Got Meat...Yeah, Ribeye Steak, the best cut ever!!!

Ribeye Steak with Garlic Mushrooms

A quick, easy and absolutely delicious meal anytime... 

The Rib Eye cut is one of my favorite pieces of meat because it's not only a little marbly (aka fatty, good fat), which gives it great texture and flavor, it's densely nutritious and satiating, especially if you buy grass fed & finished meat. The rib eye is the center piece of the rib, if it had a rib attached to it it might be called 'cowboy ribeye' or 'cowboy cut', which in my opinion is even better since a bone attached to a piece of meat (pork, chicken, beef, elf, bison, lamb, etc) usually has better flavor and is more forgiving if you accidentally overcook it...Plus, there is something gratifying about gnawing on bone at the end of meal, especially if you are paleo...HA!HA!

Although expensive ($17.99/lb) this piece a of meat (about 1 lb) equaled about 2 1/2 meals for me, (dinner - light breakfast - lunch)...It's because of the cut, it's thick, dense and has some fat...If you don't want to splurge for Rib Eye, that's OK...you can use other searing cuts of meat for this recipe...i.e. sirloin, flank, hanger, etc...  

So the technique I'm going to introduce to you to in this blog post is 'pasting the protein'. A paste for a protein is similar to marinade, but it has more seasoning instead of liquid which makes the 'marinade' denser and thicker to apply to the protein than a marinade. Plus, a marinade you usually have to soak for at least a few hours and sometimes overnight in order for it to absorb the flavors. A paste can be applied right before cooking which helps create a 'crust' on the protein and also helps insulate the meat keeping the juices inside and protecting it from overcooking.

Steak Ingredients

- 3/4 - 1 lb per person

- Paste per piece of steak:

- 1 TBS salt

- 1 TBS pepper

- 2 tsp granulated garlic

- 2 tsp smoked paprika

- 1 tsp chipotle

- 1 tsp curry

- tsp granulated onion 

- 2 tbs olive oil, just enough to create a paste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees

2. Place all paste spices in a bowl. Add oil and whisk again to combine. The mixture should be thick and dense.

3. Brush the paste on the all sides of the meat.

 Don't forget the sides...

4. Sear all sides of the meat. 

Keep searing until golden brown.

5. Place in oven to finish the cooking process. Reserve everything in pan for the sauce.

Mushroom & Garlic Sauce

Ingredients

- 6 Garlic Cloves, chopped

- 1/2 cup Red Wine Vinegar

- 2 TBS Coconut Oil

- Trumpet Mushrooms (aka King Oyster Mushrooms), chopped on a bias, see picture below

- Garnish: Parsley, chopped

- Salt and Pepper to Taste

Below are what Trumpet mushrooms look like. I love these because they are hearty and don't shrink too much like other mushrooms. They pair really well with steak, but if you can't find trumpets you can use any type of mushrooms (i.e. shiitake, oysters, portobellos, cinnamon cap, etc). Remember, don't rinse the mushrooms, wipe them with towel to clean. Also, don't salt until after cooking or it releases water and becomes soggy...nobody like soggy shrooms...

See below to see how to chop mushrooms on bias, aka at an angle.

1. While the steak is cooking, add garlic to the pan and coat with reserves in the pan. 

2. Deglaze by adding red vinegar. The alcohol in the vinegar helps cleans the pan while extracting all the fond from the bottom of the pan. Fond is the fabulous flavor left behind from searing the steak. Many people throw it away, don't be that person. It's like throwing away the bacon dippings and its free.

3. Use a whisk in order to get all the fabulous fond from the bottom and the corners of pan. Turn heat to low and simmer for 5-7 minutes. It will reduce and thicken slightly.

Note, the pan has to be really hot, so hot a steam of smoke will float up - FREE FACIAL!!! The heat will help the extraction and will burn off the alcohol. You can really use any type of alcohol in your cupboard, but I wouldn't use your good stuff.

3. Mix in 1 TBS of coconut oil to the pan. 

4. Add mushrooms to the pan. Increase heat to medium.

5. Add another TBS of coconut oil to pan and sauté mushrooms until softened, about 3-5 minutes.

6. Turn of heat and garnish with parsley.

7. Add steak back to the pan and serve.

Afternoon a weightlifting day, there is nothing I like better than a Ribeye with garlic mushrooms...

Anybody going to make this meal....