Steak Bites!

Fettina di Manzo Rollata, Insalata Verde & Salmoriglio
Entrecôte of Beef Rolls with Salad and Salmoriglio Dressing

The most common meat "secondo" in Sicily in the Summer, after you have just enjoyed a first course of pasta, is a "fettina", or a thin slice of beef entrecote which is usually flash-fried for maybe 1 minute on either side and then served up with a "Salmoriglio" dressing made from the meat juices, garlic, vinegar and oregano. And a delicious treat it is too- there is almost nothing better in the world than a piece of bread dipped in a still-warm Salmoriglio...


So this evening, I thought- why save the best for last  all the time and why not START an evening meal with a little bite-sized serving?  Or present it as a party-snack? Well, using only 1 slice of entrecote, (although any thinly-sliced inexpensive cut will do), I managed to make 12 of these little meaty pinwheels. And I know you can only see 9 in the photos... and that is because I ate the other 3 whilst I was making them!

I took a slice of beef and spread it with the left-over liver paté from yesterday evening. I then spread it with a chunky French mustard and laid out a few full leaves of basil onto it and then rolled it up tightly. Basically- that is all there is to it! I then cut slices of around 1" thickness from the roll and skewered them with a toothpick... and you can't get much easier than that! They were then flash-fried in a very hot griddle pan for just 1 minute on either side- just long enough to char the surface.

The "Salmoriglio" was then quickly made, by dropping a little thinly sliced garlic onto the pan and by deglazing it using a small splash of water and then following it swiftly with some freshly squeezed lemon juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, honey, oregano and parsley. The amount of each of these ingredients is a question of taste and it all depends on how many steak-bites you are making and how much sauce you want... trial and error my friends! But try it indeed- because you are going to love it!

I served mine on a bed of fresh green lettuce greens which were shredded and lightly salted, then came the meat skewers, and over the top came the warm, tangy and delicious dressing! A perfect combination! Try it and see!