Filipino-Style London Broil
31 Aug
When I was growing up, my mother used to make a London Broil similar to this, but she called it Family Steak. Filipino-Style London Broil is very similar to my mothers recipe, but taken up a notch. The soy sauce is what really makes this dish, adding that yummy salty flavor. I am totally in love with the citrus flavor that the lemons provide. It really helps cut through the salt and makes the steak refreshing to eat.
What make this Filipino-Style London Broil is the marinade, it is very important to make sure your meat gets the proper rest time in order to soak up all those delicious flavors and help make it tender. The nice part about this is, you make everything the night before and the next day just fire up your grill and slap the steak on. Ready to go.
You won’t find London broil on a meat cutter’s chart — it can refer to any of four beef steaks that ordinarily tend to be on the tough side: flank steak, sirloin, top round, or bottom round. When thinly sliced against the grain on a sharp diagonal, all of these give you tender ribbons of meat. To make London broil with a flank steak, pick one that’s about 3/4 inch thick. If you prefer sirloin or top or bottom round, it should be between 1 and 1 1/2 inches thick.
Filipino-Style London Broil Recipe
2 medium-sized lemons
1 cup soy sauce
½ cup distilled white vinegar
½ cup vegetable oil
1 medium-size onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
3 bay leaves, crumbled
1 tablespoon coriander seed
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 flank steak or piece of sirloin or top or bottom round steak (1 ½ to 1 ¾ pounds)
Rinse the lemons. Cut each in half and squeeze out the juice with a citrus press. Place the lemon juice in a large nonreactive mixing bowl. Cut the rind of 1 lemon into 1/4-inch dice and add it to the juice. Add the soy sauce, vinegar, oil, onion, garlic, bay leaves, coriander seed, and pepper and whisk to mix. Set aside half of the lemon juice mixture to use as a sauce.
If using flank steak, score it on both sides in a crosshatch pattern, making shallow cuts on the diagonal no deeper than 1/8 inch and about 1/4 inch apart. This will keep the flank steak from curling as it cooks; you don’t have to score sirloin or top or bottom round.
Spread half of the remaining lemon juice mixture in the bottom of a nonreactive baking dish just large enough to hold the meat. Place the meat on top and spread the other half of the lemon juice mixture over it. Let the steak marinate for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight. The beef can also be marinated in a resealable plastic bag.
When ready to cook, drain the meat, scraping off most of the marinade with a rubber spatula. Cook the beef, following the instructions below for any of the grills, until cooked to taste. To test for doneness, use the poke method; when cooked to medium-rare the meat should be gently yielding.
Transfer the meat to a cutting board and let sit for 5 minutes. Cut the meat into broad thin slices, holding a sharp knife blade at a 45-degree angle to the top of the meat. Spoon the reserved sauce over the slices and serve at once.
If You Have a…
CONTACT GRILL: When cooking on a contact grill, you’re best off using a thick cut of steak, like sirloin or round (flank steak will most likely turn out well-done). Preheat the grill; if your contact grill has a temperature control, preheat the grill to high. Place the drip pan under the front of the grill. When ready to cook, lightly oil the grill surface. Place the beef on the hot grill, then close the lid. A thick slab of sirloin or round steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 7 to 10 minutes; flank steak will be cooked to medium after 3 to 5 minutes.
GRILL PAN: Place the grill pan on the stove and preheat it to medium-high over medium heat. When the grill pan is hot a drop of water will skitter in the pan. When ready to cook, lightly oil the ridges of the grill pan. Place the beef in the hot grill pan. Sirloin or round steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 5 to 8 minutes per side; flank steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 4 to 6 minutes per side.
BUILT-IN GRILL: Preheat the grill to high, then, if it does not have a nonstick surface, brush and oil the grill grate. Place the beef on the hot grate. Sirloin or round steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 5 to 8 minutes per side; flank steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 4 to 6 minutes per side.
FREESTANDING GRILL: Preheat the grill to high; there’s no need to oil the grate. Place the beef on the hot grill. Sirloin or round steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 6 to 9 minutes per side; flank steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 5 to 7 minutes per side.
FIREPLACE GRILL: Rake red hot embers under the gridiron and preheat it for 3 to 5 minutes; you want a hot, 2 to 3 Mississippi fire. When ready to cook, brush and oil the gridiron. Place the beef on the hot grate. Sirloin or round steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 5 to 8 minutes per side; flank steak will be cooked to medium-rare after 4 to 6 minutes per side.
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