Trim any fat from the sirloin, and cut a horizontal slit through it to form a pocket the length of the steak (don't cut the meat through to the other side). Spread the remaining teaspoon of olive oil in a thin film over the sirloin.
Salt and pepper the meat inside and out.
Spoon the filling into the pocket of the sirloin. Use toothpicks as needed to secure the stuffing.
Allow the charcoal to gray, spread the mesquite chips on top of the coals, and lay the steak on the grill. Cover the meat with the grill lid or a foil tent. Grill the sirloin on one side for 15 minutes, and turn it. Cook it another 10 to 15 minutes, to the desired doneness, and serve immediately.
* * *
Before refrigeration, beef preservation techniques did little to attract people to the meat. Drying maintained the flavor well but made beef hard to chew. The U.S. Army relied on salted beef, but the soldiers scorned it as "salt horse." Canning caught on in the early decades of this century, but it worked better for fruits and vegetables than for meats.
* * *
Marinated Flank Steak
Flank is the good-news, bad-news cat of beef. It can be as tough as John Wayne's boots, but if you know how to tame it, the meat has great flavor. We give you a choice of two marinades here, and then use a combination of quick cooking and thin slicing against the grain to make this steak purr. We recommend charcoal-grilling, but the steak can also be broiled.
2 flank steaks totaling about 2½ pounds
PEPPA MARINADE
½ cup soy sauce
⅓ cup Pickapeppa or Texapeppa sauce
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons dry red wine
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, minced
RED-EYE MARINADE
1 cup strong black coffee
½ cup tomato sauce
¼ cup unsalted butter
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon coarse-ground black pepper
Serves 6 to 8
Place the steaks in one layer in a shallow nonreactive pan. Combine the ingredients for one of the two marinades, and pour the marinade over the steaks. Cover the pan, and refrigerate it at least 12 hours, preferably twice that long. Turn the meat occasionally during the marinating.
Fire up enough charcoal to form a single layer of coals beneath the meat, if you are grilling outdoors, or heat the broiler.
Remove the steaks from the marinade, reserving the liquid if you used the Peppa version. Discard the red-eye marinade, which would become bitter if reheated.
Grill the meat uncovered over hot, ashen-gray coals for 4 to 5 minutes per side, or until the steaks are done to your taste. Broiling should take about the same amount of time. Let the meat rest 5 to 10 minutes before slicing it thin, across the grain.
If you used the Peppa marinade, bring the liquid to a boil in a small saucepan, allowing it to reduce by about a third, a matter of just a few minutes. Spoon some of it over the sliced meat.
Serve the meat immediately.
* * *
The first known Texas cookbook, published in 1883, says "all fresh meat" should be boiled first—20 minutes per pound—so that "the outer part contracts and the internal juices are preserved."
* * *
West Texas Ja-lop-eno Steak
This is another version of marinated flank steak, concocted and named by Mike Shannon, a political consultant, when he was living in the Midland-Odessa area. Spicy hot and full of tang, it begs to be charcoal-grilled.
1½ pounds flank steak, sliced thin across the grain
Juice from 1 14-ounce jar of pickled jalapeños
Serves 4 to 6
Roll the steak strips Into coils, and secure the coils with toothpicks. Place them in a single layer in a shallow nonreactive pan. Pour the pickling liquid over the meat. Cover the pan, and refrigerate it at least 12 hours, preferably twice as long.
On an outdoor grill, fire up enough charcoal to form a single layer of coals beneath the meat. When the coals are ashen gray, spread them evenly.
Remove the meat from the marinade, and cook it on the uncovered grill over the hot coals for 2 to 3 minutes per side, or until the meat has reached the desired degree of doneness. Take out the toothpicks, and serve the steak immediately.
* * *
Madisonville's Sidewalk Cattlemen's Association Celebration, held each June, had its origins in jest. In 1941 Henry B. Fox, publisher of the Madisonville Meteor, wrote a humorous column about people who wore cowboy boots but didn't own cattle, and then announced the formation of the Sidewalk Cattlemen's Association to regulate such behavior in Madison County. Some boor at the Associated Press took Fox seriously, and sent out a national wire story on the new group. A little girl in Boston named Audrey Mangan, who wanted some cowboy boots, wrote the Association for its OK. When the post office forwarded the letter to the Meteor, Fox decided to fly Audrey down for a barbecue and a pair of boots, inaugurating the annual Celebration.
* * *
Fajitas Borrachas
The darling of the beef business these days, fajitas aren't above getting drunk (borrachas) on tequila, a sure way to soften up ang tough critter.
