repeat offenders

the ultimate steak sanga

When it comes to recipes, you could say that I’m a bit of a ‘new’ junkie. It’s not very often that I’ll cook the same thing twice. This isn’t because I’m not happy with how things turned out, but more that there are so many amazing flavour and texture sensations out there that I really don’t want to miss out….It’s really like the food equivalent of ‘so many wines, so little time’.

But while I love the thrill and challenge of exploring a new recipe, there are some dishes that just deserve a repeat performance. For me these tend to be the solid basics in my repertoire. Just like every wardrobe needs a perfectly fitting pair of jeans, a classic pair of black pants, a crisp white shirt, and a good overcoat, so your kitchen needs a few key pieces: a good side salad, the perfect sweet crust pastry, and real vanilla icecream…. you can’t go wrong.

Looking over the last six months, the following recipes have had many a turn on the dance floor that is my kitchen:

*homemade vanilla icecream
*radicchio & rocket salad
*bbq marinated veg
*shaved fennel salad
*onion dressing
*sweet crust pastry
*bbq radicchio (yes…bbq lettuce!)
*bbq eggplant with pomegranite, yoghurt & tahini

And while these new friends have been a welcome addition. They have not replaced one of my all time favourites: the steak sandwich. A good steak sanga is the perfect weekend lunch…quick to prepare…easy to cleanup after…tangy sourdough bread framing the meaty charred goodness of bbq steak oozing with oilve oil and lemon scented pan juices…with a kick from the mustard and some freshness from the rocket…all good things…

the ultimate steak sanga
makes 1 girl sized sandwich

This is another of Jamie Oliver’s great suggestions. If the sandwich is destined for a particularly hungry carnivore, you might like to increase the amount of steak and rpsemary but make sure you still bash it well so that it’s nice and tender.

2 large fresh slices sourdough bread
75g rump steak
extra virgin olive oil
1 sprig rosemary, leaves picked
wholegrain mustard
dijon mustard
1/2 lemon, juice to taste
small handful wild baby rocket

Heat BBQ or char grill pan on highest setting. Place steak between 2 layers of plastic, top with rosemary leaves and bash with your fist or a meat mallet until flattened out to about 1/2cm thick. You want it to be thin as possible with a few holes in it so it cooks quickly and is very tender…nothing worse than having to wrestle a bight from you steak sandwich.

Season meat with s&p and drizzle over a generous pour of olive oil on both sides. Cook steak on the hot BBQ for approx 1min each size until charred and almost cooked. Place steak on a clean warm plate and drizzle with some more olive oil, a good squeeze of lemon juice and s&p. Allow to rest for a few minutes so the meat juices mix with the oil and lemon juice to make a super tasty sauce. Tear meat into bight sized pieces.

Spread one slice of bread with your choice of mustard (I use a blend of both) then pile on the steak. Top with rocket leaves then drizzle over the lovely lemony pan juices. Top with another slice of bread and serve immediately with a gutsy glass of shiraz.