Recipe: Steak & Mojo Verde

I’m one of those people who really doesn’t think you can go far wrong with a good hunk of steak. For date nights, “I’ve had a bad day” meals, pay day treats, a steak is my go-to. I usually go for mine smothered in a rich and creamy mushroom pepper sauce, though if W’s cooking his whisky sauce is damn near perfection.

This recipe, however, gives my much-loved steak a pepped-up summery twist that I’ve fallen in love with. When challenged by Thomas Cook to come with up a Lanzarote-inspired recipe cooked using a volcanic rock I was initially a bit stumped. It’s been years since I’ve been to the Canary Islands, to the point it was the days of children’s hotel buffets rammed with chips and smiley faces. Whilst the sauce I’ve made is pretty potent, it’s just as delicious mixed through yoghurt for a child-friendly version – I wish this had been available to dip my smiley faces in!

I cooked the steak simply, oiling the meat (not the pan), seasoning well and searing over a smoking hot pan. Resting for a good five minutes gave an extremely juicy steak, just warm in the middle whilst still being lovely and rare. I was meant to be using a volcanic rock. Parcelforce seem to be having problems with delivered said rock, and so a pan had to do. Far less exciting, I’m pretty sure it will typically turn up today. Gives me an excuse to eat the second steak currently residing in my freezer I guess!

But the sauce (oh the sauce!) is the star of the show here. A little sharp, very garlicky, a good herby kick from the coriander and a creaminess from the copious use of a good olive oil. Pretty much the perfect sauce – it takes a good piece of blending to emulsify but it’s worth it. Perfect to drizzle over salads, spoon over steak – and scoop up with chips. I also enjoyed it stirred through yoghurt as a sauce for a falafel salad…

Ingredients (per person, plenty of sauce leftover!)

• 1 large rib-eye steak
• 1 medium potato
• 8 cloves garlic
• 1 handful coriander
• 2x 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 35ml white wine vinegar
• 50ml olive oil (+ 1 tsp and some for cooking the steak)

Pop six of the garlic cloves (unpeeled) into a small pan. Pop the lid on and put over a medium heat, shaking every now and then, for about five minutes. They should feel slightly soft, with the skins just beginning to blister. Let them cool for a bit.

Cube the potatoes (around 1″ square) and pop into a pan with some heavily salted water. Boil for ten minutes, drain off most of the water, add a spoon of olive oil, half a teaspoon of cumin and a pinch of turmeric (for colour, saffron would be better/traditional but student budget). Boil vigorously, tossing around, until the pan is pretty dry. Tip onto a tray and keep warm in a low oven.

Peel the cooled garlic, along with the two raw cloves. Pop into a food processor with 1/2 teaspoon cumin, a good pinch of salt and the vinegar. Blitz to a rough paste, then slowly drizzle in the oil, blitzing regularly. Add the coriander, then blitz for a good minute or so until thickened slightly and creamy looking.There you have it – Mojo Verde! Set aside.

Heat a pan on a high heat under almost smoking. Season your steak on both sides, drizzle with a little oil then (if you like your steak rare) cook for around 2-3 minutes on each side. Wrap in foil and rest for 4 minutes whilst you prep your salad, then slice and serve drizzled with your mojo verde.

A point to note, however – whilst I softened the garlic taste by roasting within the skin, it’s still pretty strong. Not a recipe for a romantic night in!

Are you a steak lover? How do you like it cooked and served?