Churrasco Steak

Hey guys!!!! Back in July when me and my husband were in Key West, FL for our honeymoon we discovered cuban food. I know what your thinking because I was thinking the exact same thing ... HOW AND WHY HAVE I WAITED THIS LONG TO HAVE CUBAN FOOD?! IT'S DELICIOUS! The place we went to was called "El Meson de Pepe"but I'm sure there are tons of cuban restaurants around there. We actually stumbled upon this place by accident, it was on the first night I think and it was raining so hard (typical florida) and we didn't know where to eat yet. We realized that the restaurant was across the parking lot from us so we decided to go there, needless to say it was one of the better decisions we've ever made and we ended up eating there again before we came home. If you are ever in the area definitely go there :) The food was delicious, the atmosphere was nice (there was an outside area to have a drink and wait, and there was an option to eat inside or outside [under an awning I think - I know it had something that covered it from rain]. I had a caiprinha and my husband had a mojito (which in general he ended up really liking by the time we went home). Anyway ... so it's now been 7 months since we've had cuban food (I don't really know of any good places around me ... yet) and I've been having a huge craving for Churrasco Steak so this is my take on it. I made it for Valentine's Day last week since I don't like going out on the actual day because I feel like restaurants charge way too much for subpar food and service but thats a whole other post. Anyway I thought this made a great "date night" meal and was really easy to make ahead of time and theres minimum clean up when you do cook because most of the stuff was cleaned earlier when everything was being prepped. Ok so let's get started ...

Stuff I Used:

Tools/Materials:

• Food Processor
• Grill or Grilling Pan
• Ziploc Bag (to marinate)

Marinade Ingredients:

• Skirt Steak
• 3-4 Heads of Garlic
• 1/2 Onion
• 1 1/2 tsp Black Peppercorns
• 1 cup Orange Juice (I used Simply Orange)
• 1/4 cup Lemon Juice
• 1/4 cup Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Dried Oregano
• 1 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Cuban-Style Chimichurri Sauce (Red):

• Bunch of Cilantro
• 1/2 Bunch of Parsley
• 1 Head of Garlic (more or less depending on preference)
• 1/2 Onion
• 1 1/2 Tbsp Lime Juice
• 1/4 cup White Vinegar
• Red Sweet/Bell Pepper
• Tomato
• 1/2 tsp Dried Oregano
• Crushed Red Pepper (to taste)
• Salt and Pepper (to taste)
• 1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (to taste)

Let's Get Marinating ...

1. Mix garlic, black peppercorns, onion, salt, and oregano in a food processor
2. Place mixture in a Ziploc bag
3. Add the orange juice, lemon juice, and lime juice - mix well
4. Finally add the olive oil - whisk gently until it is all blended
5. Add the skirt steak and allow to marinate for at least 4 hours in the fridge (preferably overnight)

Let's Make the Chimichurri Sauce (Red) ...

1.  Add all ingredients EXCEPT olive oil to the food processor
2. When satisfied with the taste (should be tangy [vinegary/citrusy] and slightly spicy) remove and place in bowl
3. Add the olive oil and gently stir to blend (do NOT whisk or use a food processor) - add extra olive oil to taste (taste often, don't add too much olive oil)

Let's Get Cooking ...

1. If you have time, remove skirt steak from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature
2. Remove the skirt steak from the marinade
3. Cook on medium-high heat until you reach your steak preference (i like it medium to medium-well)
4. Remove from heat and place chimichurri sauce on top and/or on the side for dipping

I hope you guys enjoy!!! 

I served it with corn on the cob and a baked sweet potato. I also sliced up bread (couldn't find cuban bread so I used a soft baguette) to dip into the chimichurri sauce.

xoxo --- Cait K.