Gaucho-Style Flatbread
Gaucho-Style Flatbread topped with 'grilled' skirt steak (fraldinha) and chimichurri sauce, and served either as a quick main dish or ,when sliced, as an appetizer.
Servings 4 or more
Ingredients
- For the Skirt Steak:
- ½ cup Kikkoman® Soy Sauce
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1-½ lbs skirt steak trimmed of excess fat and cut into half crosswise
- ½ lime
- For the Chimichurri:
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 1 bunch fresh flat-leaf parsley finely chopped, about 1-½ cups
- 1 teaspoon fresh oregano finely chopped
- 1-½ limes juiced
- ¾ cup olive oil
- 1 pinch salt only enough to taste
- 1 pinch ground black pepper
- For the Flatbread:
- 4 Naan breads
- 1 teaspoon Olive oil for brushing divided
- 4 teaspoons tomato sauce divided
- 2 cups provolone cheeses divided
- Slivered or grated Parmesan cheese to atop
Instructions
- Prepare the skirt steaks: Remove steaks from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 20 minutes prior to marinating and cooking. Tenderize the meat by placing on a cutting board, covering its top with a sheet of plastic wrap, and hammer (side with spikes) on both sides. Whisk together the soy sauce, olive oil, and black pepper in a small bowl. Pour marinade into a long rectangular pyrex and lay both steaks in the marinade. Marinate the steaks for 5 to 7 minutes in one side and then flip steaks to marinate for additional 5 to 7 minutes on the other side. Remove meat from marinade and shake to remove excess marinade. NOTE: In Southern Brazil, traditionally only coarse salt is applied to the meat right before grilling on a long metal skewer over flames. The marinade with soy sauce is my own way of re-creating this family fave!
- Heat a large cast-iron griddle (flat side of the griddle without the grill marks) over high heat on a large burner.
- When griddle is sizzling hot (sprinkle a bit of water to test and let evaporate), add the steaks. Let meat get a good sear for about 2 minutes on each of both sides. Place seared steaks in double thickness of aluminum foil and wrap well to avoid heat escaping from the wrap. Place wraps onto a baking sheet, cover with an inverted pyrex, and allow to sit for 15 minutes at room temperature. Remove meat from foil, sprinkle lime juice on top, let sit for about 5 minutes, and slice thinly against the grain of the meat (or chop into fine, small slivers). Since Brazilians use cutlery to eat pizza and flatbreads, I arranged sliced steak on top of mine. If you eat pizzas and flatbreads with bare hands (American way), chop steak finely to top flatbread. This flatbread can also be simply folded like a taco!
- While meat is wrapped in foil, preheat oven to 400 degrees F, prepare the chimichurri sauce, and assemble the flatbread.
- To prepare the chimichurri sauce (a type of South American pesto): In a food processor, combine the garlic, vinegar, parsley, oregano, lime juice, and olive oil. Process enough for all ingredients to blend in together well while yet obtaining a chunky sauce. Transfer to a bowl and season with salt and pepper. Mix well and set aside.
- To assemble the flatbreads: Place the naan breads on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush each bread with ¼ teaspoon of olive oil and then, spread 1 teaspoon of tomato sauce over each bread. Sprinkle evenly about ½ cup of cheese on top of each bread.
- If you prefer to keep steak rare to medium-rare, bake flatbreads for about 8 minutes, remove from oven, and only then arrange sliced or finely chopped steak on top. Pour about 2 tablespoons of chimichurri sauce per flatbread on top of the steak, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, and serve immediately.
- However, if you do prefer steak well-done, arrange either sliced or finely chopped steak on top of the flatbread, pour 2 tablespoons of the chimichurri sauce per flatbread on top of the steak, and bake for about 4 to 5 minutes or just enough for the cheese to melt. Remove from oven and serve while still hot with the remaining chimichurri sauce and Parmesan cheese. Flatbread can be accompanied by a glass of red wine. Enjoy our Gaúcho-style flatbread!
Recipe Notes
Since Kikkoman® Soy Sauce contains sodium, do NOT add salt to the marinade.
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