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“Admit it: The one dish you really want to grill well is steak.” Barbecue expert Steven Raichlen nailed it with that line, the introduction to his new basic grilled-steak recipe. I’ll freely admit it’s the way I feel, even though I don’t eat a lot of red meat. I’ll follow that recipe to the letter, because there are few dishes that hit the way a juicy grilled steak does.
If that doesn’t work for you for the Fourth of July (or for any other night of the week), we have a lot of other recipe suggestions, including side dishes and easy desserts.
1. Grilled Steak
Admit it: The one dish you really want to grill well is steak. The one steak you should know how to grill is skirt steak. Rich and beefy, it’s relatively affordable and quick to grill. When possible, buy the outside skirt (which comes from the diaphragm) as opposed to the tougher inside skirt (which comes from the transverse abdominal muscle). When in doubt, ask your butcher. Marinating the steak, even just briefly, allows it to soak up flavor while you light your grill.
By Steven Raichlen
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 35 minutes
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 to 2 pounds skirt steaks
Neutral oil, as needed
Preparation:
1. Place the bourbon, maple syrup, soy sauce and pepper in a large baking dish; whisk to mix. Add the skirt steaks (cut in half if needed to fit) and turn a couple times to coat. Marinate the steaks at room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes.
2. While the steaks marinate, light your grill and heat to high. Brush or scrape the grill grate clean. To oil your grate, fold a paper towel into a tight pad. Dip it in a small bowl of oil, and, holding it at the end of your grill tongs, draw it over the bars of the grate.
3. Drain the skirt steaks well, saving the marinade to prepare an easy sauce, if desired (see Tip). Blot steaks dry with paper towels, then lightly drizzle them with oil on both sides.
4. Arrange the steaks diagonally on the grill grates. Grill for 1 1/2 minutes, then rotate each skirt steak a quarter turn and grill for another 1 1/2 to 2 minutes. (This gives the steaks a handsome crosshatch of grill marks and helps them cook more evenly.) If any flare-ups occur, move the steaks to a cooler section of the grill.
5. When the steaks are browned underneath and blood starts to bead on top, invert the steaks and grill the other side the same way. The total cooking time will be 3 minutes or so per side for medium-rare. (Insert the thermometer probe through the side of the steak; 135 degrees is ideal for medium-rare, 145 for medium and 155 for medium-well.)
6. Transfer the steaks to a platter or plates and let rest for 1 minute. Divide into 4 portions and serve at once.
Tip: If you’re feeling ambitious enough to make a sauce, reserve the marinade when you drain the steaks. Transfer it to a saucepan and boil until reduced by half, 3 to 6 minutes. Whisk in 2 tablespoons butter; season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Goat Cheese and Dill Dutch Baby
This savory Dutch baby, typically a sweet dish, is made by pouring a light, eggy batter into a heated pan of hot melted butter. The herb-flecked batter begins cooking on contact, and when baked, puffs and crisps and develops a tender, custard-like center. Adorned with crumbled goat cheese, fresh dill and crunchy watercress, this is also finished with a drizzle of honey plus a sprinkle of lemon juice. When served as breakfast or brunch, this one-pan meal is about as quick and straightforward as you can get.
By Yewande Komolafe
Yield: 6 servings
Total time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
1 cup/148 grams crumbled plain goat cheese
1/2 cup chopped fresh dill, plus picked fronds for garnish
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lemon
Coarse kosher salt, such as Morton
Ground black pepper
1 cup/135 grams all-purpose flour
8 large eggs
3/4 cup/190 milliliters whole milk
4 tablespoons/57 grams unsalted butter
2 cups watercress leaves with tender stems, or other tender greens such as spinach or arugula
1 tablespoon honey
Preparation:
1. In a small bowl, combine goat cheese, 1/4 cup dill and 1 tablespoon oil. Zest lemon over mixture, season with a pinch each of salt and pepper and let sit to marinate.
2. Heat oven to 425 degrees with a rack in the lower third. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add remaining 1/4 cup dill and stir. In a separate bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Whisk wet ingredients into dry until just combined.
3. Melt butter in a heavy 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Let it cook until it smells nutty and browns, about 5 minutes, swirling the skillet so that butter coats the bottom and sides of the pan.
4. Pour batter into the hot buttered skillet and spoon half of the marinated goat cheese into the center of the batter. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 22 minutes.
5. To serve, cool the Dutch baby slightly in the pan, 5 to 6 minutes. Top with watercress and dill fronds. Spoon remaining goat cheese on top and drizzle with honey and remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Slice the lemon and squeeze a wedge over the greens. Serve immediately.
3. Gochujang Burger With Spicy Slaw
This may be the perfect all-purpose sauce — BBQ, marinade, dressing — for your summer cookouts. Tangy and sweet rice vinegar cuts through the spicy richness of gochujang, and toasted sesame seed oil amps up the smokiness you get from the grill. The sauce does double duty in this recipe: It’s used to flavor the pork bulgogi-inspired patties, and it’s used as a dressing for the cucumber, sprout and carrot slaw. These burgers can also be made indoors in a large cast-iron or heavy skillet over medium-high heat.
By Rick A. Martínez
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 45 minutes
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons gochujang
3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for hands, grill grates and brushing on patties
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
1 1/2 pounds ground pork
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
1 medium Kirby cucumber, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
2 ounces soy bean sprouts, rinsed and drained (about 1 cup)
1 large carrot, grated on the large holes of a box grater
2 scallions, thinly sliced
4 burger buns, split
Mayonnaise, for serving
Preparation:
1. Whisk together the gochujang, vinegar, olive oil, sesame oil, sugar and garlic in a large bowl; transfer half of the mixture to a medium bowl and set aside until ready to use.
