Marinated bavette steak

Marinate bavette steak to tenderise and add some new flavours

Keep marinated bavette steak simple by serving it with classic rosemary fries and garden peas.

SERVES: 4
PREP TIME: 5 mins + marinating the evening before
COOKING TIME: 10 mins
DIFFICULTY: easy
IDEAL FOR: meat-treat night, midweek meal, weekend easy meal
BUDGET: £ – ££

Marinated bavette steak

Another great simple meal that will put a smile on everyone’s face.

Especially the cooks because it really is easy to do and delivers on flavour.

This marinade will tenderise the bavette steak.

But the beauty is, you can add other flavours to it if you want.

Enhance the flavours by adding spices like chilli flakes for a little heat.

Or herbs or even bourbon or maple syrup (check this recipe out).

Here is a little list of ingredients to add to this recipe marinade if you feel like it.

• 1 tsp sea salt
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp Ufra Chilli substitute Aleppo pepper or smoked sweet or hot paprika
• 1 tsp fresh lemon or lime juice and sumac
• 50 grind twists of ground pepper

If you can marinate the steak the night before, then you’ll get the best results.

And it means you only need to worry about getting the frozen peas and chips out.

Cooking the steak to perfection.

Then sitting back and enjoying a fabulous home-cooked meal.

Bavette aka flank steak

There are so many names for different cuts, it can get confusing.

Bavette is the French word for flank (steak).

It sits just below the belly, close to the hind leg.

And is a lean and very flavourful cut.

Bavette and skirt steaks can often be interchangeable as they are similar, long, and flat-shaped.

But the bavette is the superior cut.

Like the skirt, it needs careful fast, hot pan-frying and should be cooked rare and sliced thinly.

It’s also good for braising or marinating and cut thinly (across the grain)

Then there is the hanger steak (or onglet).

This steak sits in between the bavette and skirt steak and has similar beefy flavours and fibrous textures.

Buying bavette steak

If you can find one, choose a dry-aged steak; it will be a little more expensive but has a deeper flavour.

It’s a pretty lean cut but will have a little marbling.

And this is good as it will keep the meat juicy.

And fat equals flavour so you can get a nice ‘beefy’ flavour from this cut.

How to prepare bavette steak

Because bavette is quite fibrous.

So, a marinade using acidic ingredients – citrus, vinegar, alcohol, yoghurt – helps to tenderise the meat.

Or if you don’t want to use a marinade, then using a meat hammer or rolling pin will tenderise the cut.

Tips on how to ensure a cracking steak

A few basic tips:

• Make sure the meat is at room temperature before cooking.
• If you’re slicing the steak before serving, be sure to go across the grain.
• For most grill-friendly cuts, about five minutes is enough.
• And make sure you rest the meat.