After a nice day of hiking in Red River Gorge, I am preparing one of our favorite dinners. Sirloin Taco’s with homemade salsa and brown rice. I happened to run across this recipe when I was looking for a nice dinner to prepare some friends coming to visit us. I found the sirloin taco & roasted tomato salsa recipe through a google search on a new website I had never run across called Taunton. I new I wanted rice to go along with it and I have been a huge fan of Alton Brown’s baked brown rice recipe. Anyway, thought I would share the recipe’s with you.
Sirloin Tacos
ingredients
1 tsp. Hungarian paprika
1 tsp. dried granulated garlic
1 tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried thyme
2 lb. sirloin steak, about 1 inch thick
12 to 16 small (5-1/2- or 6-inch) flour or corn tortillas, warmed
Roasted Tomato Salsa
how to make
In a small bowl, combine the salt, paprika, garlic, pepper, and thyme; blend well. Sprinkle both sides of the steak with the dry rub and then rub it in. Let the meat sit for half an hour at room temperature.
To cook on a charcoal grill, light the charcoal (preferably hardwood) in a chimney starter. Pour the hot coals into the grill so that the coals are banked to one side. Put the grill grate on the grill. When the coals are coated in gray ash and you can hold your hand 1 to 2 inches above the grate for 2 seconds, set the meat directly above the coals to sear it until dark grill marks form, about 3 minutes per side. Or, heat one area of a gas grill on high and another on low. Set the meat on the grates on the high side and sear it until dark grill marks form, about 3 minutes per side.
When the steak is nicely marked by the hot grill on both sides, move the meat away from the coals (or to the cooler side of a gas grill) and cover the grill so it can cook indirectly. Remove the steak from the grill when it’s slightly firm to the touch and registers 130° to 135°F on an instant-read thermometer for medium rare (about another 5 to 8 minutes), or 140° to 145°F for medium.
Let the steak rest on a cutting board for at least 5 minutes before carving. To serve, trim the fat from the steak and slice the meat on the diagonal into thin strips. Serve with warm tortillas and roasted tomato salsa and let your guests assemble their own tacos.
From Fine Cooking 73, pp. 65
Roasted Tomato Salsa
ingredients
1-1/2 Tbs. fresh lime juice (from about 1/2 lime); more to taste
6 medium Roma tomatoes
3 fresh jalapeño or serrano chiles, halved lengthwise, stemmed, and seeded
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt; more to taste
how to make
In a small bowl, soak the onion in the lime juice for 15 minutes. In a dry, heavy-duty skillet (preferably cast iron) over high heat, “roast” the tomatoes, chile halves, and garlic clove until charred on all sides, about 2 to 5 minutes for the garlic, 8 to 10 minutes for the chiles, and 12 to 15 minutes for the tomatoes. Pulse in a blender; the mixture should remain slightly chunky. Transfer to a serving bowl and add the onion, lime juice, cilantro, and salt. Taste and add more salt or lime juice if needed. Use immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to a week.
From Fine Cooking 73, pp. 65
Baked Brown Rice
Alton Brown
ingredients
1 1/2 cups brown rice, medium or short grain
2 1/2 cups water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
how to make
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.Place the rice into an 8-inch square glass baking dish.
Bring the water, butter, and salt just to a boil in a kettle or covered saucepan. Once the water boils, pour it over the rice, stir to combine, and cover the dish tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.
After 1 hour, remove cover and fluff the rice with a fork. Serve immediately.
September 25th, 2008 at 10:51 pm
[…] Brown Rice […]