'Mo J' Marinated & Grilled Flank Steak
by Norman Van Aken
Toss a few red onions on the grill to serve with this dish; a salad of tomatoes and cucumbers rounds out the meal nicely. My family loves this versatile mojo on chicken as well as on flank steak. For this recipe, half of the “Mo J” mojo is used to marinate the steak; the other half is drizzled on as a sauce.
Serves 4-6
For the mojo:
12 cloves garlic (or 4 Tbs. minced garlic)
2 habaneros or other spicy chiles, cored, seeded, and minced (wear rubber gloves)
1 tsp. kosher salt
4 tsp. whole cumin seeds, toasted
1 cup olive oil
2/3 cup sour orange juice (or 1/3 cup fresh lime juice plus 1/3 cup fresh orange juice)
1-1/2 Tbs. sherry vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the steak:
1-1/2 lb. flank steak
1 or 2 large Bermuda onions, thickly sliced and brushed with olive oil (optional)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
To make the mojo:
Mash the raw garlic,chiles, salt, and cumin together in a mortar and pestle until fairly smooth. (Alternatively, use a food processor, pulsing until the ingredients are finely chopped but not puréed.) Scrape the mixture into a bowl and set aside.
Heat the olive oil until fairly hot but not smoking, and pour it over the garlic-chile mixture (the oil should sizzle when it hits the cool ingredients), stir, and let stand 10 minutes. This will cook the garlic slightly. Whisk in the sour orange juice and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool completely.
Put the steak in a zip-top bag or a shallow bowl and pour in 1 cup of the cooled mojo. Seal and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight, turning occasionally. Refrigerate the remaining 1 cup of mojo.
To cook and serve:
Light a charcoal or gas grill. When the grill is very hot, remove the steak from the marinade (discard the marinade), pat dry, and season with salt and pepper; cook 5 to 7 minutes on one side and 3 to 4 minutes on the other for medium rare. Remove from the grill and let rest for 5 minutes (If you like, grill the Bermuda onions as well—you can put them on at the same time as the flank steak; grill 6 to 7 minutes per side.) Meanwhile, warm the reserved mojo over low heat. Slice the flank steak very thinly on the bias and serve with the reserved mojo and the grilled onions.
nutrition information (per serving):
Calories
(kcal):
440;
Fat
(g):
36;
Fat Calories
(kcal):
330;
Saturated Fat
(g):
8;
Protein
(g):
24;
Monounsaturated Fat
(g):
25;
Carbohydrates
(g):
5;
Polyunsaturated Fat
(g):
3;
Sodium
(mg):
660;
Cholesterol
(mg):
60;
Fiber
(g):
1;
photo: Ben Fink
From Fine Cooking 28
, pp. 52
August 1, 1998
