Weeknight steak with asparagus and bb potatoes

Steak, a green vegetable, and potatoes: I’ve been making some version of this meal for most of my adult life, and I don’t expect to stop any time soon. It’s easy and fast, nourishing and totally delicious. 

The trick to making this meal an affordable staple is to rely on less expensive cuts. Top sirloin roasts or tri-tip cuts are significantly cheaper than the likes New York Strip and filet mignon, and they taste truly fantastic when they're treated with the love and respect they deserve. A versatile marinade is the perfect thing, helping to tenderize and flavor these lil guys. My go-to recipe comes together quickly, relying on an immersion blender to do all the heavy lifting, and it majorly serves salty, tangy umami realness. In many ways, it's inspired by a classic vinaigrette, but with a little bit of a twist.

In terms of the veggies, go wild and make it your own: asparagus can swap for torn kale, broccoli, snap peas, whatever you’re into. Just keep in mind that cook times obviously vary. The baby potatoes I love because they’re adorable and just the easiest, but if you want to use diced red potatoes or good old Idahoes, be my guest.

Serves 4, with leftover steak

Steak with asparagus and bb potatoes

Ingredients, for the marinade and steak:

A couple handfuls of mixed herbs, roughly chopped. I like cilantro, parsley and mint. Basil is nice. Whatever you have around.

2 scallions, sliced

4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

2 tbsp olive oil, plus 1 tbsp for your pan

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 tbsp white miso

2 tsp honey 

1 tsp dijon mustard

Salt and pepper

A top sirloin or tri tip roast (about 2 lbs), trimmed of silver skin, or any tough looking fat. Leave the some of the soft bits to help the meat cook nicely. 

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 350℉.

Throw all your ingredients (minus the steak and that third tbsp of olive oil) in a gallon zip lock bag. Knock everything into a corner and, treating the baggie almost like a bowl, use an immersion blender to puree it until it's saucy. You can use a blender or a food processor as well, but this is me on a constant quest to avoid dishes.

Taste what you've got--you want it to be punchy and pretty salty. Drop your trimmed steak into the bag and seal it with as little air as possible. Mash it all around so that your steak is coated all over, nice and cozy. Let it sit in the marinade on the counter for at least an hour.

(You can do this about five hours ahead of time and let it hang in the fridge, and could even get away with doing this in the morning before you head off to work. Just don’t marinade it overnight, the steak can sometimes get mealy. If you’re doing it ahead of time, try to take your bag'o meat out of the fridge to about an hour before hand, to bring it up to temperature.)

In the meantime, get your veggies going:

Ingredients, for the veg: 

2 bunches of asparagus, woody bits trimmed off

1 lb bag of baby potatoes, rinsed and dried

2 tbsp olive oil

Method: 

Drop each veggie on its own baking sheet. Drizzle a tbsp of oil over each and season with salt and pepper. Sometimes, on the potatoes, I’ll add a dash of garlic powder or paprika, or maybe some chives. Not necessary, but variety is fun.

Pop them in the oven. The potatoes will take about 30 mins, until they squish when you squeeze them. The asparagus will take much less time to cook--no more than 10 minutes unless they’re super thick. Keep an eye on them. They’re done when they turn super bright green and are just tender.

When you’re ready to cook the steak, heat a large, oven-safe heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat and add the reserved tbsp of oil to the pan. Remove your steak from its marinade and pat it dry. Sear it on each side for about 4 minutes. Pop the pan in the oven for about 10 mins per pound. It’s medium rare when it registers 130℉ or feels like a loose fist when you poke it.

Let it rest on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes. I usually plate and store my veggies now. Half across two plates and half in tupp.

Slice your roast against the grain in long knife strokes. Taste it and see if it needs one last pinch of salt before you serve it.