Chimichurri steak marinade
A raw parsley, oregano, garlic, chilli and red wine vinegar marinade for steak, with half kept back to spoon over the sliced meat as a sauce.
- CoalsGas
- No fire needed
- Prep
- 15 min
- On the fire
- 0 min
- Plan ahead
- 30 minutes to 8 hours marinating
- Serves
- makes about 375 ml (1 1/2 cups), enough for 1.5 kg (3.3 lb) steak plus sauce to serve
- Done at
- 145°F (63°C)
Ingredients
Method
- Chop the parsley, coriander, oregano, garlic, onion and chilli finely by hand, or pulse them in a food processor. Keep some texture; it should not be a purée.
- Stir in the vinegar, lemon juice, oil, salt and pepper.
- Pour half into a clean jar and refrigerate it. This is the sauce for serving.
- Put the steak in a glass dish or zip-seal bag, add the rest of the marinade and turn to coat. Refrigerate and turn once.
- Marinate thin cuts like skirt, flank or bavette for 30 minutes to 2 hours. Give rump, sirloin and rib-eye 2 to 8 hours. Do not go past 12 hours or the vinegar softens the surface.
- Take the steak out 30 minutes before cooking. Scrape off the herbs and pat it dry with paper towel so it browns instead of steaming.
- Braai over hot coals. Steaks 2.5 cm (1 inch) thick take 3 to 4 minutes a side for medium-rare. Rest for 5 minutes and slice across the grain.
- Spoon the reserved sauce over the sliced meat. If you want to use the marinade the raw meat sat in, boil it for 2 to 3 minutes first.
Done when: the steak has a dark crust and a thermometer in the middle reads 63°C (145°F), the safe temperature for whole cuts of beef, after a 3-minute rest. For medium-rare take it off at 54°C (130°F).
Tips
- It suits other meat too. Lamb chops: 2 to 4 hours, 3 to 4 minutes a side on hot coals. Chicken thighs: 2 to 6 hours, 12 to 15 minutes on medium coals to 74°C (165°F). Prawns: 20 minutes, 2 to 3 minutes a side.
- The sauce is best on the day but keeps for 3 days in the fridge. The parsley darkens as it stands.
- Leave out the coriander for the traditional Argentinian taste.
Chimichurri is the green herb sauce served with grilled beef in Argentina and Uruguay, two countries that take open-fire cooking as seriously as South Africa. Used as a marinade it works quickly, so it suits a weeknight braai. Try it on the picanha, with the reserved half as the sauce.
Source
Adapted from Chimichurri Marinade and Sauce Recipe at This Mama Cooks and Chimichurri Steak Recipe by Chef Ransley Pietersen at Aspire Lifestyle.