Recipe by: Student Chefs Silvio Luiz Maruyama Junior and Angela Ann Gallardo from Fanshawe College
Skirt Steak Niku Maki with potato and turnip cake, wasabi squash puree, sweet and sour plum reduction and pickled vegetable ribbons
This interpretation of a traditional Japanese beef roulade or “Niku Maki” will provide a balanced blend of savory, sour, sweet, richness along with an explosion of umami. Inspired by a Japanese and Canadian lunch favourite – the bento box – this dish contains all of the traditional elements including protein, pickles, deep-fried item and rice, while also incorporating many Canadian grown ingredients.
Servings: 4 portions
Prep time: 1.5 hours
Cook time: 30 minutes
Total time: 2 hours
Skirt Steak Niku Maki with potato and turnip cake, wasabi squash puree, sweet and sour plum reduction and pickled vegetable ribbons
Servings 4 servings
Ingredients
Skirt Steak Niku Maki (Roulade):
- 2 lb (900 g) skirt steak, trimmed
- ½ lb (225 g) caul fat
- 3 cups (150 g) sliced shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced ½ inch
- 1/3 bunch (20 g) chives
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) sake
- ½ pc. (20 g) shallot minced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) onion powder
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) garlic powder
- 2 tbsp (30 mL) nori powder “Aonori”
- Salt to taste
- Grounded black pepper to taste
Sweet and sour plum reduction:
- 1 cup (228 g) sugar
- ¼ tbsp (60 mL) concentrated beef or veal stock
- ½ cup (125 mL) Niagara Sherry vinegar
- ½ cup (125 mL) Ontario red wine
- ½ lb (220 g) small black plums (11 pcs.) peeled and quartered
- 2 tbsp (30 mL) grated beets uncooked and peeled
- 1 pc. gelatin sheet soaked in ¼ cup water
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp (95ml) water
- 1 g soy lecithin
Potato and Turnip Cake:
- ½ lb (225 g) Yukon gold potatoes peeled and thinly sliced.
- ½ lb (225 g) White turnip, peeled and thinly sliced
- ½ cup (125 mL) parmesan, grated
- 2 cups (500 mL) 35% cream
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 4 sprigs Thyme
- Salt and pepper to taste
Butternut Squash and Wasabi puree:
- 1 cup (250 mL) Chicken stock
- ¾ cup (180 mL) 35% cream
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) wasabi powder
- ½ tbsp (8 mL) water (to hydrate wasabi)
- Salt to taste
Rice Paper Chips (agemono):
- 2 pc. 8” (22 cm) round Rice paper
- 3 tbsp (45 mL) nori powder (“Aonori”)
- 8 cups (2 L) oil for frying
- Salt to taste
Quick pickled vegetables (tsukemono):
- ½ Carrot peeled
- ½ Green zucchini
- ½ Yellow zucchini
- 1 tsp (5 mL) of salt
- 1 tbsp (15 mL) rice vinegar
- tsp (5 mL) sugar
Instructions
- For the potato and turnip cake. Pre-heat the oven at 450 °F/ 220 °C. Line a 6 x 8” baking pan with parchment – reserve. In a medium pot combine cream, salt, pepper, thyme and garlic. Bring to simmer, add potato and turnips and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the potatoes and turnips from the pot and drain. Layer by alternating each item until they are all used, will be enough for 6 layers. Cover layers with another piece of parchment and foil then bake for 15 minutes (until fork tender) –cool it down and place some weight on top to press the layers rest overnight. Remove foil and parchment then portion into 4 equal pieces. Pan sear or fry for 2-3 minutes to reheat and brown.
- In a frying-pan, sautee sliced mushrooms, minced garlic and shallots on medium heat until mushrooms start to release water then turn it to a high heat season it, deglaze with sake and set it aside to cool down.
- Butterfly skirt steak by cutting across the center without cutting it all the way through. Open and then layer meat between two pieces of saran wrap. Pound to a ¼ inch (1/2 cm) thickness. Repeat with second piece. Place caul fat on top of your cutting board and lay steak on top season it with onion powder, garlic power, nori powder, mushrooms, chives and salt/pepper to taste, roll it and tie both ends with a butcher’s twine rest it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. Season outside of steak with salt and pepper, just prior to cooking.
- For the quick pickled vegetables. Thinly slice the carrots and both zucchini with a peeler. Place in bowl, add remaining ingredients - mix together and let it rest for at least 30 minutes or until vegetables are soft. Starting with the carrot, place on cutting board. Lay slice of green zucchini on top of the carrot slice, then repeat with the yellow zucchini. Starting at bottom, roll the layered vegetables up until a roll is formed. Reserve.
- For the reduction. In small pot, add sugar and slowly cook over low heat until all the sugar is melted and caramelizes. Using a rubber spatula, add wine to the caramel and mix it slowly until homogenized, add grated beet (for color), stock and reduce it until it the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 1.5 cups). Divide sauce into two pans – in the first pan add the plums and set it aside. For the remaining half, add water, softened gelatin and soy lecithin and using a hand mixer pulse until a foam forms and set aside and leave it in the fridge until ready to use.
- Cook butternut squash in seasoned chicken stock over medium high heat until fork tender, in a high-power blender add squash with remaining stock, slowly add 35% cream and wasabi until smooth and homogenized, strain it for a smoother consistency.
- Pre heat cast iron pan to medium high heat add canola oil and sear the steak on all sides. Place in the oven until beef reaches internal temperature of 125 °F (50 °C). Rest meat for 5 minutes then slice into 1 ½ inch pieces.
- Heat oil to 360 °F (180 °C), fry rice paper for a few second until it puffs up and break it in small pieces (approx. toonie size) and in a bowl toss it with nori powder and salt.
- Plating: spoon 45 ml. of puree on the side of the plate. Using the back of a spoon, spread it across in one motion, place the cake parallel to the puree, place 3 slices of beef maki on top of the cake and add 1 tbsp (15 mL) reduction and a few plums on top. Place 3 vegetable rolls per plate, garnish with rice paper chips and 1 tbsp (15 mL) of foam on top of the steak.
Notes
Chef’s Notes:
- Nori powder can be made by blending nori sheets on a blender until a fine powder.
- Shiitake mushrooms can be substituted by portobello or porcini mushrooms.
- Do not let your cast iron pan get smoking hot otherwise you can rip your caul fat.
- Be very gentle with your caramel so it does not crystallize.
- For a better foam an air pump (the same one used in fish thanks) can be used for a better result.
About Cooks the Books 2022
Taste Canada Cooks the Books is a cooking competition that invites Canadian culinary students from across the nation to compete for the title of Canada’s Best New Student Chefs. The 2022 students chefs selected a unique cut of beef for their recipe by exploring a new web-based education tool, the Canadian Beef Information Gateway. The Gateway has information on over 70 cuts of beef with cut descriptions, complete nutrition info per cut, how-to-cook recommendations, over 300+ recipe videos and more.