This simple recipe takes about 10 minutes of prep, and rewards you with a tender, flavorful, and economical main course sure to please anyone.
Sobrebarriga Bogota is a rolled and filled flank steak that is boiled in a beer bath until flakey tender. After boiling for a couple of hours, the steak is then rolled in breadcrumbs and baked for half an hour to give a crispy crust on top. As a final touch, the roll is then placed back in the beer bath for a few minutes to coat in this rich broth.
It is a preparation that comes out of the country of Colombia and is a simple, satisfying meal.
Flank Steak
The main ingredient in this dish in the flank steak. Flank steaks are fantastic cuts of meat when you can find them: economical, flavorful, and very difficult to overcook. They are not necessarily carried by every local super-grocer, but if you have made friends with the butcher or have your own favorite butcher (and any self-respecting meat consumer should have one) then you should have no problem locating this cut.
A flank steak is a beef cut that comes from bellow the belly of the cow. Because this is a thin long piece of meat, it makes it ideal for stuffing and rolling.
The most important thing to remember when dealing with flank steak -- whether grilled, frying, or preparing this recipe -- is to slice the meat across the grain before serving. The "grain" of the meat is the direction in which the muscle cells are all aligned. If you cut with the grain, you will be preserving the integrity of these tough little morsels leaving you with stringy, tough meat. When you cut across the grain, you will be severing the cells leaving you with moist, tender slices.
Another way to further tenderize this well-worked cut is to allow for a sufficient amount of marinading before preparation. For this recipe, a full 24 hours is recommended, but up to two days would be fine.
Sobrebarriga Bogota Recipe
Ingredients:
- 2 lbs. flank steak, fat trimmed
- 2 medium tomatoes, chopped
- 1 white onion, chopped
- 1 carrot, chopped
- 2 cloves of garlic, chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon prepared mustard
- 1 Tablespoon lime juice (to add flavor and to help tenderize the steak)
- 1 bottle dark beer
- Beef stock or water
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 Tablespoons melted butter
Preparing the Roll (Prep time: 15 minutes. Marinating Time: 24 hours)
- Lay out your flank steak on a cutting board and trim off excess fat.
- In a bowl mix together tomatoes, onion, carrot, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and lime juice.
- Spread the mixture out onto the steak and roll along the grain so that when you slice it will be cutting across the grain.
- Secure the steak with butcher's twine. The easiest way is to tie a slip knot once every couple of inches.
- Place the steak in a large freeze bag, pour over any filling that has leaked out, and allow to sit in the refrigerator for at least a day.
Cooking the Steak (Cooking time: 2 hours 15 minutes)
- Place your steak in a large saucepan and cover with beer. Fill the pot with enough beef stock or water to fully submerge the steak.
- Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and allow to simmer for 2 hours.
- Preheat your broiler 15 minutes before steak is ready.
- Pull steak out of the cooking liquid and increase heat to reduce to a sauce while you broil steak.
- Drizzle melted butter over the top of the steak on a cooking sheet and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Place under the broiler under the breadcrumbs have browned. About 10 minutes.
- Remove from the broiler, remove twine, allow to sit for 10 minutes, and slice across the grain.
- Skim any particles from the top of the cooking liquid and pour into a gravy bowl.
