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There's No Beef With Flatiron Steak

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Lynn Kessel

Published: January 30, 2008

There are three ways I know that a recipe's a winner — when it's quiet at the dinner table, when there are no leftovers and when my twin sister, Janet, e-mails me a new recipe and says, "This one's a keeper."

Funny how one phrase can predict the future of a recipe. My sister has never let me down; maybe it's our genetically shared taste buds.

Janet always seems to have a good recipe up her sleeve — this time for a grilled steak — which surprised me because that cut of beef isn't her favorite menu item. But this steak was melt-in-your-mouth good, she said, and it made a steak-loving convert out of her.

This recipe with triple "wow" factor originally called for flank steak, but her grocer didn't carry the cut, so her butcher suggested a flatiron steak.

Flatiron steak? The name conjures up images of a sizzling branding iron, chuck wagons, knotted red bandanas and cowboys sitting around the campfire after a hard day in the saddle.

When it comes to grilling steaks, I usually play it safe with filet mignon, flank or skirt steak. I was puzzled how there could be a steak I didn't know. After a few mouse clicks, however, I was able to track down the skinny. It turns out flatiron steak is a carnivore's dream come true.

The flatiron steak is a cut that was discovered by researchers at the University of Nebraska who were trying to figure out how to use traditionally less-desirable cuts.

In the process, they found the extremely tender flatiron. The cut also is called a shoulder blade or top blade steak, in reference to the region of the cow it comes from. It's not the most expensive or cheapest cut in the butcher's display. I paid $5.29 a pound.

The biggest problem seems to be finding it. Not all meat sections stock this item. If you don't find one at your grocer, ask the manager to start carrying it. If that isn't possible, I say keep looking. You won't regret it.

Resembling a small flank steak, the flatiron is considered only slightly less tender than a cut of filet mignon.

Well-marbled and robust, this steak can be grilled or broiled and is so easy to cut that marinating isn't required. However, it will quickly toughen if overcooked. A thin section of tough gristle runs lengthwise through the meat separating the flatiron into two halves, but I found the results incredible.
The steak was exactly how a great cut of beef should be.

Once again, Janet was right. This one is a keeper.

KOREAN FLATIRON STEAK
2 tablespoons McCormick Montreal steak seasoning
1/4 cup dark soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 teaspoons pure sesame oil
2 scallions, finely chopped
Vegetable oil
2 pounds flatiron steak
In a shallow dish, combine steak seasoning, soy sauce, honey, red pepper flakes, garlic, sesame oil, scallions and a drizzle of vegetable oil. Coat the flatiron steak in the mixture and let it stand 10 minutes. Preheat a stove-top grill pan, indoor electric grill or outdoor grill to medium-high. When hot, add the meat and cook five minutes on each side for medium-rare, seven to eight minutes on each side for medium-well. To serve, let the meat rest five minutes for its juices to redistribute. Thinly slice the meat at a heavy angle against the grain.

Lynn Kessel can be reached at lkessel@mac.com or P.O. Box 286, Ruskin FL 33575-0286. Readers are encouraged to send their favorite recipes, comments and suggestions.

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