Spicy skirt steak

Kudos to Joe over at Culinary in the Country for this recipe. I saw it last Wednesday and immediately printed it out and made for dinner that night. I substituted skirt steak (or flap steak) for flank steak but otherwise I followed the recipe to the letter. It was so easy to make and tasted absolutely wonderful. All the flavors were perfectly balanced. According to Jim, the leftovers heated up quite nicely the next for lunch.

Check out Joe's recipe and picture here.

I've also copied the recipe below.
Flank Steak with Hot Peanut Sauce
(from Culinary in the Country)

1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
16 ounces trimmed flank steak, sliced diagonally into thin pieces
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon crunchy peanut butter
1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons canola oil

In a small bowl, whisk together green onions, soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, lime juice, sesame oil, crushed red pepper and garlic. Place 1/4 cup of the sauce into a zip-loc bag along with the sliced steak. Seal the bag, move the steak around so the pieces get coated and place in the refrigerator to chill for at least 2 hours.

In a small saucepan, add remaining soy mixture, water, peanut butter and cornstarch. Bring to a simmer - cook for 1 minute, stirring. Remove from the heat and keep warm. Remove steak from the marinade and discard any excess liquids.

Heat 2 teaspoons canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high - add beef and cook 2 minutes on each side, or until they are as done as you prefer. Serve with the peanut sauce and hot cooked rice, if desired.

Makes 4 servings.

Ray's the Steaks - Mystery Menu Dinner

I've written about Ray's the Steaks before and praised it's beefy goodness. What I didn't write about in that post was the fact that the owner, Michael Landrum, was working on opening a second restuarant in Silver Spring, MD. It's been a long time in the works, but he's finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

The new place, Ray's Classics, should be open in about 6 weeks, according to Mr. Landrum himself. And in order to get through the final preparations for opening Ray's Classics, he is closing Ray's the Steaks temporarily allowing him to focus on only one place.

When people first saw the notice saying Ray's was closing, a brief panic set across the area.....No more Ray's! But cooler heads prevailed and word went around that is was only temporary. Phew!

Those who read Don Rockwell found out last weekend that Michael Landrum was going to host a Rockwell event the day after he closed. Those who were interested could sign up on DonRockwell.

The menu was a mystery, the cost.....$35 (not including drinks) and Michael was going to donate half the money to two charitable groups, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and The E.L. Haynes Charter School in D.C. Naturally more people signed up than the two seating could hold so a lottery was set up. We were among the lucky ones and got in for the 8:00 seating.

I can describe the meal in three words: Oh......My........God! I say this not only because it was outstanding but the amount of food we were fed last night was almost obscene. It was an incredible amount of good food shared with five other people at our table. Who I might add were great fun to dine with.

After everyone was seated, Michael said a few words about how the meal would be presented. Basically each table would get 2 filets (each topped with a different sauce), 2 NY Strips (again topped with a different sauce), an Entrecote Diablo, a Culotte and Chateaubriand.

After Michael's announcement, appetizers were brought out. Some we were already familiar with from his menu, others were ones he planned for the new place. Cool! We get to try it before anyone else!

First out were Deviled eggs. No big deal, you say? Ha! You ain't never had deviled eggs like this before. These bad boys were stuffed with steak tartar and topped with a seasoned breadcrumb mixture. DELISH! (I apologize about the picture, we forgot to adjust the camera before taking the shot)

Deviled Eggs with Steak Tartar - Biscuit rating: 4 biscuits
(the biscuit scale rates things from 1 to 5, one being the lowest and 5 the highest)

Next up were his take on Clams Casino. I don't even like clams but these were good. Nested in a little pastry cup filled with what I think was perhaps a cream cheese mixture followed by a small square of bacon sat the bread and deep fried clam. Eaten in one or two bites, it was pretty good, perhaps a little more salt would have improved it but still very tasty just as it was.

Clams Casino - Biscuit rating: 4 biscuits

This was followed by a cup of Crab Bisque. I've heard wonderful things about the crab bisque but had yet to try it. Oh......My........It's as good as everyone raves about.

Crab Bisque - Biscuit rating: 5 biscuits

And as if that weren't enough, a plate of Shrimp Diablo and Blackened Scallops were brought out to the tables. I adore Ray's scallops! Tonight's were no exception, done perfectly and a nice zing from the blackening. The Shrimp Diablo was spicier that I remeber but still very good and spicy.

Blackened Scallops & Shrimp Diablo
Biscuit rating: 5 biscuits

This was followed by a salad (with Caesar dressing?). Hey, we needed some veggies, didn't we? This was a nice, simple and tasty salad.

Salad (no biscuit rating)

Then, finally, the steaks. When they came around to our table to take our orders, we all looked at each other and said, just bring us the whole lot......we'll share it all around. I think we may have been the only table at the 8:00 seating to do this. It was great because we got to sample everything. The waitress said since we were all sharing, she'd bring all the sauces out on the side so we could sample or add to our steaks as we liked. And as always, side dishes of mashed potatoes and creamed spinach were also brought to the table.

