Wrapped Around The World...

Tortilla "Alla Siciliana" con Bistecca di Manzo al Salmoriglio & Pepe Rossi

Sicilian Salmoriglio Beef & Pepper Tortilla

Take one Mexican tortilla and one slice of minute-steak with Sicilian "salmoriglio" dressing, wrap them together with grilled red pepper strips and yummy lettuce and what have you got? A terrific supper-time snack- that's what!

Of course, I could have insisted on using "piadina", which is the Roman version of a tortilla and has an equally long history there as the tortilla does in Mexico... but what I had at home was  the Mexican staple and that was just perfect and fine... and a whole lot easier to arrange in a hurry as well!

I started off by slicing the red pepper thinly, drizzling it very lightly with olive oil and giving it 3-4 minutes on a hot grill pan, along with a little salt and pepper and a tiny pinch of sugar. I didn't let the pepper cook thoroughly and soften up, but I did give it enough time to lose the crispiness of raw pepper and for the flavor of the pepper to become enhanced.

I set the peppers to one side, cranked-up the heat and turned my attention to the meat, which was a nice, large slice of "minute steak", which is usually an almost paper-thin slice of flank. I also drizzled the meat with a little olive oil and set that onto the hot pan, again for 1-2 minutes without moving it at all, in order for it to develop some nice scorch marks which a.) look attractive and b.) bring a lot of flavor with them!

I added a couple of slices of garlic to the pan and then flipped the meat over for a further 1-2 minutes.... then that was done!I seasoned it with salt and pepper and then set the meat to one side, wrapped in foil, in order for it to stay warm and to avoid losing any juices.

I then added a handful of chopped parsley and a little chopped mint, along with a splash of water to loosen up all of the good flavor that had developed in the pan. I added a splash more olive oil and a good splash of malt vinegar or red wine vinegar, about a teaspoonful of dried oregano (because I had no fresh!) and a tiny trickle of honey. I rinsed this around in the pan to pick up any loose bits and pieces and had now a wonderful dressing for my tortilla, which I was already toasting in the oven a little to get warm.

I set the meat on top of a bed of fresh salad greens , added the peppers and spooned over the savory and tangy dressing. So what I had basically done was to present a typical Sicilian "secondo piatto", wrapped in bread so that you could eat it on the go! Only I wasn't about to go anywhere... all I wanted was to sit comfortably and enjoy! And I suggest you do too!