Grill Master B

Lately (and shall I say finally), citizens of the Hudson Valley have received the weather we deserve:  sunshine, sunshine, sunshine.  It was so lovely and warm, with daytime highs in the low 70s.  I ventured over the Hudson River Walkway with my friend Mary.

The dog has been the recipient of some long, family walks.

And all this warm weather means grilling season has begun!  Not that we ever took a seasonal break.  Brian grilled leg of lamb over the holidays.  In early February, he put a rack of lamb on the rotisserie (and oh my goodness, you better believe that was the best rack of lamb).  We've been enjoying grilled pizza every few weeks since we first made it last August.  Our grill has actually received a lot of good use during months usually reserved for cooking (and hiding) indoors.

This was not always the case.  Before we bought a house and before we received an awesome gas grill as a wedding present from Brian's parents, we lived in a second-story apartment and our grill was a little table top number with a little can of propane attached to it.   Brian would have to hustle up and down the stairs, ferrying items to be grilled and items to be consumed, checking the heat (always inconsistent), and generally producing awesome meals in the face of challenge.  My good friend Khambay from culinary school witnessed Brian's grill prowess on that little grill on more than one occasion and referred to Brian as Grill Master B.

Often we like to grill flank steak.  It takes to marinade quite well, becoming tender, and it benefits from grilling.  Also, to be frank, it is one of the cheaper cuts of beef and therefore we can afford it.  We always start from the same base point and then augment.  Today, I'll give you that base and then in the future I'll share the augmentations.

I should make a note about serving sizes.  From a one pound serving of flank steak we can get four meals: two dinners and two lunches.  This equals about 4 ounces of steak per person.  Most people would consider this a small portion so you may want to budget 6 - 8 ounces of meat per person.


GRILLED FLANK STEAK
Yield:  3-4 servings

1   pound flank steak, trimmed of fat
1/4   cup low-sodium soy sauce
Freshly ground black pepper

Combine steak and soy sauce in a one-gallon ziploc bag and marinate in the refrigerator anywhere from two hours to overnight.  The longer you marinate the steak, the more tender the final product.

Remove the steak from the refrigerator one hour before you plan to grill it.  A good general rule of thumb when grilling any kind of meat is to bring it to room temperature first.

Preheat the grill to medium.  Remove the steak from the marinade and discard the marinade.   Season the steak with freshly ground black pepper.  You do not need salt because the soy sauce, even the low-sodium version, provides an ample amount.

On our grill (and this is where I say that all grills are different, may have temperature fluctuations, and may have hot spots), Brian grills a 1-inch to 1 1/2-inch thick steak six to seven minutes per side.  When it is done grilling, he lets the meat rest for five to 10 minutes before thinly slicing it against the grain.

When we ate flank steak last week, we served it with potatoes and asparagus and my version of salsa verde which I promise to share with you soon.  It was a delightful way to usher in spring!