Mexican Spiced Strip Steak with Three Pepper Chimichurri
Sometimes I want tacos, without having tacos. I know that may seem a bit odd and what does that even mean? Well, if you ever go to any local Mexican restaurant, I’m sure you will see they have a plethora of taco options, but they always have that one random just steak option, or carne asada. Pending the restaurant that can always be my go-to option when I just want the steak and not all the extras.
I had a couple of premium strip steaks that I picked up on special at the local grocery store and didn’t really have a plan for. I did however get that craving I just wrote about, so I figured why not just make my own version of that really good Mexican carne asada.
As I started getting some spices together, I started looking through my pantry of veggies and I found some jalapenos, Fresno peppers, and serrano peppers. All these peppers needed to be used soon so what can I do with all these quickly? It hit me, chimichurri! I love a good chimichurri as it can really elevate any dish in a totally different way than many other sauces and it just fits really well with anything Mexican.
When making this dish you really need to make sure all parts are coming together at the right time so we need to start with the chimichurri as this will take the most time. I start by setting the grill to about 400 degrees. I place all the peppers on a sheet pan and cover in canola oil. Place peppers directly over the heat, you are wanting these to get as much heat as possible to get them good and charred. This process is going to take about 15 minutes and be sure you are turning the peppers, so all sides get some of the heat. Once the peppers are done, place them in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap, this will help them steam and make the skins much easier to remove.
After the peppers have been prepared, add them into the food processor with the green onions, cilantro, parsley, and garlic. You are going to want to pulse these ingredients to get them mixed well. After they have combined well, then set the food processor on low speed and begin to slowly drizzle the olive oil in as it runs. Should take about a ¼ cup to just gauge to make sure it has a good smooth consistency. Remove the top and taste then salt and pepper accordingly, about 1 tbsp of each should do it. Pulse again to mix the salt and pepper in and remove from processor and transfer to a bowl and place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to let the flavor meld together.
After I have the chimichurri marinating the
flavors, I remove the steaks from the fridge and let sit for about 15
minutes. Take the steaks and place on a
sheet tray and cover with about 1 tbsp of canola oil per steak, just enough to
make the surface of the steak tacky to help the seasoning stick. Now season each steak with salt, pepper, and
the Mexican rub. At this point we want
to take our butter and melt it as we will use this to baste the steaks while
they cook on the grill. I like to use my
small cast iron pot and just add a stick of butter into it and let it sit to
melt. This little pot is a great tool as
I can make butter for basting and sauces and other things and just let it sit
on the grill until time to use.
Bump the grill up to 500+ degrees, I like to be somewhere between 500 to 600 degrees for searing, some like it hotter and that’s fine too just if you get a good sear the temperature can work anywhere in that area. Add the steaks directly over the heat source, letting them sear for about 3 minutes, then flip the steak. After flipping the steak, sear it for another 3 minutes, this is where you need to start basting the steak with the butter you have melted. I try and baste it at lest once every minute, if not more. After the steak is done searing, I move it over to the side over indirect heat to let it finish cooking to desired temperature. Now that the steak is done cooking, I pull it from the grill and let it rest, about 5 minutes.
Take a couple of limes and cut in half. Place the cut side down on the grill over the direct heat while the steaks rest. Let the limes cook about 5 minutes and pull from the heat. Now that the steak has rested, transfer it to the cutting board and cut into slices across the grain. Take spoon and spread chimichurri over slices of the steak. Squeeze the lime over the steak and eat up!
Mexican Spiced Strip Steak with 3 Pepper Chimichurri
Ingredients
- 2 Strip Steaks
- 4 tbsp Mexican seasoning
- 2 tbsp Canola oil
- 1/2 cup Unsalted butter melted
- 2 Jalapenos roasted, peeled, seeded
- 2 Fresno chili roasted, peeled, seeded
- 2 Serrano chili roasted, peeled, seeded
- 2 Green onions roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup Cilantro
- 1/4 cup Parsley
- 2 tbsp Garlic
- 1/4 cup Canola oil
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 1 tbsp Black pepper
Instructions
- – Add all peppers, onions, parsley, cilantro, and garlic to food processor and pulse until mixed well
- – Set food processor to low and slowly drizzle olive oil into the mixture until all ingredients are combined
- – Salt & pepper to taste & refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to let flavors come together
- – Set grill to high heat; +500°
- – Rub steaks lightly with canola oil then season with salt, pepper, and Mexican rub
- – Place steaks directly over heat and let sear, about 2 or 3 minutes
- – Flip steak over after first side is seared and let other side sear, about 2 or 3 minutes. Begin basting the steak with the melted butter
- – Once seared move steak to indirect heat & let it finish cooking until desired doneness
- – When done cooking remove steaks from heat and let rest, minimum 5 minutes before slicing
- – After resting cut steaks and top with chimichurri, serve and enjoy