2 skirt steaks, 1 to 1¼ pound each, trimmed of membrane and fat
MARINADE
1 cup red wine vinegar
½ cup tequila
¼ cup oil, preferably canola or corn
Juice of 3 limes
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 fresh jalapeños, minced
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons fresh-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
Salt to taste
16
to
20 7-inch flour tortillas, heated
Ninfa's Marinated Onions ([>])
Pico de Gallo ([>])
Guacamole ([>])
Serves 8 generously
Cut the steaks across the grain diagonally into finger-length strips. Place the meat in a shallow nonreactive dish.
Combine all the marinade ingredients in a bowl, mix them well, and pour them over the meat. Refrigerate the meat, covered, between 8 and 24 hours.
Place a cast-iron or other heavy skillet on the stove over high heat. Drain the meat strips, and fry them, in batches if necessary, for 1 to 2 minutes.
To serve, pile a platter high with the meat, and accompany the meat platter with the tortillas, onions, Pico de Gallo, and Guacamole. Let all assembled help themselves by filling flour tortillas with some of the meat and portions of the garnishes.
* * *
Technique Tip
Texans marinate fajitas (skirt steaks) in almost anything, including Italian salad dressing, pineapple juice, pickled jalapeño juice, soy sauce, beer, and Coke.
* * *
South Texas Sweetbreads
Some people today recoil at the thought of eating thymus glands, or sweetbreads, but the meat was extremely popular in Texas around the turn of the century. When prepared properly, sweetbreads are a wonderful delicacy, much milder than most organ meats and creamy in texture. This recipe is involved but not difficult, and the tasks can be spread over a couple of days.
2 pounds veal sweetbreads
4 tablespoons oil, preferably canola or corn
1
to
1½ tablespoons fresh lime juice
Salt to taste
⅓ cup pepitas (shelled raw pumpkin seeds)
1 cup stock, preferably veal or chicken
2 slices slab bacon, chopped
½ small onion, chopped fine
½ small red bell pepper, chopped fine
1 fresh serrano, minced
Pinch of dark brown sugar, optional
Serves 4 to 6
Soak the s
weetbreads in very cold water for at least 4 hours, or overnight, changing the water several times in the first hour. Drain the sweetbreads, and transfer them to a saucepan. Add enough water to cover them, and bring the water to a boil. Reduce the heat, and simmer for about 8 minutes (don't overcook the sweetbreads, or they will become tough). Drain the sweetbreads, and plunge them into ice water.
When they are cool, peel off as much of the outer membrane as pos sible, taking care to keep the sweet breads intact. Transfer them to a shallow nonreactive dish. Mix together 3 tablespoons of the oil and 1 tablespoon of the lime juice, and pour the mixture over the sweetbreads. Place a plate on top of the sweetbreads to weight them down. Refrigerate the sweetbreads 2 to 8 hours.
Drain the sweetbreads, and cut them into medallions. Salt them lightly, and set them aside.
Warm a heavy skillet over high heat. Add the pepitas, and toast them briefly until they are fragrant and popped. Transfer them to a blender. Pour in the stock, and purée the mixture. Reserve it.
Warm the same skillet over medium heat, and fry the bacon until it is browned and crisp. Remove it with a slotted spoon, and drain it. Reserve the bacon and drippings.
Stir the remaining tablespoon of oil into the bacon drippings, and warm the fat over medium heat. Add the sweetbreads, and sauté them until they are lightly crisped and colored. Remove them to a serving plate with a slotted spoon, make a foil tent over the plate, and keep the plate warm.
Add the onion, bell pepper, and Ser rano to the drippings, and saute them 3 to 4 minutes. Pour in the pepita and stock mixture, and heat it through. Taste the sauce, and adjust the sea soning, adding a little more lime juice and a pinch of brown sugar, if you like. Spoon the sauce over the sweet breads, scatter the bacon over the sauce, and serve immediately.
* * *
Technique Tip
Veal sweetbreads are the most delicate. Select meat that is white, signifying its youth, rather than red. It should be firm and plump-looking. Unprepared sweetbreads perish easily, so plan to begin their preparation the day you buy them.
* * *
Wiener Schnitzel
German immigrants to towns such as fredericksburg and New Braunfels brought this traditional version of veal cutlet from the mother country. Simple, straightforward, and sensational, schnitzel is a natural for Texas because it's a bit like a chicken-fried steak with a younger piece of meat.
4 veal cutlets, about 4 to 6 ounces each
½ cup all-purpose flour
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
2 eggs, beaten lightly with 1 tablespoon water
1¼ cups fine-textured dry bread crumbs
¾ cup unsalted butter
1 lemon, cut in half
Serves 4
Pound the veal very thin, to about ⅛ to ¼ inch in thickness.
In a shallow bowl, combine the flour with a bit of salt and pepper, but don't overdo the seasoning. Wiener schnitzel shouldn't be as assertively spiced as some chicken-fried steaks.
Place the eggs in a second shallow dish, and the bread crumbs in a third.