2. Add the pork, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper to the large bowl with half of the gochujang mixture. Using 2 forks, begin “pulling” the ground pork apart as if you were shredding pulled pork, breaking up the clumps and incorporating the ingredients together without compacting the meat into a dense mass. Continue to pull the meat apart until thoroughly mixed and no clumps of pork remain, and all of the gochujang mixture has been absorbed.
3. Lightly oil your hands. Working one at a time, divide the pork mixture into 4 equal portions; roll gently between your hands into balls. Arrange on a rimmed baking sheet and flatten to patties about 1-inch thick.
4. Toss the cucumber, sprouts, carrot and scallions in the medium bowl with the reserved gochujang mixture until completely coated; season with salt and pepper. Let sit until ready to serve.
5. Prepare a grill for medium-high direct heat. Clean and oil the grates.
6. Grill the buns until toasted on both sides, about 30 seconds to 1 minute per side. Transfer to a baking sheet. Brush the patties on both sides with oil and grill until lightly charred on both sides and just cooked through, about 4 minutes per side, closing the grill top between flips as needed if using a gas grill. Transfer the burgers to a plate and let sit for 5 minutes.
7. Spread mayonnaise on the top and bottom sides of each bun. Top with burgers and gochujang slaw and serve.
Grilled Za’atar Chicken With Garlic Yogurt and Cilantro. This great recipe uses yogurt in the marinade for a juicier piece of chicken as well as za’atar for a more delicious one. Food Stylist: Simon Andews. (Ryan Liebe/The New York Times)
4. Grilled Za’atar Chicken With Garlic Yogurt and Cilantro
This garlicky, herby chicken is full-flavored and very tender, thanks to its piquant yogurt marinade. It’s flexible, too — marinate the meat for as little as a couple of hours, or as long as overnight. And the chicken is just as good cooked under the broiler as it is on the grill (see Tip). You can serve this dish with almost anything, but it’s especially nice with pita or other flatbread and a big cucumber and tomato salad. And if you’re looking to substitute chicken breasts for the thighs, you can. Just watch them carefully; they’re likely to cook faster than the dark meat.
By Melissa Clark
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Total time: 30 minutes, plus marinating time
Ingredients:
6 garlic cloves, finely grated, pressed, or minced
2 lemons, zested
1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more sprigs for garnish
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for serving
1 1/2 tablespoons za’atar, plus more for serving
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or marjoram, plus more sprigs for garnish
1 3/4 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Preparation:
1. In a large bowl or container, stir together 5 of the grated garlic cloves, half the lemon zest, 1/3 cup yogurt, the cilantro, oil, za’atar, oregano or marjoram, salt and black pepper. Add chicken and toss until well coated. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
2. When ready to cook, light the grill to medium or heat your broiler with the rack 3 inches from the heat source. Remove chicken from bowl, shaking off any excess marinade, and grill or broil on one side until charred in spots, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip the chicken and grill or broil for another 5 to 8 minutes, until just cooked through.
3. While the chicken is cooking, place remaining 2/3 cup yogurt in a small bowl. Stir in the reserve grated garlic clove and lemon zest, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Cut one zested lemon in half and set aside for serving (save the other zested lemon for another use).
4. To serve, place chicken on a serving platter and drizzle with olive oil and a large squeeze of the zested lemon. Top with cilantro and oregano or marjoram sprigs and serve with yogurt sauce.
Tip: If you’re broiling instead of grilling, you can line your sheet pan with foil for easier clean up. Don’t use parchment paper, as it may burn.
5. Best Gazpacho
More of a drink than a soup, served in frosted glasses or chilled tumblers, gazpacho is perfect when it is too hot to eat but you need cold, salt and lunch all at the same time. Gazpacho is everywhere in Seville, Spain, where this recipe comes from, but it’s not the watered-down salsa or grainy vegetable purée often served in the United States. This version has no bread and is a creamy orange-pink rather than a lipstick red. That is because a large quantity of olive oil is required for making delicious gazpacho, rather than take-it-or-leave it gazpacho. The emulsion of red tomato juice, palest green cucumber juice and golden olive oil produces the right color and a smooth, almost fluffy texture.
By Julia Moskin
Yield: 8 to 12 servings, about 1 quart
Total time: 20 minutes plus chilling time
Ingredients:
About 2 pounds ripe red tomatoes, cored and roughly cut into chunks
1 Italian frying (cubanelle) pepper or another long, light green pepper, such as Anaheim, cored, seeded and roughly cut into chunks
1 cucumber, about 8 inches long, peeled and roughly cut into chunks
1 small mild onion (white or red), peeled and roughly cut into chunks
1 clove garlic
2 teaspoons sherry vinegar, more to taste
Salt
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, more to taste, plus more for drizzling
Preparation:
1. Combine tomatoes, pepper, cucumber, onion and garlic in a blender or, if using a hand blender, in a deep bowl. (If necessary, work in batches.) Blend at high speed until very smooth, at least 2 minutes, pausing occasionally to scrape down the sides with a rubber spatula.
2. With the motor running, add the vinegar and 2 teaspoons salt. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil. The mixture will turn bright orange or dark pink and become smooth and emulsified, like a salad dressing. If it still seems watery, drizzle in more olive oil until texture is creamy.
3. Strain the mixture through a strainer or a food mill, pushing all the liquid through with a spatula or the back of a ladle. Discard the solids. Transfer to a large pitcher (preferably glass) and chill until very cold, at least 6 hours or overnight.
4. Before serving, adjust the seasonings with salt and vinegar. If soup is very thick, stir in a few tablespoons ice water. Serve in glasses, over ice if desired, or in a bowl. A few drops of olive oil on top are a nice touch.
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