Above is a picture of the remains of a filet after half the table took a slice.

This is the Entrecote Diablo and below it you can see one of the two dishes of mashed potatoes.

This is the Chateaubriand (with broccoli). Sitting right underneath is one of the two NY Strips. You can see the little bowl of Brandy Cream sauce near the lower right of the picture and one of the bowls of creamed spinach in the lower left.

A view down the table (or I call it the Meat-O-Rama). In the foreground you see the Entrecote Diablo. Just above it is the Culotte and further back on the right is the Chateaubriand and on the left another of the NY Strips.

In all I would have to say the filet and the culotte were my favorites. Biscuit Boy prefered the Chateaubriand. My biscuit rating for the all the steaks - 5 biscuits

And lastly dessert. Two dark chocolate mousses, a milk chocolate mouse, a white chocolate mousse and two huge wedges of Key Lime Pie arrived at the table. Again we all played nicely and shared it all. My favorite was the dark chocolate mousse. Hubby's was the Key Lime Pie. We realized after we had eaten just about everything that we forgot to take pictures. Oops! But we were getting a little lethargic by this point.

Never before in my life have I ever been so full. When a waitress accidentally brought out more dessert dishes to our table instead of the table behind us, you could hear an audible groan from several of us at the table. I know we were thinking, no.....more.....food.......

To sum it up, we ate like kings at a pauper's price. Two thumbs up for Michael Landrum, his waitstaff and his kitchen staff. You all did a superb job and I think I now have enough beef in my belly to last me a while (or until Ray's opens up again).

Can we all say "Moo"? Dinner at Ray's the Steaks

Last night we met some friends of ours for dinner at Ray's the Steaks. This has to be the best steak I have eaten, ever. We first went to Ray's last May for a friend's birthday and have been hooked since. The owner/chef, Michael Landrum ages and butchers the beef himself. He offers the usual rib eyes, sirloins and filets as well as some cuts like hanger steaks, flat irons, and entrecote. And for those who aren't beef eaters he offers three fish entree's: Salmon (blackened, Cajun or just plain grilled), Cajun shrimp or scallops.

So let's take a trip through a meal at Ray's. After you are seated, someone will come by and give you a menu and a wine list (a five page, small font wine list). A small dish of pan roasted Cajun spiced cashews arrive as your water glass is being filled. After you drink order is taken, a small plate of the most delicious rosemary and thyme bread comes out. It's almost like a foccacia only a little bit thicker and denser. Then your dinner order is taken. Time to sit back, catch up with good friends and sip some wine.

Then the pièce de résistance arrives accompanied by little square cast iron dishes filled with creamed spinach and creamy mashed potatoes. We usually order a side order of sauteed mushrooms too. The table usually gets really quiet about this point. A waiter or host comes around and refills your wine glass as you grunt your thanks, words take too much effort when you're elbow deep in a plate of food this good.

Last night, Biscuit Boy and I split a Caesar salad and decided to do something a little different. He ordered a steak and I got the scallops. When they arrived, we shared and created our own version of surf 'n' turf. Now you may think why would I order scallops when I've raved so much about the beef. Well, I'll tell you...... These were scallops to die for. Seven big plump sea scallops, pan fried with Cajun spices to the precise point of being just done. Soft, rich and absolutely delicious. Biscuit Boy got the Blue Devil, a 14 ounce sirloin cooked with chipotle diablo sauce and served with blue cheese, grilled onions and sauteed garlic. The picture above has some of the steak, grilled onions, a few scallops and a bit of the mashed potatoes and spinach. We were so excited about our food, we almost forgot to take a picture of it. The picture at the end of the post is a close up of the steak and scallops. Try not to drool on your keyboard......

For the more adverturous there is the Cowboy Cut, a whopping 28 ounce, bone-in sirloin. This thing is huge (and comes with it's own cardiologist). We've seen this bad boy being served twice. Once to a t-shirt clad guy who did some serious damage to it and another time to a nice petite woman tuck into one with much gusto.

When you're done, any leftovers are boxed up with some fresh mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. If you have the room, there are a good deal of desserts to choose from like fresh strawberries and cream and key lime pie.

To end your dining pleasure, a small cup of hot cocoa is served during the colder months. It has to be the richest stuff ever. I think the only ingredients are chocolate and cream. And in the warmer months, a little plate of fudge or chocolate is served.

Then it's time to get up and waddle to the car, scratch your belly, moo contentedly and think about when you can go again.

Last year Ray's was named by Zagat's as the best steak place in the DC area. It beat out the likes of Ruth's Chris and Mortons. And for the price, you won't find any place that comes close to it. Dinner with a bottle of wine, an appetizer and two steaks (with the complimentary side dishes) may set you back $100 or less. Yummm....we'll be back.