Wirral Life July 2019 | Page 46

THE BUTCHERS CUT BY MUFFS OF BROMBOROUGH TOMAHAWK STEAK REVERSE SEARING METHOD Although we have had a shaky start to this year's BBQ season with the unpredictable weather we have been having of late - the tomahawk steak is ever popular especially when it comes to the BBQ. If you buy a large tomahawk from Muffs you could be looking at £25 - £30 so you want to make sure it is cooked to perfection! When I have customers asking about tomahawks they usually ask me how many will it feed and how to cook it. Well, how many it will feed is up to your appetite! The self confessed meat loving carnivore can devour this themselves no problem. But this is also well suited to a romantic steak dinner for two with a nice bottle of wine and candles etc or even better the big get together with family and friends - cook one of these bad boys up and slice through on a platter as the centrepiece for the ultimate BBQ party. So, how to cook it? One of our South African customers put me on to the reverse searing method and I've not looked back! In a nutshell it's about gently warming the steak up then blasting it at the end to caramelise all the juices. Also here is a simple marinade recipe I often use on steak although to be honest good old salt & pepper can do the trick to let the meat do the talking. This is a great marinade though, its easy and can be used on any steak. 46 wirrallife.com MARINADE RECIPE • • • • • • 4 tbsp good oil 2 tbsp Worcester sauce 1 tsp Dijon mustard Sprig of thyme and rosemary - remove the twiggy bits! Minced garlic Good quality salt and pepper freshly ground to taste COOKING THE STEAK Cooking on the BBQ is as much about preparing the coals as it is the food. One won't work without the other so make sure you light the coals well before you want to start cooking and ensure enough coal is there to give you adequate cooking time for the food you have. Make sure the coals are grey/white before cooking and it’s a good idea to have a cool part and a hot part so you can have better control over the cooking. You can achieve this by stacking the coals at one end of the grill. Remove the steak from the fridge and make the marinade by simply mixing the ingredients together. Put the steak on a tray and rub in about half of the marinade. Make sure you really massage it into the meat well. Cover and leave out of the fridge for at least an hour so the steak has time to take on the flavours and come to room temperature. Once the coals are ready, place the steak on a cool part of the grill. You want it to start heating the steak up slightly without cooking it. If it starts getting a bit too hot, cool it down by basting with your marinade. Keep this going for about 30 minutes. By this point the steak will have taken on bags of flavour from the smoke and marinade and it will start to cook through, it should be ready to finish of with a sear! Make sure the coals are ready by staking them high in the place you would like to finish your tomahawk and ensure it's really hot. Place the steak directly on the heat now and crisp up all the edges this should only take a few minutes in total. The meat should still feel quite fleshy to the touch and not too firm. The best way to check it's done is with a thermometer probe, they can be purchased online really cheaply now, medium rare is 51 o C - 55 o C - other than this make a small slice and check its done. Trust me when you have tried this, you won't want it any other way!