Cuban Grilled Steaks Recipe
Garlicky Steaks on the Grill Get Extra Flavor from a Citrus Marinade
Cuban cooks often add dynamic flavor to their meat with a marinade that combines generous doses of garlic and citrus juice. Here, that combination of flavors is further highlighted by a quickly made salsa combining zesty, sweet, and pungent flavors.
You don't have to allow a lot of marinating time for the steaks for this Cuban recipe, though. Pounding them beforehand lets the flavors penetrate easily, and they'll be ready to cook as soon as your barbecue's coals are glowing red.
Garlic-Citrus Grilled Cuban Steaks with Orange-Onion Salsa
Serves 4
Ingredients for the steaks:
- 4 top round steaks or flank steaks, each 5 to 6 ounces
- 3 or 4 garlic cloves, peeled
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Ingredients for the salsa:
- 2 large, sweet oranges
- 1/2 red onion, very thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Method:
- Preheat the grill.
- Meanwhile, prepare the steaks. Trim any excess fat or connective tissue from the meat. One at a time, place each steak piece between two sheets of waxed paper and pound with a meat pounder until they are flattened to a thickness of about 1/2 inch.
- Press the garlic cloves through a garlic press into a large, shallow dish. Add the orange juice and lemon juice and the olive oil and stir well. Add the steaks, turning them in the mixture to coat them. Leave the steaks in the dish at room temperature.
- Next, prepare the salsa. Using a sharp knife, cut off the peel at the top and bottom of each orange, cutting thickly enough to remove the outer membrane of the orange segments as well. Then, stand each orange on a cut end and cut off the peel in strips the same way, slicing downward. Holding the peeled orange over a bowl to catch the juices, free each segment by cutting between it and the membranes on either side; cut the freed segment crosswise in half and let the halves drop into the bowl. Add the sliced onion and cilantro and toss well, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.
- When the fire is hot, carefully oil the grill rack. Remove the steaks from their marinade, pat them dry, and season with salt and pepper to taste on both sides. Place the steaks on the grill rack and cook, turning once, until done to your liking, 12 to 15 minutes total for medium. Serve the steaks, passing around the Orange-Onion Salsa for guests to spoon alongside the meat.
Tips and Variations:
- Ask the butcher to trim and pound the steaks for you.
- Try the marinade or salsa with grilled lamb, grilled pork, or grilled chicken.
- In place of the red onion, use sweet yellow onions such as Maui onions, Walla Walla onions, Vidalia onions, or Texas 1015 onions.
- Steam some white rice and mix it with canned black beans, seasoning to taste with a little minced garlic or chopped onion, to serve alongside the steak and salsa in traditional Cuban style.
- Alternatively, briefly warm corn or flour tortillas on the grill to use as wrappers for strips of the steak and spoonfuls of the salsa.
To complete the meal, serve the steaks with ice-cold beer. Or look in ethnic markets for the cola-like Cuban soft-drink Ironbeer.
For another great grilled steak recipe, check out Grilled Steaks with Cowboy Rub.
