We spent the first half of the month in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean locales. While there, we ate as much “local” food as we could. The we ones discovered the like empanadas in all their various forms, and churrasco became their go to dinner. I have to admit that I rather enjoyed it myself, although I tended to branch out with other foods more than they did. A not uncommon dinner for us involved churrasco with mofongo, a garlic infused side dish with mashed plaintains and often a protein.
Whenever someone ordered this, it disappeared quickly. And I only ordered it once or twice. When we got home from our Puerto Rico trip, the wee ones kept asking when we were going to be eating that food again, because they enjoyed it. So yes, you’ll be seeing me trot out my empanada recipe soon.
In the meantime, I got creative and decided to make my own churrasco because I had a taste for chimichurri. And yes, I will admit with some embarrassment that I eat chimichurri the way most people eat chocolate. I absolutely adore it, and this wasa really good version that I made. I am not quite up to making my own mofongo, especially since the wee ones weren’t fans, so instead I sauteed some spinach and made that the (healthier) side dish for our dinner.
There were leftovers because I made three pounds of the churrasco, but you’ll have to check back next week to see my amazingly delicious solution for the leftovers that didn’t go in the wee ones’ lunch.
Churrasco with Chimichurri
Ingredients:
2 one pound skirt steaks
2 T white wine vinegar
1 T lemon juice
3/4 c olive oil, separated
salt and pepper
4 c fresh parsley (one bunch at the store)
1/2 c fresh oregano
1/4 c fresh mint
5 cloves garlic
1/4 c red wine or sherry vinegar
Directions
Prepare the skirt steaks by first trimming them of all visible fat. I purchased mine cut thin, but if yours are more than a half inch thick, go ahead and place them between two sheets of plastic wrap and gently pound them to flatten them. Rub both sides of the steaks with salt and pepper.
Place steaks into a container for marinating and add the white wine vinegar, lemon juice, and 1 T olive oil. Move the steaks around to ensure they’re coated and stir the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight. Periodically move them around if needed to ensure they’re all coming into contact with the marinade.
Make the chimichurri sauce in your blender. Peel the garlic, but leave it whole. Wash your herbs and remove the large, thick stems, but the more delicate stems you can leave on.
Pulse the blender until the herbs and garlic are chopped. You’ll notice how quickly the volume went down. Add about 1 t salt and a half teaspoon pepper and pulse again. While pulsing, add a half cup of the olive oil. Check the consistency and add a little more oil if you prefer. You don’t want to emulsify this, so keep the blending to a minimum. Set aside the chimichurri until you’re ready to serve the steak.
Preheat your grill to high, and brush it with oil to keep the steaks from sticking. Grill for five minutes per side to get to a medium doneness, flipping just the once. When you remove them from the grill, cover with a tin foil tent for five minutes to let the meat rest. If you cut them immediately, the juice will come out and your meat will be dry.
Slice your meat on the bias against the grain, and serve with the chimichurri sauce. This works well with beans and rice, mofongo if you can find it, or sauteed spinach if you’re me.
Churrasco With Chimichurri
Ingredients
- 2 one pound skirt steaks
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3/4 cup olive oil separated
- salt and pepper
- 4 cups fresh parsley one bunch at the store
- 1/2 cup fresh oregano
- 1/4 cu[ fresh mint
- 5 cloves garlic
- 1/4 cup red wine or sherry vinegar
Instructions
- Prepare the skirt steaks by first trimming them of all visible fat. I purchased mine cut thin, but if yours are more than a half inch thick, go ahead and place them between two sheets of plastic wrap and gently pound them to flatten them. Rub both sides of the steaks with salt and pepper.2 one pound skirt steaks
- Place steaks into a container for marinating and add the white wine vinegar, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Move the steaks around to ensure they're coated and stir the marinade. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight. Periodically move them around if needed to ensure they're all coming into contact with the marinade.2 tablespoons white wine vinegar, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 3/4 cup olive oil
- Make the chimichurri sauce in your blender. Peel the garlic, but leave it whole. Wash your herbs and remove the large, thick stems, but the more delicate stems you can leave on.
- Pulse the blender until the herbs and garlic are chopped. You'll notice how quickly the volume went down. Add about 1 teaspoon salt and a half teaspoon pepper and pulse again. While pulsing, add a half cup of the olive oil. Check the consistency and add a little more oil if you prefer. You don't want to emulsify this, so keep the blending to a minimum. Set aside the chimichurri until you're ready to serve the steak.4 cups fresh parsley, 1/2 cup fresh oregano, 1/4 cu[ fresh mint, 5 cloves garlic, salt and pepper
- Preheat your grill to high, and brush it with oil to keep the steaks from sticking. Grill for five minutes per side to get to medium doneness, flipping just once. When you remove them from the grill, cover them with a tin foil tent for five minutes to let the meat rest. If you cut them immediately, the juice will come out and your meat will be dry.
- Slice your meat on the bias against the grain, and serve with the chimichurri sauce. This works well with beans and rice, mofongo if you can find it, or sauteed spinach if you're me.
Notes
- Blend the chimichurri ingredients until well combined. Add a little more oil if you prefer a thinner consistency.
- For more tips and tricks, be sure to read the full article above.
Nutrition
This site uses an online source to provide nutrition estimates as a courtesy. If you need exact values, please calculate yourself.
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