I used to order chicken satay all the time, before the chicken and corn allergies reared their ugly heads. Since I can’t have chicken, and I’ve been craving satay, I decided to try the beef version to see if that would get rid of the craving, which it did. It was so yummy. If you can have chicken, try it with chicken too and let me know how it was, so I can live through you vicariously. If you have a soy allergy (I don’t), try this with Mary Kate’s Soy-Free, gluten-free “Tamari Sauce” and let us know how it worked out for you.
Beef Satay – Gluten-free with Soy-free option
- 1 to 2 pound flank steak
Beef Satay Marinade:
- 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
- 1 small onion, peeled and diced roughly (it’s going in the blender or food processor, so don’t stress over it)
- 1 Tablespoon of Sriracha (use a safe version for you, I ferment my own at home, since I don’t have a safe version)
- 3 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce (I do well with San-J Tamari Gluten Free Soy Sauce, the alcohol is from cane sugar not corn, but if you can’t use soy, try Mary Kate’s recipe for a Soy-Free, gluten-free “Tamari Sauce” )
- 4 Tablespoons of a safe oil for you (I used grape seed and olive oil because I ran out of grape seed in the middle)
- 3 Tablespoons of brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon of dried lemongrass (if you’ve got fresh, use it, but it’s often hard to get here)
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons of ground coriander
- 2 Tablespoons of ground turmeric
Equipment:
- food processor or blender
- a baking rack
- a sheet pan safe for the broiler
- bamboo skewers (optional)
- food safe and safe for you food prep gloves – you’ll need them to put the beef on skewers or you’ll have really yellow fingers as turmeric stains, which is a vast understatement.
Place all the marinade ingredients in a food processor or blender, and puree them into oblivion. They should be the consistency of a smoothie when you’re finished.
Cut your flank steak across the grain into long strips about an inch and a half wide, as these will end up going onto skewers. Place the flank steak and the marinade into a zip top bag, making sure that the marinade covers all pieces of the flank, and squeezing out any air.
Marinate overnight, or at least 4-5 hours. When I made them, I marinated them in the morning for that evening’s dinner. I’d say that they marinated for about 10 to 11 hours and that worked fine.
If you’re using the bamboo skewers, it’d be a really good idea to soak them in water for an hour or two before cooking them. I soaked them for about 15 minutes and it was clearly not enough time, as some of the sticks charred and burned a bit (okay, a lot).
Once your flank steak is finished marinating, turn on your oven’s broiler and let it heat up. I put the oven rack in the top-most position, but you may need to move it down one depending on the height of your baking rack and baking sheet. Place the baking rack on the baking sheet, and put on your food safe prep gloves. Over a surface that won’t stain, or you don’t care if it stains (I used a cutting board), slide the strips of beef on to the skewers and put them on the rack.
When you have skewered all the beef strips, place the baking sheet in the oven and broil for 5 minutes, or until you see some crispy bits and then flip the skewers over, and broil on the other side for 5 minutes. It make take more or less time depending on how hot your oven is, or how thick your flank steak is, but you’re looking for an internal temperature of 135°F for medium rare if you’ve got a thermometer.
It make take more or less time depending on how hot your oven is, or how thick your flank steak is, but you’re looking for an internal temperature of 135°F for medium rare if you’ve got a thermometer.
Enjoy!