Help, please, in marinating and cooking a top sirloin steak.

[laredo]

I have a thick cut, two and a half pound top sirloin steak which I am planning to cook on a gas grill for the Fourth.

I would love instructions for from start to finish.

The store didn't have my favorite marinade today, so I tried a new kind tonight on a flat iron steak and it's really bad....so....the wind has gone out of my sails and I need somebody to think for me.

Thanks!

[laredo]

Well, I was pleasantly surprised. The steak turned out well! Good beef flavor, reasonably tender.........

I made a quick marinade of olive oil, red wine vinegar, smoked paprika, liquid smoke, Worcestershire, a few drops of soy sauce... Marinated for a couple of hours.

Brought to room temp.

My husband cooked it on the slow side of the grill. Let it rest. A few sprinkles of sea salt. Thin sliced. It was delicious.

I served it with boiled red potatoes (boiled to get rid of a lot of potassiumfor renal patient family member), haricots verts seasoned with onions sauted in bacon grease and red wine vinegar, and homemade blueberry sorbet served in corn on the cob dishes with whipped cream and strawberries.

Thanks to everyone for your help. I will try all your suggestions eventually.

Hope all had a nice Fourth of July.

[laredo]

Yes, was thinking I would need to go the thinly-sliced route.

As for "good" cut of meat, that's questionable, and that's my problem. The package doesn't say indicate what grade. I know it's not Prime.. Packed and injected (yuk) by Tyson.

I didn't have time to get the meat market. Had to make do with Wal-Mart.

Thanks to all for your kind help!

[laredo]

Addressing the why-not-sear? question, I did that last night and make a big mess on my range. What did I do wrong? Do you think the oil was too hot? When I put the meat in the cast iron skillet in which I had heated oil to a high temp, it sizzled tremendously, spewing little droplets of oil all over the range. Was a PITN to clean up.

[c oliver]

I don't add any oil to my skillet before searing steak.

[alanbarnes]

+1. What you did wrong was to put oil in the pan. I also suspect that you didn't dry the steak thoroughly before searing.

When it comes to searing a steak, there's no such thing as "too hot." My technique (such as it is) is to put a cast iron pan on a high burner and let it heat up for several minutes. Rub a little oil on the steak, then drop it in the pan. (Note - smoke alarms will go off. Disable them.) You'll still get a little spattering, but not nearly so much.

Don't be discouraged. Keep practicing, and you'll be able to cook a perfect steak every time.

[laredo]

I apparently made several mistakes:
1. oil in the pan

2. using a bad marinade when I should not have used any

3. placing soupy steaks in the hot pan

Thank you so much for the encouragement and help.

Will report on tonight's venture.

My husband wants to grill outside after last night's mess. I think I might ask him to sear it on the grill and finish in a oven.

Thanks to all.

[laredo]

The reason for marinating is to tenderize, but I'm not a steak expert, so maybe not necessary??

Thanks to all!

[thew]

marinating doest really tenderize as it doesnt get that far into the meat. good steak shouldnt need tenderizing anyway

[alanbarnes]

Top sirloin is going to have a little "chew" to it, but it shouldn't be offensively tough. And if it is, marinating isn't going to change that. If you're worried about your diners having to saw through their meat, serve it sliced thin. Makes for a more attractive presentation, anyway. But be sure to let it rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing so you end up with more juice in the meat and less on the cutting board.

[c oliver]

+1 That's why I've never understood the purpose of steak knives. If it's not tender meat, then slice it across the grain into thin slices and it cuts just fine.

[alanbarnes]

A top sirloin steak has good beef flavor. Why would you want to marinate it?

Just season generously with salt and pepper. Let stand at room temp for an hour or two (or three) to let the middle get a little bit warm. Drop it on a very hot grill to sear on each side, then drop the temp and cook it until it's medium-rare. Simple and tasty.

