Rib-Eye Steak with Red Onion Pickles

05. June 2007 Beef, Pickles + Preserves 0

Tony tore a page off his psychiatrist’s copy of Departures magazine before he got kicked out of her office. The page had a steak recipe on it. And after the bloodbath in The Sopranos last night, I could only think of eating a thick rib-eye steak for dinner. After an hour of push-ups, lunges and sprints in Central Park, I walked to the Fairway supermarket to pick up a $26 rib-eye steak. I will never know what recipe Tony wanted to replicate, but maybe Carmela will put these red onion pickles on the side.

Ingredients:
1 pound rib-eye steak, excess fat trimmed
2 cloves of garlic, minced
olive oil, salt, pepper

For the red onion pickles:
2 large red onions, peeled, sliced into thin rounds, separated into rings
1 bunch of red beets
1 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
salt

1. Pickle the red onions ahead of time. In a saucepan, cook the beets in boiling water until tender, about 30 minutes. When the beets are cooked, remove from the pan. Save 1/2 cup of the beet juice in a large bowl. In this bowl, combine the red wine vinegar, sugar, salt and 1 cup of water. Add the onions to the bowl and make sure they are completely submerged in the pickling liquid. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours.
2. Rub salt and pepper all over the steak. Drizzle with some olive oil. Using a knife, make several slits on one side of the steak and insert garlic pieces. Set aside until ready to cook.
3. Heat an oven-proof frying pan. When the pan is hot enough but not smoking, sear one side of the steak for about 8 minutes. Slowly lift with a pair of tongs and turn over to cook the other side for another 6 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and broil on high for another 5 minutes or until medium-rare.
4. Remove the steak to a chopping board and let rest for 10 minutes. Slice against the grain when ready to serve. Top with red onion pickles.