I find bavette to be one of the tastiest cuts of beef around. Cut from the animal’s strong, well-exercised abdominal muscles, the meat should be sliced against the grain to maximize tenderness; a little brining also helps. Don’t expect melt-in-the-mouth fillet here, though. This is beef that needs a little chewing, but the flavour more than makes up for that, and the smoky onions and zingy-crunchy salsa are the perfect accompaniments. Delicious.
Ingredients
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4 x 100g (3½oz) pieces of beef bavette, onglet or thinly sliced rump
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1 quantity Brine for red meat (see Basics)
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100ml (generous ¹/³ cup) extra virgin olive oil
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2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
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1 small red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
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finely grated zest of 1 lemon
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1 tsp thyme leaves
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8 large salad onions or large, bulbous spring onions
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1 quantity Crunchy Shallot and Garlic Salsa Cruda (see Basics)
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olive oil, for cooking
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sea salt and black pepper
Method
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Place the beef in the brine and leave, covered, for 1 hour.
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Drain and transfer to a clean bowl. Add the extra virgin olive oil, garlic, chilli, lemon zest and thyme, then leave to marinate for at least 1 hour.
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Light the barbecue and set for direct/indirect cooking.
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Remove the beef from the marinade, season with salt and pepper and place on the grill in the direct heat zone. Keep a close eye on the steaks: bavette cooks quickly as it is quite thin, and it shouldn’t be cooked past medium-rare otherwise it’ll be tough. Grill for 2 minutes on each side to char, then move to the cooler edge of the barbecue to rest for a couple of minutes.
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Cut the onions in half lengthwise, keeping the stalks intact. Toss them with a little olive oil, season with salt and pepper and place directly on the grill in the direct heat zone and cook for 3–4 minutes until charred and tender.
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Thickly slice the steaks and serve with the grilled onions and salsa cruda.