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Nicaraguan-style Steak Churrasco

A grilled steak marinated in chimichurri, served with additional sauces.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Garlic and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 25,665 recipes. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. The science ↓

Nicaraguan-style Steak Churrasco

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the steaks

  1. Place the piece of tenderloin lengthwise on the cutting board.

  2. Cut the meat into 4 flat, even horizontal strips.

  3. Place each strip between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound with the side of a cleaver or with a rolling pin to a thickness of 1/4 inch.

  4. Arrange the steaks in a nonreactive baking dish.

Make the chimichurri

  1. Combine the parsley and garlic in a food processor and process until finely chopped.

  2. Add the oil, 1/4 cup vinegar, water, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper and process to make a thick sauce.

  3. Correct the seasoning, adding salt, pepper, or vinegar as necessary; the mixture should be highly seasoned.

  4. Place half the chimichurri in a bowl or crock for serving; pour the remainder over the meat.

Marinate and grill

  1. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator, 30 minutes, turning several times.

  2. Preheat the grill to high.

  3. Oil the grill grate.

  4. Drain the beef and place it on the hot grate.

  5. Grill, turning with tongs, until cooked to taste, 1 to 2 minutes per side for medium-rare.

  6. Serve with the remaining chimichurri sauce.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

382Calories
26 gProtein
29 gFat
3 gCarbs

Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 6 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Beef100g cooked250
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  2. Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  3. Garlic + peppertop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together27,090 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Clove + red winetop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together849 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).

  5. Beef + peppertop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,971 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Beef tenderloin
Provides the lean, tender meat that is sliced and pounded into thin steaks.
Olive oil
Carries the herbs and garlic and gives the chimichurri a smooth, rich body.
Red wine vinegar
Adds acidity that brightens the sauce and helps balance its richness.
Parsley (in the method)
Supplies fresh, green flavor and bulk to the chimichurri sauce.
Garlic
Adds pungent aroma that becomes mellower as it sits in the sauce.

The step that matters

Pounding the strips to an even 1/4 inch. Even thickness lets thin steaks cook at the same rate across the grill, so thin spots do not overcook before thicker areas reach the desired doneness.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, garlic, olive, red wine, pepper):

  1. Rosemaryfits better
  2. Thymefits better
  3. Oreganofits better
  4. Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, garlic, olive, red wine, pepper. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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