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Skirt Steak With Grilled Pineapple Chow

Pineapple Skirt Steak Recipe
Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime

This whole dish comes together quickly so you have more time for liming—that’s Trini for hanging out, preferably outdoors, with food, drinks, and plenty of laughter. Chow can be made with just about any fruit, and while you can substitute another pepper for the traditional Scotch bonnet, leaving out the heat isn’t an option. If your mouth isn’t burning, it’s just not chow. —Lesley Enston, recipe developer

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What you’ll need

Recipe information

  • Yield

    4 servings

Ingredients

Steak and Sauce

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for grill
1½ lb. skirt steak
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
10 garlic cloves
2 scallions
4 culantro leaves or ¼ bunch cilantro
½ Scotch bonnet or habanero chile
¼ cup fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. sugar

Chow and Assembly

1 large pineapple
4 culantro leaves or ¼ bunch cilantro
1 garlic clove
½–1 Scotch bonnet or habanero chile
1 lime
Kosher salt

Preparation

  1. Steak and sauce

    Step 1

    Prepare a grill for medium-high heat; oil grate. Cut 1½ lb. skirt steak into 4 pieces and pat dry with paper towels. Season both sides liberally with salt and pepper and place in a baking dish or large shallow bowl.

    Step 2

    Coarsely chop 10 garlic cloves. Remove dark green parts from 2 scallions; discard. Coarsely chop white and pale green parts of scallions. Coarsely chop 4 culantro leaves or the leaves and tender stems from ¼ bunch cilantro to measure ¼ cup. Remove stem from ½ Scotch bonnet or habanero chile; cut in half and remove seeds if desired. Transfer garlic, scallions, culantro, and chile to a blender and add ¼ cup fresh lime juice, 1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar, and 1 Tbsp. sugar; blend until smooth. With motor running, gradually add ⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil in a steady stream. Pour one third of sauce over steak and turn pieces to coat. Set remaining garlic sauce aside.

    Step 3

    Grill steak until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part registers 125° for medium-rare, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board and immediately pour half of reserved garlic sauce over. Let rest 5–10 minutes.

  2. Chow and assembly

    Step 4

    Peel and core 1 large pineapple, then cut lengthwise into 8 wedges. Grill pineapple wedges until grill marks appear, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer to a clean cutting board and coarsely chop. Transfer pineapple to a medium bowl.

    Step 5

    Finely chop 4 culantro leaves or ¼ bunch cilantro or the leaves and tender stems from ¼ bunch cilantro to measure ¼ cup. Finely chop 1 garlic clove. Remove seeds from ½–1 Scotch bonnet or habanero chile and remove seeds if desired, then finely chop. Add culantro, garlic, and chile to bowl with pineapple. Cut 1 lime in half and squeeze juice into bowl; toss to combine. Season pineapple chow with kosher salt.

    Step 6

    Slice steak against the grain and arrange on a platter. Drizzle remaining reserved garlic sauce over. Serve with pineapple chow.

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