Ok, my old standby has always been throw a steak in a ziplock bag with some zesty Italian dressing. That got old, so I went online, and after researching several different rubs, came up with a dry spice and fresh herb rub that will make you throw out the steak sauce. The formula is for 5 steaks about a pound each, adjust up or down. Now you want to use grass fed beef as this rub compliments the extra beefy taste nicely. The amounts stated are more suggestions than hard rules. Mess around (on cheap steaks first) until you find the combinations you like.
- 5 teaspoons Kosher Salt
- Garlic, either minced or freshly crushed. Don’t be shy, you want vampires to drop out of the sky if they fly over the grill. I use about a tablespoon to a tablespoon and a half of minced Garlic (oh, all right. I throw it in until it feels and smells right). Heads up Dracula, I am grilling tonight!
- 2 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground pepper. Black pepper alone will work, but a rainbow pepper blend adds a nice extra kick.
- 5/8 teaspoon freshly ground Coriander ( I do cheat and throw some extra in). I toast my seeds immediately before making the rub, over medium heat until you can just smell the aromatic good stuff coming off. Then get them off the heat (they can go from nicely toasted to a gnarly blackened kitchen disaster in 2 seconds) and grind by hand in a mortar and pestle. The best things in life come with some work.
- 5/8 teaspoon Cumin
- Sage, freshly chopped sage. At least two varieties if you can get them. I go with a fist full of variegated and regular sage (2 to 3 inch high stack of small leaves). Chop them up between coarse and fine.
- Worcestershire sauce and extra virgin olive oil.
Mix all the dry spices up well in a small bowl (unless you scale up for an industrial grilling session, then a large bowl). Then stir in the Sage, turning well until it is mixed in. Add the Garlic, and mix it in well.
Take the steaks and rub a little olive oil on one side. Then throw a slightly more than a teaspoon of the rub onto the steak and smear it all over (gauge this carefully, you are doing both sides and do not want to feel like an idiot if you run out). Add six dashes of the Worcestershire sauce, and press all the spicey herby goodness into the meat. Flip the suckers over and repeat on the other side.
NOW let them sit at room temperature for at least half an hour. Longer is better, keeping in mind that bacteria like steak too.
Grill away! On a nice hot grill, until you get your desired degree of done. Slap the meat on a plate, grab a fork and knife, and enjoy!
Oh, I haven’t done this yet, but throwing in red pepper flake, or chipotle powder just sounds intriguing.