Friends sometimes apologize to me for being strictly meat and potatoes lovers. No problem. I enjoy cooking both. Offering a flavorful finishing sauce proves key to pleasing everyone. I turn to the brilliance of Argentina's meat and robust condiment culture for inspiration.
Argentina's love of beef shows up in its traditional mixed grill feasts at parrillas (grill restaurants), in matambre arrollado, a stuffed beef roll, and minced fine in some of the best empanadas I've ever tasted.
All of the above are so much the better when doused with chimichurri, Argentina's go-to condiment. The uncooked sauce of herbs, garlic, olive oil and seasonings is this South American country's answer to Mexico's salsa.
In Argentina, chimichurri comes in green and red. In the United States, green chimichurri, made with lots of fresh parsley, appears on menus more often than red as marinade and finishing sauce.
In the winter months, I give love to the red version, spiked with dried red chile, because this earthy cousin to the herbaceous green chimichurri tastes stupendous with nearly anything off the grill or out of a hot oven. Richer than Mexican tomato salsa, thanks to a generous dose of olive oil, this easy-to-make condiment keeps for a week or more.
These kebabs cook quickly under a hot broiler. Also, try them cooked over a charcoal grill or on a medium-hot gas grill.
Beef Kebabs With Peppers, Mushrooms and Red Chimichurri
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
4 cloves garlic, crushed
½ teaspoon cracked black pepper
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground red chile, such as New Mexico chile or cayenne if you like it hot
1 ½ pounds boneless beef tenderloin or beef sirloin, cut into 1 ½-inch cubes (24 pieces)
12 whole baby bella mushrooms, wiped clean
2 red, orange or yellow bell peppers (or a combination), cored, cut into 11/2 inch pieces
Chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
Smoky Red Chimichurri sauce, for serving, (recipe follows)
For the marinade, put oil, vinegar, garlic, pepper, cumin, salt and red chile into a small bowl. Stir until salt is dissolved.
For each skewer, alternately thread 4 beef pieces, 2 mushrooms and 3 pieces of bell pepper onto each skewer. Put the prepared skewers onto a foil-lined baking sheet.
Spoon the marinade over the kebabs on all sides. Let kebabs stand at room temperature, 30 minutes. Or, refrigerate covered up to several hours.
Position the broiler rack 6 inches from the heat source. Heat the broiler to high. Broil the kebabs, 6 inches from the heat source, 3 minutes. Gently flip the kebabs; broil until beef is medium-rare, about 3 minutes more.
Transfer skewers to a serving platter. Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve hot with the red chimichurri sauce.
Makes 6 kebabs.
Nutrition information: Each kebab contains approximately 291 calories, 21 g protein, 21 g fat, 4 g carbohydrate (2 g sugar), 70 mg cholesterol, 70 mg sodium amd 1 g fiber.
Although this sauce is uncooked, poaching the garlic helps tame its bite.
Smoky Red Chimichurri Sauce
6 large cloves garlic, peeled
2 large shallots, very finely chopped, well-rinsed
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
¼ cup finely chopped fresh parsley or cilantro (or a combination)
1 tablespoon sweet smoked paprika
1 teaspoon sweet ground red chile, such as New Mexico powder
Scant ¾ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes
Put garlic into a small microwave-safe dish. Cover with water. Microwave on 100% power for 1 ½ minutes. Drain; cool.
Crush garlic in a press or chop finely. Mix with remaining ingredients in a small bowl. Taste and adjust seasonings.
Makes about ¾ cup.
Nutrition information: Each tablespoon contains approximately 88 calories, no, protein, 9 g fat, 2 g carbohydrate (no sugar), no cholesterol, 154 mg sodium and no fiber.
Food on 01/01/2020