[goddesslily]

Here's my simple really good homemadeWorchesterire Marinade below, I use in on chicken, fish and beef
Worchesterire Sauce
Red wine Vinegar
Virgin Olive Oil
Soy Sauce-low salt
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke (optional)
1/2 teaspoon garlic
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika

[Uncle Bob]

Couldn't agree more.....Season, grill, rest, enjoy!!....It's just that simple!!

[laredo]

My friend told me only yesterday about the Four Minutes in a Very Hot Pan, Then Four Minutes in a 400 degree Oven technique. What a coincidence to be referred to it today, especially as I just tried it out on a flat iron steak.

The steak itself was tender and cooked perfectly, but the seasoning was not to my taste at all. I used All Seasons 30-Minute Mesquite Marinade. I don't like it at all! /Waste of money.

I usually use Daddy Hinkle's. That's what wasn't in stock today.

Flavor profile - I guess classic American steak flavor. Very easy on the garlic, if any, and it's critical that I use minimal sodium. There's a kidney patient guest coming.

Thanks!

. But I have to be very very careful about sodium

[ipsedixit]

That technique (sear, then finish off in the oven) is right. My only suggestion would be to use a cast iron pan if you've got one.

[laredo]

I could use an easy, low sodium marinade idea, and I want to cook this particular steak on the grill.

[John E.]

The all-purpose marinade I like (I use it on beef, pork and chicken) is a brand called Allegro, or more specifically "Original Allegro Marinade". I get it at my local grocery store, SuperTarget is where I got it the last time, but I've seen it in other stores too. Allegro Fine Foods, Paris, Tennessee. It is a soy sauce based marinade but I've never noticed the meat to get too salty from it, although after marinating overnight, I don't usually also salt the meat, just black pepper. Sometimes I add minced garlic and pepper to the meat at the same time as the marinade.

[ipsedixit]

For something like top sirlon, I actually prefer a dry rub with equal parts salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder and dry mustard.

[c oliver]

I'm curious why you want to cook it on the grill. I'm like a convert to a new religion since being introduced to the stovetop/oven method for thicker steaks. Truly.

[ipsedixit]

Have you tried the "reverse sear" method?

Preheat your oven to about 200F. At the same time put your cast iron on your stovetop to get it screaming hot. Stick your steak into the oven for about 10 minutes, or until internal temp reaches 100F. Then remove steak from oven, and sear it for about a 1 minute on each side on your cast iron pan.

Works esp. well for thicker cuts of beef.

[epabella]

heston blumenthal is partial to the reverse sear but he'll "broo-lay" the slab with a blow torch first. his oven is only at 50c (that's 122F) and he'll leave the "broo-laid" slab of meat inside for an unbelievable twenty four hours.

[ipsedixit]

I've always been very very tempted to try this, esp. when I have a nice layer of fat (or bark) on a finished steak that needs just a bit of charring to make it go down so much the better.

[alanbarnes]

Skip Williams Sonoma. Head to Home Depot.

The propane torch is perfect for steaks, scallops, and, of course, creme brulee. And if you need to solder copper pipe ("Pa, the still's leakin' again"), you're covered there too.

[epabella]

reverse searing and blow-torching is all well and good but finishing in the oven after searing is most applicable for thick slices. i myself am happy with an inch-and-a-half max for porterhouse or striploin. i'm not going to stick that steak in an oven after searing on my twenty-year-old visions pyrex skillet (fast heat for searing, way faster than cast iron) - i'm gonna eat it (devour is more accurate). with lots of toasted garlic and horse radish "pom pure-eyyy " on the side.

[smtucker]

you might get a few more responses if you told us what flavor profile you are looking for... Asian, American-South, etc. Also what marinade are you trying to replicate in case someone has created at 'make at home version.'

[c oliver]

Let me preface this with the fact I'm not familiar with top sirloin but here's a thread that's helped me hugely with really thick steaks (scroll to jfood):

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/6899...