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The Steakhouse 50 · make it at home

Bife de chorizo with chimichurri and provoleta

1 hour 15 minutes, plus 2 hours for the chimichurri · Serves 4

The Buenos Aires parrilla at home: a thick sirloin (bife de chorizo) cooked slowly over gentle wood coals with nothing but coarse salt, a bowl of sharp, garlicky chimichurri, and the grilled provolone that opens every meal at Don Julio and La Cabrera.

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The real one

You need

• 2 bife de chorizo (thick-cut New York strip / sirloin), each 1 1/2 to 2 inches (4 to 5 cm) thick, about 1 lb (450 g) each
• Coarse salt (sal parrillera or kosher salt)
• For the chimichurri: 1 cup (20 g) flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp dried oregano
• 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) red wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) neutral oil or mild olive oil
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) hot water
• 1 tsp salt
• For the provoleta: one 1-inch (2.5 cm) thick round of provolone (about 8 oz / 225 g)
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano and a pinch of chili flakes
• Olive oil

How to make it

1. Make the chimichurri at least 2 hours ahead: dissolve the salt in the hot water in a jar, add the garlic, oregano, chili flakes, paprika and vinegar and leave 10 minutes so the oregano softens. Stir in the parsley and the oil. Let it sit; it is better the next day.
2. Light a wood or hardwood-charcoal fire. An Argentine parrilla cooks over moderate heat, not blazing: when the coals are covered in white ash, rake them to one side and slide a shovelful under the grill as needed. You should be able to hold your hand at grill height for 5 to 6 seconds.
3. Salt the steaks generously with coarse salt just before they go on. Put them on the grill fat side toward the hotter coals.
4. Cook 8 to 10 minutes without moving them until the underside is well browned and juices bead on top, turn once, and cook 6 to 8 minutes more for jugoso (medium-rare), 125°F (52°C) inside. Stand them on the fat edge 2 minutes to crisp it.
5. Rest the steaks 5 minutes while you make the provoleta: set a small cast-iron pan on the hottest part of the grill, brush the cheese with olive oil, and cook it 2 to 3 minutes until the bottom forms a golden crust and the edges start to melt. Flip it with a spatula, cook 1 to 2 minutes more, then sprinkle with oregano and chili flakes.
6. Bring the provoleta to the table first, in its pan, with bread.
7. Slice the steaks across the grain and serve with the chimichurri spooned over or alongside, never cooked into the meat.

Tips

• In Argentina the steak is not oiled and not peppered; salt and fire only.
• Make a double batch of chimichurri; it keeps a week in the fridge.

Chef Amazing's own home version, in our words; not any restaurant's recipe.