Weeknight Grilling times two - Cumin and Sichuan Peppercorn Skirt Steak and Grilled Vegetables

We grilled the last two evenings, so I figured I'd do one last weeknight grilling post. We've been enjoying weeknight grilling.... it's all about timing, and objective is to get everything to the table in less than an hour. I've already done a post on skirt steak, so I hope you don't mind another. On Monday, I picked up some skirt steak and a ciabatta on the way home........ I thought I'd do the simple grilled skirt steak, but when I got home I decided something else.

I was inspired by something I had in Xi'an......

They call it Rou Jia Mo...... you can call it a sandwich if you want to.......

 
Basically heavily seasoned meat stuffed in bread. And Xi'an being the end of the Silk Road, you can bet this was wonderfully cumin, salt, and chili heavy.

I was also itching to use the very potent five spice from QingDao that Fifth Aunt sent home with us. It's the same five spice that she uses in her own home made sausage. First I got the hardwood charcoal going in my chimney starter. This was basically a retread of my Cumin Lamb and Grilled Cumin and Sichuan Peppercorn Lamb Chop recipes. And you all know how much I love cumin lamb.   

I marinated the skirt steak in shaosing, premium soy sauce, premium dark soy sauce, five spice (just a pinch, a little of this goes a long way) and cumin. I was out of sweet bean paste, so I used some sambal olek to add some zip.

I sliced three cloves of garlic lengthwise and sauteed them over medium-low heat until soft. I added sliced green bell pepper and sliced onion. I was going for a bit of color, and wanted the natural sugars to develop. I didn't want it too sweet, but I added some shaosing, sea salt, cumin(of course), and a dash of premium soy sauce.I'd use this as the veg for my sandwich. Figuring that this was going to be pretty strong flavorwise, and perhaps teetering on the salty side, I decided to grill some tomatoes along with the meat to add a bit of "acid" to the dish. Once everything was ready to go I seasoned the skirt steak with more ground cumin, ground Sichuan Peppercorns, sea salt, and ground chili.

Grilled medium rare, stacked on the bread toasted on the grill, all finished off with scallions and cilantro.

 
Maybe if this was a weekend I could talk the Missus into making Dan Bing.... but heck this was a weeknight.

This evening I thought I'd want something a bit lighter. I stopped by Seisel's with nothing in mind, and ended up leaving with just a couple of Veal Bratwursts....... and weeknight grilling on my mind. I picked up some local asparagus from the fruit stand, went home, got my charcoal started.... and came up with this.

I tried to use stuff we had on hand. While prepping the vegetables, I simmered the Brats in Killian's Red.... because there was a bottle in the fridge. The eggplant was coated in olive oil, oregano, and salted. The tomatoes in oil I had leftover from making garlic confit and oregano. Same oil for the asparagus, along with sea salt, and finely ground black pepper.

I grilled the vegetables.... the asparagus were thin so I didn't have to peel them. We still had ciabatta left so I sliced it, grilled it slightly with the garlic oil, and spread a little Boursin I had in the fridge.

I got my vegetable peeler and shaved some leftover imported parmigiano reggiano, and I had dinner. Funny thing the brats was my least favorite part of the meal. And it was done pretty quickly.....

I realize that these really aren't recipes per se, so thanks for hanging in there and reading. But it was fun grilling over charcoal and getting the table in less then an hour. I'm going to continue doing stuff like this over the summer and fall, but I'll get back to writing out regular recipes in the future.

Comments

[Jess]

Hi, do you know where I can buy Sichuan Peppercorn in San Diego? I looked at 99Ranch and for twice couldn't find it!

[Jo`]

Awesome Kirk! We grilled last night, chickens we raised ourselves! But, I tried a new sauce you might want to try. I used my regular spice rub and allowed them to sit with the rub a couple hours before grilling. We like to sauce at the end so that it gets sticky and a bit charred. Here's the latest sauce formula:
equal parts (we used 1/3 c. each for 2 birds)
honey
mustard
rum
apple cider vinegar
homemade ketchup (store bought won't work, wrong flavors)
Combine in a small pot and bring to a simmer. Whisk well to combine. Remove from heat when smooth.
ADD: 2 T. vanilla
The vanilla and rum are beautiful together on the chicken. I'll give you the ketchup recipe if you want.

[Cathy]

The humidity made it so hot yesterday, I admire you for starting up charcoal. I never have grilled or even toasted ciabatta, but now I will. The Rou Jia Mo looks (and with cumin, sounds) wonderful!

[Kirk]

Hi Jess - I'm pretty sure they still have Sichuan Peppercorn at 99 Ranch Market. They are in the same aisle as the spices. Used to be near the middle of the aisle. Thuan Phat also has them. If you've never boguht Sichuan Peppercorn before it can be confusing. Check out the photo of the package in this post:

http://mmm-yoso.typepad.com/mmmyoso/2009/03/t-l-food-incorporated-and-roasting-sichuan-peppercorns.html

It may only say Dried Pepper Corn or Prickly Ash.

Hi Jo - Thanks for the recipe.

Hi Cathy - You know, it really didn't feel that bad out here.....

[Carol]

The sandwich looks awesome. I love the addition of the garlic and bell peppers.

[Jeff C]

Kirk, I think your choice of grilling speaks for itself in letting the flavors of the produce and meat come through. Everything is at the height of their flavors, so going simple is the best way to really enjoy them.
I need to do this but I'm so lazy about sitting in 105 degree weather watching over a grill. THough with the right chilled beverage beside me, I think I could tolerate it.

[kat]

yummy! sounds so delicious!

[stephen]

Sounds and looks great. I just got some really nice loin lamp chops at Henry's. Gonna try your cumin lamb chop recipe.

[AZ]

Why can't I find a man who cooks? Significant Other couldn't burn his ass in a barn fire. Maybe in my next life... I hope I don't come back as a lizard or something that eats bugs. Oh yeah, the sandwich looks fabulous!

[Kirk]

Hi Carol - Just beef wouldn't have cut it... plus, I love onions and garlic.

Hi Jeffrey - Thanks. Grilling is supposed to be simple, and getting it to the table quickly means keeping things just that. Man 105..... geez it's in the high eighties here and I'm whining....

Thanks Kat!

Hi Stephen - I hope they turn out well for you!

Hi AZ - LOL! You crack me up!