Ingredients:

1/4 cup dried porcini mushrooms

1 carrot, peeled and thinly sliced into rounds, about 1/2 cup

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced into half-moons, about 1/2 cup

1 Vidalia onion, cut into thinly sliced strips

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1 tablespoon ground black pepper

1 cup red wine

2 pounds flank steak, trimmed

1 cup Chimichurri (see box)

Grapeseed oil

Salt

 

Directions:

1. Combine the mushrooms, carrots, celery, onion, garlic, black pepper, and red wine in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add the steak, press out all the air and seal the bag. Refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

 

2. Heat a grill for direct high heat. Pull the meat out of the marinade and brush off any vegetables or herbs. Pat the meat completely dry with paper towels and brush all over with grapeseed oil. Aggressively season both sides of the steak with salt.

 

3. Scrape the grill clean and coat it with oil. Set the steak over direct heat on the grill with the grain at a 45-degree angle to the grates; grill for 5 minutes. Rotate the steak 90 degrees and grill for 3 minutes. Flip the steak so the grain is again at a 45-degree angle to the grates; grill for 5 minutes more. Rotate 90 degrees and cook to rare (120 to 125 F internal temperature), about 2 minutes longer. Transfer the steak to a plate and let the meat rest for 5 minutes. Slice the steak very thinly across the grain. Serve with the chimichurri sauce (see below). 

 

Makes 4 servings

 

Chimichurri Ingredients:

1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano leaves

1/4 cup olive oil

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon Espelette pepper

1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion

1 tablespoon finely chopped roasted red pepper

2 teaspoons garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

 

Directions:

Mix the parsley, fresh oregano and olive oil and set aside. The oil prevents the herbs from oxidizing (turning brown). In a separate bowl, whisk the vinegar, dried oregano, salt, and Espelette pepper until the salt dissolves. Stir in the onion, roasted red pepper, garlic, and red pepper flakes and set aside. Just before serving, mix the oil mixture with the vinegar mixture.

 

Makes about 1 cup

 

Prep ahead: You can make the chimichurri up to 8 hours ahead; just refrigerate the oil mixture and vinegar mixture in separate bowls. Combine them just before serving. Chimichurri is versatile. Try it on any grilled meat, on grilled shrimp or even on roasted oysters.