What's on the Grill #200: Porter Marinated Flank Steak

Flank is a good cut of beef, but not one I turn to very often.  Because of its tough nature, flank typically needs a marinade which in my day is either a) not possible because of time or b) not possible because of a lack of planning or more likely c) a combination of a & b.

Well as these things go, I picked up a flank steak at the store with no real idea what I was going to do with it over than pay for it. After getting home and skimming Epicurious, I found a recipe which called for a two hour room temperature marinade.  Thinking to myself, I have two hours and I'm at room temperature, I decided to work with the ingredients I had and give it a shot.

Porter Marinated Flank Steak
Adapted from Epicurious
1 Flank Steak
1/2 cup Porter (or other Stout beer...homebrewed for extra points)
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons ketchup
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon Asian sesame oil

Mix together all of the ingredients and place in a shallow dish with the flank steak.  Allow to marinade at room temperature for 2 hours.

Prep the grill for direct medium high.  What I do is prep the grill to direct high and then crank the heat down a tad before dropping the meat.

After two hours, drain the marinade (set aside) and pat the meat dry.  For medium rare, grill approximately 4 minutes a side.  Flank needs to be cooked hot and fast.

Place the marinade in a saucepan, bring to a boil and cook for approximately 3 minutes.  Serve with the meat.

Wow.  This turned our better than I expected.  Not only was it good for dinner, it's been great on sandwiches the last couple days.  I think the only thing I would do in the future is add some heat...maybe some diced jalapenos or maybe smokey heat with some chipotles.  Either way, I'm making it again, with or without proper planning and time.