The sizzling taste of beef
Dear TEAM: Can you help me? I’m looking for a recipe to marinate the tougher cuts of beef so they are more tender when cooked or barbecued. – A.H., Herbert, Sask.
The topic is timely as many people are planning their menus for summer barbecues and family gatherings. I have been known to serve meat that was a bit chewy to say the least, with a delicious cardboard taste. The Beef Information Centre has information and recipes available that can help us to create dishes that everyone will love.
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Marinades and rubs
Seasoned mixtures, both liquid marinades and dry rubs, enhance flavor and can help tenderize beef.
A rub is a blend of seasonings that flavors the surface of uncooked meats. Paste-type rubs often contain oil, crushed garlic or mustard.
A tenderizing marinade must contain an acidic ingredient, such as lemon juice, vinegar, wine, yogurt or a tenderizing enzyme that is found in fresh papaya, ginger, pineapple and figs.
Always marinate in the refrigerator and not at room temperature. Tender steaks, such as, rib eye, rib, wing, strip loin, T-bone, tenderloin and sirloin grilling steaks, need only be marinated for a short time (15 minutes to two hours.)
Inside, outside, eye of round, blade, cross rib, sirloin tip and flank marinating steaks need to be marinated for six hours to increase tenderness.
Larger cuts of steak and roasts may need up to 24 hours of marinating, and smaller cuts such as strips or cubes need only one or two hours. Marinades that have been in contact with raw meat must be brought to a full rolling boil for a few minutes before they can be served as a sauce.
Cooking lesson
- If marinating, choose a non-metal dish and use enough marinade to coat the beef all over.
- Turn steaks with tongs in order to avoid puncturing the meat and letting the juices escape.
- To test for doneness of a steak, make a small slit with the tip of a sharp pointed knife, or use the touch test (if the steak is soft to the touch, it is rare; if it springs back when touched, it is medium; and if it is firm when touched, it is well-done.
Source: Winning Tastes of Beef by Canadian Living.
Crowd-pleaser roast with confetti relish
1 14 oz. can 398 mL
pineapple tidbits
1Ú2 cup 125 mL
Worcestershire sauce
1Ú4 cup lime or 50 mL
lemon juice
2 tablespoons 30 mL
coarsely ground
pepper
2-3 pounds inside 1-1.5 kg
round, sirloin tip or
cross rib roast
Drain pineapple, reserving juice. Set tidbits aside to make relish. Combine 3Ú4 cup (175 mL) juice with next three ingredients in a large sealable plastic bag or shallow casserole.
Place roast in marinade, refrigerate 12-24 hours, turning occasionally. Barbecue roast to no more than medium using indirect heat or on a rotisserie over medium heat. See chart for cooking time. Serve thinly sliced with confetti relish. Makes eight-12 servings.
Barbecue roast guidelines
minutes/kg internal temp. minutes/lb.
45 Rare – 140 F (60 C) 20
55 Med – 160 F (70 C) 25
75 Well – 170 F (75 C) 30
Tip: Don’t have a rotisserie? Use indirect heat to barbecue roasts. Turn heat off on one side of barbecue; place meat on unlit side of grill. Close barbecue lid. Adjust heat to medium on the lit side of grill.
Confetti relish
reserved pineapple tidbits
1 each red, green and
yellow pepper,
coarsely chopped
1Ú2 cup coarsely 125 mL
chopped red onions
and parsley
1Ú4 cup Heinz 57 50 mL
sauce and lime juice
2-3 tablespoons 30-50 mL
grated fresh gingerroot
1 large clove 1
garlic, minced
Combine all ingredients in food processor fitted with metal blade. Process with on-off action until finely diced. Refrigerate to blend flavors. Serve warm or cold with roast. Makes about three cups (750 mL).
Citrus marinated steak
Using household staples this easy-to-prepare marinade gives the steak a tender texture and a tangy flavor.
1Ú2 cup orange juice 125 mL
1Ú3 cup chili sauce 75 mL
3 tablespoons 45 mL
ketchup
1-2 teaspoons 5-10 mL
grated orange rind,
optional
1 clove garlic, minced 1
few drops sesame or
vegetable oil
1 pound flank or 500 g
round steak
Combine all ingredients, except steak; stir to blend thoroughly. Pierce steak with long-tined fork; place in container with sauce.
Cover and marinate overnight in refrigerator. Drain marinade; boil 10 minutes. Broil or barbecue steak until desired doneness, approximately five minutes per side for rare, seven minutes for medium.
Slice steak thinly across the grain and serve with remaining boiled marinade, if desired.
Makes four servings.
Marinated flank steak
1Ú2 cup soy sauce 125 mL
1Ú4 cup packed 50 mL
brown sugar
1Ú4 cup vinegar 50 mL
1Ú4 cup pineapple 50 mL
juice
1 clove garlic, 1
minced
1 pound flank 500 g
or round steak, cut
one inch (2.5 cm) thick
In saucepan, bring soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice and garlic to boil; cook for two minutes and let cool.
Place steak in a shallow dish and pour marinade over meat; cover and let stand in refrigerator 12-24 hours. Remove meat from marinade and broil or barbecue about four inches (10 cm) above hot coals or at medium-high setting of electric or gas barbecue for five minutes per side. To serve, slice in thin strips across the grain.
Makes four servings.
Steak rubs
Lemon basil rub: Combine one teaspoon (five mL) each of garlic powder, dried lemon peel and lemon pepper with 1Ú2 teaspoon (two mL) basil.
Cajun rub: Combine one teaspoon (five mL) each of garlic salt, curry and paprika with 1Ú4 teaspoon (one mL) cayenne.
Southwestern rub: Combine one teaspoon (five mL) each of chili powder, garlic salt and oregano with 1Ú2 teaspoon (two mL) cumin.
Pepper herb rub: Combine one teaspoon (five mL) dried basil leaves with 1Ú2 teaspoon (two mL) each of lemon pepper, onion powder and dried oregano and 1Ú4 teaspoon (one mL) rubbed sage. Rub desired mixture on steaks just before grilling.
Each rub makes enough to season one pound ( 500 g) of beef.
Suggestion: Always cook an extra steak and use it the next day to top a salad, flatbread or pizza.
Consumers may also want to try new marinating packs that have been designed to make marinating quick and easy.
Natural tenderizing ingredients such as bromelain, papain and ficin have been packaged into small pouches and in some cases flavored with spices and can tenderize in under 30 minutes. Ask for these products at your local meat counter.
For more information contact a Beef Information Centre: Vancouver, 604-985-0113; Calgary, 403-275-5890; Regina, 306-757-8528; Winnipeg, 204-772-4867; Toronto, 905-821-4900.
