Flank steak is full of beefy flavor and has a great bite to it. Serving it with chimichurri, a spicy garlic and parsley based sauce, is very popular in Argentina and other South American countries. This version isn't an authentic Argentinian chimichurri but it comes pretty close. I also thicken it up with some xanthan gum to hold it all together.
Cooking the flank steak sous vide for 5 to 10 hours helps tenderize the meat, though you can simply grill it if you prefer. You can make the chimichurri sauce up to a week ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator.
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Because they use modernist ingredients, these amounts are given in metric by weight. For more information on how to measure modernist ingredients check out this article.
Preheat a water bath to 131°F (55°C).
Salt and pepper the flank steak then coat with the thyme and garlic powder. Place the flank steak in a sous vide pouch then seal. Cook the flank steak for 5 to 10 hours.
Once cooked, remove the flank steak from the sous vide pouches and pat dry. Lightly salt the outside of the steak then quickly sear or grill over high heat until the meat is just browned. Cut into thin slices.
Combine the red wine vinegar, lime juice, olive oil, and xanthan gum in a blender or food processor and process until combined well. Add the remaining ingredients and process just to combine, you still want larger pieces of the ingredients in the chimichurri. Pour the chimichurri into a container and reserve until serving.
Make a small pile of the cucumber, carrots, and cherry tomatoes. Place a few slices of flank steak over it. Top with the chimichurri and some parsley, then serve.
This article is by me, Jason Logsdon. I'm a passionate home cook who loves to try new things, especially when it comes to cooking. I've explored everything from sous vide and whipping siphons to pressure cookers and blow torches; created foams, gels and spheres; made barrel aged cocktails and brewed beer. I have also written 10 cookbooks on modernist cooking and sous vide and I run the AmazingFoodMadeEasy.com website.
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