While I have had some great meals in Chicago there are certain Houston specialties that I miss. I love latin American food and I miss Michael Cordua’s restaurants. If you are a Houstonian you know how great Amazon, Churrascos and Americas are and if you are visiting Houston one of these restaurants should definitely be on you list of places to visit. I have been a bit homesick for some South American beef, so I decided to grill and create my own. One of the keys to Cordua’s amazing food is his chimichurri sauce. This versatile sauce makes a great marinade, condiment and even a dip. I am still on the hunt for a grocery store in my area that sells plantain banana chips, because they are wonderful to eat with this sauce. This recipe got a “you definitely need to make this again” vote from my family which means its a good one to share. The kebabs are easy to make. The grill time is quick so it makes a good weeknight meal, but it is showy and delicious enough to share with friends.
Chimichurri Sauce
This recipe make a cup and a half of sauce which is enough to make the marinade and still have some left to make a side of herbed rice.
- 1 Cup of Finely Chopped Parsley (which is about 1 bunch of parsley)
- 2 TBSP of Finely Minced Garlic (which was 6 cloves of garlic)
- 1/3 Cup of White Vinegar
- 2/3 Cup of Olive Oil
- 1/2 Tsp of Kosher Salt
- 1/8 tsp of Pepper
In a medium sized bowl mix all ingredients together. The sauce tastes best when it is allowed to sit in the fridge for a couple of hours to let all the flavors infuse in the oil. You will need one cup of this sauce to use as a marinade for the beef recipe below.
Chimichurri Beef Kebabs
- 1 Pound of Steak Cut into 1 Inch Cubes (I used New York strip steaks since that was what looked best at the store. I purchased 2 pounds of meat which when I trimmed the fat left me with 1 pound of steak. You could use another cut of beef as well, but make sure it is a good quality beef because it’s the star of the dish)
- 1 Sweet Yellow Onion cut into one inch chunks to thread between the beef
- 1 Cup of Chimichurri Sauce (see recipe above)
Measure out one cup of the chimichurri sauce and put it in a large ziplock bag. Then put the steak cubes in the bag and seal it to marinate in the fridge. I marinated mine for about 5 hours but this is something you could do in the morning and then leave it to marinate in the fridge all day. If you are making it right before grilling I would make sure the beef marinates for at least an hour.
Once the beef has marinated prepare your skewers by alternately threading on the beef and onion wedges.
Grill the kebobs on medium high heat for 5 minutes each side. The beef will be medium with just a little pink in the center.
I served my beef kebobs with herbed rice and seasoned black beans.
Herbed Rice
I cooked 6 cups of Basmati rice according to the direction on the package and then I added and mixed in the remaining 1/2 cup of the chimichurri sauce and a pinch of salt.
Seasoned Black Beans
For another quick side, I took one (15oz) can of black beans and I mixed in 1/2 Tsp of cumin, 1/2 Tsp of garlic powder and 1/2 Tsp of kosher salt and I heated it for three minutes in a covered microwave safe dish.
So if you are looking for a new dish to serve try these South American beef kebabs for a taste of something just a little different and delicious.
