salt
Pepper
Tortillas
Toppings you like in your tacos but I suggest Queso Fresco, Cabbage Slaw, and Avocado.

Directions:
1. Combine tomatoes, onion, chipotles, adobo sauce, salt, pepper, and chicken stock into a medium size pan. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cover. Allow to cook 30 minutes over low heat.

2. Once cooked, remove 1 cup of the chicken stock and set to the side. In batches use a blender and puree the sauce until smooth. You want the final consistency of the sauce to be pretty thick so you will not use all of the chicken stock. Once pureed, return to sauce pan. Put butter into the pan and melt into the sauce slowly over low heat. Reserve until ready to eat. The sauce can be made 2 days in advance.

3. Season skirt steak with salt and pepper. Grill over high heat until it is done to your liking, about 3 minutes per side for medium rare. Put on a platter and allow steak to rest before you slice it.

4. To finish the skirt steak add the sliced pieces to a small saute pan with a few tablespoons of the roja sauce. Allow to cook together over medium high heat until the steak is warmed through and the sauce has slightly thickened and is coating the steak.

5. Heat up a few tortillas, add the steak filling and toppings, and enjoy!