Jono & Jules do food & wine

A warm main course salad for two with a very spicy dressing. Season the steak well before cooking and serve with some crusty bread.

Wine Suggestion: this dish has a bite with the chipotle so tread carefully and don’t pick a wine that is too dry (white) or tannic (red). A medium bodied, juicy red was our pick with the Giulio Straccali “Galileo” Vino Rosso d’Italia, a multi region blend of Sangiovese, Syrah and Primitivo. This is really clever by playing of the strengths of each grape and is really more than just the sum of its parts. Fresh, juicy, long and complex, especially considering its inexpensive price.

Warm skirt steak salad with tomatoes & chipotle dressing – serves 2 as a main course

• 400g skirt steak
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 60ml beef stock/water
• 120g tinned chipotle chillies in adobo sauce
• 60ml lime juice
• half a small frisée lettuce/other lettuce variety
• 30g baby spinach leaves
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 2 radishes, thinly sliced
• ¼ small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 avocado, diced
• a small handful of coriander leaves
• 30g pecorino cheese

Warm 1 tbsp of olive oil in a heavy frying man over a medium-high heat. Season the steak generously with salt and black pepper. Fry the steak in the oil, turning once, until both sides are well browned and it is cooked how you like it – we cooked ours for 3 minutes on each side. Remove the steak from the pan and set aside to rest.

Reduce the heat under the frying pan and sauté the garlic for a few minutes. Pour in the beef stock or water and use to deglaze the pan, scraping any sticky bits off the bottom with a wooden spoon. Turn the heat off completely and add the chipotle chillies, lime juice and enough olive oil to make a dressing (a few tablespoons). Season to taste.

Cut the steak across the grain into ½ cm thick strips.

Shred the lettuce leaves into bite-sized pieces and tip into a bowl with the spinach, tomatoes, radishes, onion, avocado & coriander. Add the steak and the chipotle dressing. Divide between 2 plates and grate some pecorino cheese over the top.

(Original recipe from Good Cooking by Neil Perry, Murdoch Books, 2016.)