Asian Beef Skewers (or Whole Flank Steak)
Yields 4-6 main dish servings, more if serving as a hors d'oeuvres.


Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce
  • 3 tablespoons sherry (see notes)
  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • 2 green onions, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (could substitute 1 teaspoon dry)
  • 1 1/2 pounds flank steak
  • Skewers, if using (if they are wooden, soak for at least 30 minutes to prevent burning)

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl, mix together hoisin sauce, sherry, soy sauce, honey, green onions, garlic, and ginger.
  2. For skewers, cut flank steak across the grain on a diagonal into 1/4 inch slices. Freezing the steak for 15-20 minutes will make it much easier to slice. Set a timer if you think you may forget to retrieve it before it freezes completely.
  3. Place slices in a 1 gallon, resealable plastic bag. Pour hoisin sauce mixture over slices, and mix well. Refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight. Conversely, you may marinate the whole flank steak.
  4. Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Discard marinade and, if cooking on skewers, thread the sliced steak on the soaked skewers. If cooking whole, allow the steak to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes prior to grilling.
  5. Over high heat, grill skewers 2 minutes per side, or to desired doneness.
  6. For the whole steak, grill for approximately 6-8 minutes per side for medium rare. This will depend a bit on the thickness of the steaks. (Our last steak was about 1-inch thick and took the higher end of this range.) Flank steak will be more tender if cooked to medium rare. Allow to rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing to allow the juices to redistribute. Then, slice thinly across the grain.

Notes

  • Sherry is used to tenderize the meat in this recipe in lieu of harder-to-find rice wine, which is a staple in Chinese cooking. I recommend regular sherry as opposed to cooking sherry, but if you don’t have sherry, you may substitute rice vinegar. I have tried this and the flavor of the finished product is pretty close.
  • Hoisin sauce is a thick, reddish-brown sauce that is sweet, spicy, and widely used in Chinese cooking. It can be found in the Asian or ethnic foods aisle of most large supermarkets as well as in Asian markets.

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