Steak was on sale at my favorite store this week, so we indulged. What makes a steak Japanese? Using Kobe beef, which I cannot get here! So what else: slicing the meat into bite-sized pieces to eat with chopsticks, and serving it with ponzu dressing and grated daikon. Ms. Shimbo also has the cook marinate the beef in sake and grated daikon. She serves it with crisp fried lotus root and sweet potato—sometimes mashed sweet potato.
Japanese-Style Beef Steak
Wafu Steak
serves 2
page 459
The Steak:
- salt and pepper
- 1 pound well-marbled sirloin, cut in half, excess fat removed and reserved (I don’t know why she wants the cook to cut it in half, so I didn’t. Also, I used a rib steak, much tastier than sirloin and with the sale, about the same price)
- 2 Tablespoons sake
- 1/2 cup grated daikon
Salt and pepper the steak. Combine the sake and grated daikon. Marinate the beef, covered for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Heat a skillet and add the beef fat; I missed the part about reserving the fat, so I used 1 Tablespoon butter (suggested by the recipe). Add the beef and cook it over medium heat until the bottom is browned. Reduce heat, turn the meat over, and cook until the other side is browned and the steak is done to your liking. About 10 minutes. Remove the steak from the skillet and let it rest while you make the sauce.
The Sauce:
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 Tablespoons mirin
- 2 Tablespoons brandy, to flame (bottle was empty, so no sparks flew in my kitchen)
- 1 Tablespoon shoyu
- 1 Tablespoon butter
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
Deglaze the skillet with the water and mirin. (Light your fire now if you have brandy.) Add the shoyu and butter, cook the mixture, and add the sugar. Cook another minute.
To Serve:
Cut the beef into bit-sized pieces and place it on a plate. Pour the sauce over. Serve the Lotus Root and Sweet Potato Crisps on the side. I also made mushroom miso soup, rice, and a green salad with Umeboshi Dressing.
| ⇐ Previous Post | Next Post ⇒ | |
| Lotus Root and Sweet Potato Crisps | Buta Shabu: Pork Shabu Shabu |
Tess's Japanese Kitchen 
We can’t get Kobe beef too. Kobe beef is not in our town’s stores. Because it is very expensive. I get the other Japanese beef or American beef or Aussie beef .