Accounting for Taste

Here’s another recipe using my much beloved Miso, which makes me-so-happy! This time we made sure to have the white variety on hand for the Hanger Steak with Spicy Miso Glaze. Failing to locate it in the refrigerated section of the supermarket where we’ve always found it in the past, a grocer lead us to a container sitting on a shelf in the ethnic food aisle. Who knew? We didn’t, but now we do.

What the supermarket did not have though, was hanger steak. Grrrrrr. A butcher saw our frustration and said he would order it for us to pick up later in the week. Unfortunately, that was going to be too late. For a long period of time it wasn’t even sold to the general public, reserved mostly for ground beef, or taken home by the butchers (earning it the nickname “butcher’s steak”)—hmmm, maybe they DID have some lurking in the back chiller after all…

These days, it’s become so popular that it’s no longer as dirt cheap as it used to be—after all, there are only two on each steer, and they aren’t particularly large—but it still comes in at around half to a third the price of a typical high-end steak at the supermarket. If you can’t find it, use sirloin tip steak like we did, keep in mind it just cooks more quickly.

And for this reason, we made adjustments with the directions. Figuring the steak would be overcooked if we finished it in a 400 degree oven, we eliminated that step. And good thing because after only 6 minutes of pan searing, the meat was perfectly medium-rare. And that glaze! It hinted at most of the five basic tastes—salty, sour, sweet and umami (savory)—except perhaps bitter—providing a multi-dimensional tasting experience.

So if you plan to make this delicious recipe, ask your butcher to order hanger steak for you ahead of time. Lesson learned.

Simmering the mirin, shallots, ginger, and garlic over medium heat until the mixture is syrupy and large bubbles form.

Grapeseed oil, miso, and the hot sauce are added after the skillet is removed from the heat.

Ingredients

1/2 cup mirin
2 Tbs. minced shallots
2 Tbs. minced fresh ginger
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbs. plus 2 tsp. grapeseed oil
2 tsp. light miso
1/4 tsp. Asian hot sauce, such as Sriracha
1 1-3/4- to 2-lb. hanger steak, trimmed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions

Cook the steaks over high heat, flipping once, until browned, about 4 minutes total.

We spread the glaze evenly over the steaks with a spoon instead of a pastry brush. It is here that you would put into a 400°F oven if cooking hanger steak.

Instead of putting in the oven, we cooked the sirloin a minute or two longer in the skillet until it reached 130°F to 135°F for medium rare.

After resting for five minutes, the sirloin was sliced down, topped with the glaze and sprinkled with sliced scallions.

Directions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 400°F.
Simmer the mirin, shallots, ginger, and garlic in an 8-inch skillet over medium heat until the mixture is syrupy and large bubbles start to form, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in 1 Tbs. of the grapeseed oil, the miso, and the hot sauce. Set aside.
Season the steaks generously with salt and pepper. Heat a 12-inch oven-safe skillet over high heat until very hot. Add the remaining 2 tsp. oil, swirling it until the pan is well coated. Cook the steaks, flipping once, until browned, about 4 minutes total.
Using a pastry brush, spread the glaze evenly over the steaks, transfer to the oven, and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the steak reads 130°F to 135°F for medium rare, about 4 minutes.
Transfer the steaks to a cutting board, let rest for 5 minutes, and then cut on the diagonal into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Pour any juice remaining in the pan over top and sprinkle with the scallions.

Adapted from Arlene Jacobs of Fine Cooking