GRILLED PICANHA WITH KIMCHI POTATOES & CHARRED BROCCOLI
created and written by Chef Nathan Hardin
In the midst of our “new norm” I decided to start cooking at home more. Sounds great right? Eh, it definitely poses a few new challenges. There are rules about leaving the house, we have to keep our distance, things just aren’t the same. With this recipe we took all that into consideration. You’ll have to make one trip, to one store (local of course), and you’ll be able to grab all the ingredients you need, and then some.
Sanwa is a farmer’s market on Hillsborough. They have been a huge part of the culinary community for years, and they continue to serve our city some of the best produce, and local dairy, while keeping costs low and approachable. This is where you will get all of the ingredients for this recipe.
For the Beef
You want to go ahead and get your grill ready. I like to stay around 450 degrees for this setup. If you do not have a grill, feel free to do this inside on a large cast iron skillet.
When it comes to the beef itself, you are going to start by taking the fat cap, and trimming the very thick parts of the cap. You can take your fingers and feel where the fat is dense, and thick. Take a knife and run it parallel with the fat and shave off thin pieces at a time until you have about ¼” of fat left throughout the entire steak. Once this is finished, you’re going to score the fat. Take a sharp knife and score the fat, just until you hit the meat, do not cut through the meat. Turn the meat 90 degrees and do the same thing. You’re trying to get a nice diamond shape with the small cuts you make.
Now we marinate. Take half of your thyme, 5 bulbs of garlic, hefty pinch of salt, and some fresh cracked black pepper, the zest from both lemons, and put this all in a mortar and pestle to create a paste. If you do not have a mortar and pestle, no problem. Take all the ingredients and chop them with your knife, the more you chop, the pastier it will get. Add a little oil to help this get pasty as well.
Now rub your meat. Get in there, get the paste in the crevices, on the fat and on the meat. Now let this bad boy rest at room temperature, until the grill is hot and ready to rock.
For the Potatoes
This is a three-step process. First we poach, then we fry, then we toss in the sauce. Easy!
To poach, you’re going to place all your potatoes into a large pot, and cover with cold water. Place some aromatics for flavor. This can be anything from thyme, rosemary, garlic, onion, bay leaf, go nuts. Season the water with salt, and place on medium heat. Do not boil, this will break the potatoes up, you want whole taters. Allow them to slowly cook until the potatoes are fork tender. You want to be able to smash the potatoes once cooled. Strain potatoes and return the large pot (now empty) back to the burners.
Place about half a pound of butter in the large pot and set on low-medium heat. Do not burn butter!
Smash the slightly cooled potatoes using a flat skillet or small pot. This allows you to keep your hands clean, and starch free. You’re going to take the smashed potatoes and place them in the butter. Do not crowd the pot. Fill the bottom of the pot with one single layer of smashed taters. It is okay if they break up in the butter, they’re going to fall apart, no biggie. Allow to cook in the butter until crispy, roughly 10 minutes for both sides to be complete. Turn halfway and continue to keep eyes on this as they can burn quickly. You want a nice even heat for this process.
Once the taters are nice and crispy, remove and place on a baking sheet, and place in oven around 250 degrees. This will keep them warm, and crunchy. Repeat the previous process until all potatoes are finished.
Back to the Beef
Grill is hot, beef is marinated and at room temperature. Now to cook. Place the steak, fat side up, and away from the direct heat. We want to render some fat before we brown the fat side. Close the lid, and allow to cook slowly, this first process is about ten minutes. Make sure to rotate your meat for even cooking.
Now that we have rendered some of the fat, we can begin cooking the fat side down. Still staying in a moderate heat zone, we don’t want to fully brown and cook the fat side, we want to go nice and slow, on indirect heat. This is a big hunk of meat, and it’s going to take roughly 30 minutes for it to fully cook.
The next twenty minutes, you’re going to want to turn, rotate, and watch the meat rather carefully. Continue to close the lid and allow an oven like cook process, but also keep a close eye. We want browned fat, slightly smoked meat, and a medium rare interior.
Make sure to use your thermometer to check the temp. We want to pull off around 115 degrees Fahrenheit. Once it rests, it should come up to about 125.
For the Broccoli
This is going to be cooked on the same grill as the beef, during the final fifteen minutes of cook time.
You’re going to break apart the broccoli heads into decent sized florets. A little larger than bite sized. They will shrink a bit on the grill. Season the broccoli florets with oil, salt, and pepper.
Now place on the direct heat of the grill. We want a heavy char, while still cooking to al dente. Continue to turn and flip the broccoli so that it gets an even cook. Should take roughly fifteen minutes from start to finish. Place on the same resting tray as the beef. Allow those beef juices to flow right onto the broccoli for some extra flavor.
To finish
Take the kimchi and begin to chop it up into small pieces, about ½”. Place into a large mixing bowl with 3 tablespoons of sambal olek, and 2 tablespoons of cold butter. Now place the hot, crispy potatoes into the same bowl and toss to coat. Taste for seasoning and adjust as you see fit. Serve in a large bowl with spoon for family style service.
Once the beef has fully rested, were going to slice. Thin as possible, while keeping the integrity of the beef. Serve on a large cutting board for family style service.
For the broccoli, I take the blood and drippings from the beef and season my broccoli. Then place this in a large dish for family style service.