Melt the butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Dip each schnitzel in the flour, egg, and bread crumbs. Immediately sauté the schnitzels, turning them once, until they are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer the schnitzels to a serving platter, and squeeze the juice from one lemon half over them. Garnish with lemon wedges cut from the other lemon half, and serve immediately.
* * *
One nineteenth-century visitor to New Brctunfels said he heard so much German spoken that "I got a sore throat listening to it."
* * *
Beef Rouladen
More old Texas cookbooks include rouladen than any other german-inspired beef dish, including sauerbraten. We found as many as five different versions per book.
1
to
1¼ pounds top round steak, trimmed of fat and cut into 4 equal pieces
2 tablespoons brown or German mustard
2 slices slab bacon, cut in half crosswise
2 small tomatoes, preferably Romas or another Italian plum variety, chopped
½
to
1 large dill pickle, chopped
1 medium onion, minced
Salt and fresh-ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon oil, preferably canola or corn
1 cup unsalted beef stock
½ cup dry red wine
1 garlic clove, minced
Serves 4
Preheat the oven to 325° F.
Pound each piece of steak into an approximate rectangle about ¼ inch thick. Spread about 1 teaspoon mustard on each steak. Lay a piece of bacon over the mustard. Sprinkle about 1 tablespoon tomato, 1½ tablespoons dill pickle, 2 teaspoons onion, and salt and pepper over each steak. Reserve the remaining quantities of all toppings. Roll up each steak snugly, and secure the rolls with toothpicks.
In a cast-iron skillet, Dutch oven, or heat-proof baking dish, warm the butter and oil together over medium-high heat, and brown the beef rolls quickly. Pour the stock and wine over the rouladen, and scatter the garlic and all remaining toppings over them. Cover the pan, place it in the oven, and bake 1½ hours, until the meat is very tender. Transfer the meat to a serving platter, and spoon some of the sauce over each roll. Serve the rouladen hot.
* * *
Technique Tip
Round steaks, which come from a section of the hind leg, usually benefit from moist-heat cooking because of their toughness. Top round, which we use for the rouladen, is the best cut, and the only one worthy of a dry cooking method such as grilling.
* * *
* * *
Texas has more bovine residents than any other state, over 13 million head at last count, not much shy oi the total human population. Almost half of the agricultural income in the state comes from beef cattle, and nearly all of the 254 counties produce more revenue from cattle than any other farm or ranch commodity.
* * *
Dutch Brisket
Most recipes for cooking brisket indoors produce pale imitations of pit-smoked brisket. This recipe, however, comes from someone who has never tasted barbecued brisket, the mother of a recent Dutch immigrant, Peter Noom. It's a dish to die for—literally, perhaps, because of its richness, unless you save it for special occasions. Use margarine rather than butter because butter can't stand up to the long cooking time required.
1 small fully-trimmed brisket, about 3½ to 4 pounds, sliced into strips ½ to ¾ inch thick
Salt and cayenne
3
to
4 sticks margarine
4 cups unsalted beef stock
Serves 10 to 12
Rub the brisket strips with a moderate amount of salt and all the cayenne you can handle. Let them sit from 30 minutes to several hours.
In a large, heavy skillet, melt a stick of margarine. Fry a quarter to a third of the brisket strips in the margarine over medium-high heat, turning them frequently, until they are dark brown and a little crispy, about 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the brisket, with the margarine it was cooked in, to a stockpot or large, heavy saucepan. Add a little stock to the skillet to loosen any browned cracklings, and add them to the stockpot. Repeat this process, two or three times, with the remaining margarine and brisket.
When all the brisket has been fried, pour the remaining stock over it, submerging as much of the meat as possible in the liquid. Cover the stockpot, and simmer over low heat on the stove for 4 hours, or until the strips are meltingly tender.
You can eat the brisket immediately, but it gains flavor in the refrigerator for a day or two. Reheat it in the pot, and drain the slices before serving.
* * *
Fort Worth got its "Cowtown" nickname from its busy Stockyards, one of the biggest cattle auction grounds in the country from the turn of the century through the 1940s. The last of the major yards left in 1971, and the area is now a national historic district,
with museums, shops, restaurants, and, not to be missed, Billy Bob's Texas, "the world's largest honky tonk."
* * *
Milagro Meat Loaf
Almost any kitchen crime can be called a meat loaf, bat our version is so good one legislator threatened it with a sin tax. We named it after the milagros, or miracle charms, sold outside major churches in Mexico, because the recipe transforms a mundane dish into a family heirloom.
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
½ cup minced onion
½ green or red bell pepper, chopped fine
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
1 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground
1¼ pounds lean ground beef
¾ pound ground pork
1½ cups dry bread crumbs
¼ cup tomato-based barbecue sauce
3 tablespoons sour cream
Texas Home Cooking Page 18
