Unilever Kitchen challenged a number of bloggers to create a summery Brazilian BBQ feast using Unilever food products to celebrate the launch of the World Cup in Rio. On Saturday night we enjoyed our Brazilian barbecue as a family. I spent the afternoon marinading beef steaks in garlic puree and also marinading slices of fresh pineapple in a chilli puree with mint. We cooked them on the grill in a traditional Brazilian Picanha style and served with a really summery salad inspired by a traditional Gaucho salad with a bit of a lemony twist.
BRAZILIAN GARLIC_MARINATED BBQ PICANHA, SPICY PINAPPLE & ZINGY GAUCHO POTATO SALAD (Serves 4)
INGREDIENTS
4 thick rump steaks with plenty of fat (top rump is as close to picanha as you are likely to find in a supermarket)
1 pot Knorr Garlic Flavour Pot
Half a small fresh pinapple
1 pot Knorr Mixed Chillis Flavour Pot
2 sprigs fresh mint
250g new potatoes (chopped into 1-inch pieces)
1 Granny Smith apple
2 tablespoons raisins
2 large carrots (chopped roughly into 1/2 inch pieces)
2 tablespoons tinned or frozen sweetcorn
2 tablespoons frozen or fresh peas
2 tablespoons Hellmann's Mayonnaise with a zing of lemon
METHOD
1. Traditional Brazilian grills don't put sauce on their barbecue meat but instead use a series of marinades to provide flavour before cooking. A thick garlic puree is a traditional Gaucho marinade. Spread the puree from the Knorr Garlic Flavour Pot generously over both sides of the steaks and leave for 2-3 hours before cooking.
2. Remove the skin and thick 'eyes' from the pineapple. Cut the pineapple in half (we saved half for pudding!) and remove the core. Cut thick slices from the pineapple and then, using a brush, lightly coat each piece with the puree from the Knorr Mixed Chillis Flavour Pot. Sprinkle on the leaves from the mint sprigs and leave to infuse for 2-3 hours before cooking.
3. Shortly before you start barbecuing the meat, prepare the salad (which is best served still warm, but not too hot so you can prepare it before you start cooking on the grill). Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the potatoes. After a few minutes, add the carrots then a little while later, the peas and sweetcorn. Once all of the vegetables are cooked, drain them well.
4. Place the vegetables in a large salad bowl. Slice the apple finely (it is up to you whether you choose the keep the skin on or not... I liked the bright green colour) and add this, and the raisins to the vegetables. Stir in two tablespoons of Hellmann's Mayonnaise with a zing of lemon. Your salad is ready to enjoy!
5. Unless you are a massive garlic fan, I would recommend scraping the bulk of the garlic marinade from the steaks before cooking. Place the steaks on skewers. Traditional Picanha is curved as it is placed onto the skewer to ensure that the thick layer of fat on the outside can seep into all of the meat as it cooks. Cook on the grill, turning frequently to ensure that the steaks are juicy and cooked evenly. If you have thick rump steaks you may wish to follow the traditional Brazilian style of slicing layers of the cooked meat off the outside and eating these while the rest of the meat cooks.
6. While the meat cooks, grill the spicy pineapple. I'd recommend using a grill pan or disposable aluminium tray on the BBQ so that you can 'fry' the pineapple on a flat surface. Once the pineapple starts to caramelise and blacken it is ready to serve. This sweet and spicy treat is very moreish and makes the perfect balance to the Gaucho steak.
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| Brazilian Garlic-Marinated BBQ Picanha with Zingy Gaucho Salad |
BRAZILIAN GARLIC_MARINATED BBQ PICANHA, SPICY PINAPPLE & ZINGY GAUCHO POTATO SALAD (Serves 4)
INGREDIENTS
4 thick rump steaks with plenty of fat (top rump is as close to picanha as you are likely to find in a supermarket)
1 pot Knorr Garlic Flavour Pot
Half a small fresh pinapple
1 pot Knorr Mixed Chillis Flavour Pot
2 sprigs fresh mint
250g new potatoes (chopped into 1-inch pieces)
1 Granny Smith apple
2 tablespoons raisins
2 large carrots (chopped roughly into 1/2 inch pieces)
2 tablespoons tinned or frozen sweetcorn
2 tablespoons frozen or fresh peas
2 tablespoons Hellmann's Mayonnaise with a zing of lemon
METHOD
1. Traditional Brazilian grills don't put sauce on their barbecue meat but instead use a series of marinades to provide flavour before cooking. A thick garlic puree is a traditional Gaucho marinade. Spread the puree from the Knorr Garlic Flavour Pot generously over both sides of the steaks and leave for 2-3 hours before cooking.
2. Remove the skin and thick 'eyes' from the pineapple. Cut the pineapple in half (we saved half for pudding!) and remove the core. Cut thick slices from the pineapple and then, using a brush, lightly coat each piece with the puree from the Knorr Mixed Chillis Flavour Pot. Sprinkle on the leaves from the mint sprigs and leave to infuse for 2-3 hours before cooking.
3. Shortly before you start barbecuing the meat, prepare the salad (which is best served still warm, but not too hot so you can prepare it before you start cooking on the grill). Bring a large pan of water to the boil and add the potatoes. After a few minutes, add the carrots then a little while later, the peas and sweetcorn. Once all of the vegetables are cooked, drain them well.
4. Place the vegetables in a large salad bowl. Slice the apple finely (it is up to you whether you choose the keep the skin on or not... I liked the bright green colour) and add this, and the raisins to the vegetables. Stir in two tablespoons of Hellmann's Mayonnaise with a zing of lemon. Your salad is ready to enjoy!
5. Unless you are a massive garlic fan, I would recommend scraping the bulk of the garlic marinade from the steaks before cooking. Place the steaks on skewers. Traditional Picanha is curved as it is placed onto the skewer to ensure that the thick layer of fat on the outside can seep into all of the meat as it cooks. Cook on the grill, turning frequently to ensure that the steaks are juicy and cooked evenly. If you have thick rump steaks you may wish to follow the traditional Brazilian style of slicing layers of the cooked meat off the outside and eating these while the rest of the meat cooks.
6. While the meat cooks, grill the spicy pineapple. I'd recommend using a grill pan or disposable aluminium tray on the BBQ so that you can 'fry' the pineapple on a flat surface. Once the pineapple starts to caramelise and blacken it is ready to serve. This sweet and spicy treat is very moreish and makes the perfect balance to the Gaucho steak.
