Here's the Rub: Coffee on Steak

So the steaks got made and the grill got used. It was... ok. Not my favorite of all time. Here's the rundown on the rubdown:

I pulled the steaks out and let them warm up to room temp for about an hour. They looked lovely.










Meanwhile, I assembled the rub which ended up something like this...

1/8 c. chili powder
1/8 c. ground coffee
1 T each paprika & Lt. brown sugar
1 t each Mustard Powder, S & P, Oregano, Coriander, Cinnamon, Garlic Powder, Cayenne Pepper and Thai Red Curry paste.

...and looking like this:



Couple tips about applying rubs: bring the steaks to room temp and then brush first with a little olive oil - this will make the rub easier to spread with your hands and stick to the meat. I also recommend dumping the rub on from the bowl as opposed to dredging the meat so you can save any unused portion without worrying about it being contaminated by the raw meat.

I applied the rub and let it rest on the meat for an hour. Meanwhile, I sliced the sweet potato and carrots into "steak fry"-esque shapes before piling them on a plate and drizzling with olive oil (for the record, you will NEVER see me refer to olive oil as EVOO on here. I could shoot Rachel Ray for that) and hitting them with some s & p. I also dusted with a bit of cumin because it seemed like a good idea. A word on that...

Many times I do things while cooking that simply strike me at the time as being a good idea. I think this comes from building experience and your 'kitchen intuition' as I call it. I attribute the development of mine from working on the line in a kitchen, where you are called upon to multi-task at an incredible level. An order comes up and you throw the meat on the grill, pull out the pans you need for the sauce, the vegetable, grab what you need out of the refrigerator, unwrap stuff, throw stuff in pans, broiler up or down, check the meat, oil hot/butter melted yet for sauce? Tongs here, taste there, towel on your shoulder, plates warming in the over, check the meat! Veggie done yet? Reduce the sauce, hit with alcohol, flambe, plate warm? Turn the meat! Taste sauce, season, toss veggies, season, pull meat to rest, grab warm plates, make it look pretty, pile it on, garnish, clean the edges and get it out the door.

And that's just one entree. You're usually doing at least two of these at a time.

You only have to forget something and ruin a dish once or twice to start the mini-alarm clock growing in the back of your mind that will go off - ping! - when you need to pay attention to something. It's like one of those capsules you put in water and in an hour you have a 3 foot dinosaur. You evolve. You think on your feet and adjust as you go and make it work. You start looking at things as they cook and getting ideas. You start to trust yourself. It's pretty cool.

So I say, if you have an inkling in the kitchen of something that might work, give it a shot.

Now what the hell was I talking about? Oh yeah! The steaks! Well, the steaks were still resting so I moved on to figuring out what the heck to do with the Insanity Peppers Mark has growing in the backyard. I got an idea to roast one with some garlic and shallots in olive oil in a little hobo pack.







The Packing:

The Package:

Into the toaster oven for 1 hour at 400 degrees. I wasn't sure right then what I was going to do with the finished product but ultimately settled on mincing and mixing it with mayonnaise as a dip for the fries. The spice level was perfect!

Finally, the grill was unsheathed and fired up. On with the fries...



...and then the steaks...



Steak Fries and Meat!



Steak Fries and Meat and Captain Beyond!!

And finally, the finished product:


Much to my (our) dismay, the steak wasn't as tender as I thought it was going to be. The rub itself was wonderful - very rich with an even spice level that wasn't overpowering. The fries and mayo were also very tasty but mismatched for the meal. Overall, it was just too heavy.

NOTE TO SELF SECTION:
Next time, I'll try a more tender cut of meat (probably a Filet) and pair it with a green veggie (I'm thinking Chinese broccoli or asparagus) and a light, citrus-y sauce (probably a beurre noisette hit with some orange juice).

I give the meal 6 out of 10 Rics.



Next time, I will get the best of my rub. What?