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Clodagh McKenna's juicy griddled steak salad recipe

Steak salad with blue cheese and pecans: Clodagh Mckenna
Steak salad with blue cheese and pecans: Clodagh Mckenna

I am often asked how to cook a perfect steak.

First, the beef must be good quality — well-aged with lots of marbling (veins of fat running through the meat). My favourite comes from Hannan Meats, which prepares the meat for the Glenarm Shorthorn Beef company. Its unique dry-ageing method uses a humidity and temperature-controlled ageing chamber, containing a solid wall of Himalayan rock salt bricks. This results in exceptional flavour.

(Daniel Hambury/@stellapicsltd)
(Daniel Hambury/@stellapicsltd)

I take my steaks out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before cooking to relax the meat. Put a griddle pan or barbecue on to the highest heat then brush the steak with olive oil and season with sea salt and black pepper. Place the steaks on the hot pan and cook to the following times. Blue: one minute a side; rare: one-and-a-half minutes; medium-rare: two minutes; medium: two-and-a-half minutes and medium-well done: three minutes.

The blue cheese will melt into the steaks and the pecans add a sweet and nutty flavour. If you’re not a fan of blue cheese use shavings of aged Parmesan — add a balsamic dressing and roasted tomatoes, leave out the pecans and you have a traditional Italian tagliata steak.

Juicy griddled steak salad

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 5 minutes

Serve with: De Luze, Pauillac 2013, Bordeaux Claret from Sainsbury’s, £20

Ingredients (serves 2)

2 rib-eye beef steaks (150g each)

1 tbsp olive oil

70g mixed green salad leaves, washed

100g blue cheese

80g pecans, roughly chopped

1 tbsp honey

For the dressing:

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

juice and zest of ½ lemon

1 tsp Dijon mustard

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method

1. Take the steaks out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you cook them. They should be at room temperature before going in the pan.

2. Place a frying pan or griddle pan over a high heat and leave for at least one minute. Brush both sides of the steaks with olive oil and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Place them on the hot pan and cook for two minutes on each side then three minutes off the heat. This will cook them medium rare.

3. Make the dressing by whisking the extra virgin olive oil, lemon and Dijon mustard together until it becomes an emulsion. Place the salad leaves in a bowl and pour the dressing over and toss well. Divide the dressed salad leaves between two plates.

4. Placing a frying pan over a medium heat, pour in the pecans and drizzle the honey on top. Toss and cook for two minutes.

5. Slice the steaks on the diagonal, against the grain, no thicker than one-half inch. Arrange the sliced steaks on top of the salad.

6. Crumble the blue cheese and toasted honeyed pecans on top.