Umami Dearest - Beer & Miso Sirloin Tips

No wire-y hanger steaks, ever!

With apologies to Joan Crawford (sorry, couldn't resist using that line),  I've been on an umami kick recently.  For those who don't know the term, umami is considered the fifth taste people sense on their tongue (along with sweet, salty, bitter and sour).  Often, this is best described as "savoriness".  Usually, it is the presence of chemical compounds known as glutimates that lends foods this savory quality.

Ingredients such as mushrooms, tomato paste and parmesean cheese are naturally high in glutimates.  Fermented sauces such as Vietnamese Noc Cham and soy sauce are full of them as well.  Ever wonder why monosodium glutimate (C₅H₈NNaO₄₎ is added to processed food or Chinese take out?  Think about it.  That's right, its pure flavor enhancement (provided it is added in moderate doses).

Sirloin tips are one of the better cuts of meat when it comes to balancing beefy flavor, ease of grilling and cost.  So when the local Stop & Shop had the family packs of sirloin tips on sale ($3.99 a pound) and the meat was extremely well marbled (even more flavorful), it was a perfect choice for my next tailgate faire.

I've been reading a lot of recipes lately that feature boosting umami flavor.  It really is amazing the difference adding a tablespoon of soy sauce to a crock pot braise or sautéing tomato paste in a stew will make.  So when I got an email from Weber as one of the recipes of the week, "miso marinated flatiron steaks with shiitake mushrooms", I knew I had to check it out.  Sure enough, it was not only delicious, but it was also very easily adapt for using with steak tips.

Sirloin Tips with Beer & Miso Marinade
Adapted from Weber's 'On the Grill' by Jamie Purviance

2 pounds beef sirloin tips, trimmed of extraneous fat and cut into 1" cubes
1/4 cup miso paste
1/4 cup beer, preferable a light lager or ale
2 tbsp hot water
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 scallions, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
pinch of ground black pepper
1 tsp soy sauce

Dissolve the brown sugar in the hot water and add along with all the other ingredients (other then the meat) into a mixing bowl and stir to combine.  Place the meat in a ziploc bag and add the marinade.  Squeeze the air out of the bag and seal.  Refrigerate for 2 hours (overnight at most).

To grill, drain the marinade from the beef and arrange the cubes on a medium hot grill for 4 minutes.  Turn over and grill for another 3-4 minutes for medium.  Let rest for five minutes under a piece of foil (to let the juices distribute) and serve.

Notes:
In order to get the most tender meat, I like to buy the whole strips of sirloin flap meat and cut it myself into cubes, slicing the meat against the grain.

The original recipe calls for light beer.  As you might guess, that's not exactly a staple of my beer fridge. But I did have a few cans of Yuengling lager lying around.  It really makes no sense to use an expensive beer in this recipe (the flavor nuances are diminished by the hight heat of grilling), but the Yuengling has a nice sweetness that adds to the marinade.  Also, I added the scallions to add another layer of flavor and the soy sauce for another flavor boost.  This marinade is not spicy, but really brings out the beefy flavor of the tips.

Barbecue it Like Beckham - Lemon Miso Chicken

....And we're back!!!

Hello again.  I know it's been a while, but such is the life of a multi-sport season ticket holder in New England.  With the Bruins making it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals, most of my free time has been spent at the TD Bank Garden (and the Four's).  It's not that I don't care about the Revs - far from it.  It's just that Jon's rule of conflicting sporting events has had to be invoked more than ever in the last month and a half.

For those unfamiliar with this edict, it's quite simple:  When you have tickets to two or more sporting events that take place at the same time, the game with more on the line always takes precedence.  Playoff game vs. regular season? No question - always the playoff game.

And speaking of the Bruins, I was at game 7 against the Lightning Friday night. Simply put, it was one of the greatest nights of my life, sporting-event wise.  And because I was in such a good mood, I stayed out late to celebrate.  I may have even had a celebratory libation or two (or eight).

Alas, when Saturday morning rolled around, I was hurting.  I was happy, but man was I hungover.  And with the Revs-Galaxy game that night, I hadn't prepared any food yet.  Hurting and empty-handed, what to do?

I had a bunch of chicken tenders I picked up earlier in the week on sale at Market Basket.  Already trimmed, they would need minimal preparation.  But I needed a marinade.  Something easy (my head was pounding and I wanted to get back in bed), but tasty.

So I popped open Weber's Real Grilling and literally opened it right to the poultry section.  Even better, I  came across a recipe I hadn't ever seen before - Lemon Miso Chicken.  Ever since I picked up a container of white miso on my last trip to H-Mart in Burlington, I've been looking for recipes with which to use it.  So this was a great find.  But how would it taste?  There was only one way to find out.

Lemon Miso Chicken
Adapted from Weber's Real Grilling by Jamie Purviance

1-1/2 to 2 lbs chicken tenders or chicken breast sliced into 1" strips
2 tbsp miso paste
2 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp toasted seasme oil
1 tbsp chili oil
1 tbsp siracha or hot sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tbsp ground black pepper

Place chicken in a ziploc bag.  In a bowl, combine all other ingredients and pour into bag.  Seal the bag, pressing the air out as you close it.  Mix the contents to distribute the marinade evenly.  Refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours (overnight works best).

To cook, grill over medium heat, 4-5 minutes a side, flipping the chicken over once.  Chicken should be moist and the juices running clear.

Notes:
The original recipe called for red miso, canola oil and tabasco.  I only had white miso on hand.  The red miso will have a deeper flavor, but the white worked just fine here.  I replaced the canola oil with the chili oil to give the marinade a little more kick.  And I just could not bring myself to use tabasco in an asian style marinade, so I used siracha, which gave a nice, gentile spice kick at the end.  If you have chili garlic sauce on hand, I'm sure you could use that as well.

This came out amazing.  The meat was nice and juicy and the marinade was just so very different from other soy based marinades I've used in the past.  The siracha gave a very gentile heat to the dish.  This recipe was so good, in fact, that I made it again the next day for my Memorial day cookout.