Steaks are among my favorite things to cook in my kitchen. Over the years, whenever I had friends over, I would cook steaks. I always cooked strip and ribeye steaks. You just can’t go wrong with these two cuts. Recently, I started doing more skirt steaks. As a novice skirt steak cook, I started researching this cut and finding out the best way to cook it. It came to my surprise that not all skirt steaks are created equal. There are two types of skirt steaks: inside and outside. The two types of skirt steaks came from separate parts of the cow, which also means the textures are different. The inside skirt is a much chewier cut than the outside skirt. The inside skirt steaks are more commonly available in the stores. If you are familiar with skirt steaks, you probably have seen these 5 to 7 inches wide and 1/2 to 1/4 inch thick steaks. The outside skirt is a different story. They are narrower, about 3 to 4 inches wide, thicker, about 1/2 to 1 inch, and very hard to find in supermarkets. You will have to visit your local butcher to find one.
Typically, an inside skirt steak would require a long marinating time. It is not uncommon to marinate a skirt steak overnight. The marinade not only provides the meat with great flavor, but it also tenderizes the meat. With an outside skirt, the marinade is not as important because the cut is already very tender.
A couple of weeks ago, I was lucky enough to get an outside skirt steak. I was very impressed with how the steak looks visually. It was the most beautiful skirt steak I have ever seen! I had a good feeling about this: This skirt steak will be so juicy and tender! I went with a simple marinate and that was all it needed. The meat was so fresh and I didn’t need to do much with it. Ideally, I want to grill the steak outside, but I don’t have that option so I used an enameled cast iron grill pan on the stove. The result was – AMAZING!
In terms of making a sauce, you can’t go wrong with a chimichurri sauce. Skirt steak and chimichurri are a perfect couple, and it would be a mistake if I didn’t make chimichurri with this beautiful outside skirt steak. My chimichurri is not authentic by any means because I used dried oregano instead of fresh and added a little bit of rosemary. The hint of rosemary seemed to do the magic, adding an unexpected depth to the sauce.
Skirt Steak Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1 pound skirt steak, preferably outside skirt
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
- 1/2 to 1 teaspoon Thai chili pepper
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
Method:
- Pat dry steak and make shallow cuts across the steak.
- Combine sea salt, black pepper, and lime juice in a shallow container or plate. Add steak to the mixture and coat steak with the marinade.
- Sprinkle the Thai chili peppers all over the steak. Rub the chili pepper in the slits. Tip: Don’t overdo the chili pepper because the spicy fumes during cooking will make you cough and sneez.
- Coat the steak with olive oil and marinate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
- Be sure the steak is at room temperature before cooking. Cook each side on an enameled cast iron grill pan for about 3 minutes for medium-rare. Rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Chimichurri Sauce Recipe
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes or 1 fresh red chili pepper, diced
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon brown sugar or white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar or white vinegar
- 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Method:
- Using a mortar and pestle, grind garlic, sugar, and sea salt until a paste is formed. You can also combine finely minced garlic, sugar, and sea salt in a small bowl to form a paste-like mixture. The idea is to let the sugar and salt break down the garlic.
- In a bowl, combine parsley, cilantro, oregano, rosemary, red pepper flakes and garlic paste.
- Add red wine vinegar and olive oil. Combine well and taste. Adjust salt and vinegar levels as you see fit. Wait 5 minutes before serving.
If you like beef, check out this Three Bean Beef Chili recipe.