Grilled Beef Tagliate, Rucola, and Parmigiano-Reggiano

Oh what a beautiful Steak! The Dry-Aged Rib-Eye was from McCall's, of course. We used a recipe from Mozza Chi-Spacca. This is about as good as it gets! We started with Melon and Speck Salad.

Grilled Beef Tagllata, Rucola, And Parmigiano-Reggiano

Mozza Cookbook

Nancy Silverton / Matt Molina

1       cup balsamic vinegar

½      cup whole fresh rosemary needles

8       whole garlic cloves

½      cup extra-virgin olive oil

4       hanger steaks (7 to 8 ounces each), or 2 to 2}/7 pounds flank steak

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano (about 4 ounces

8       cups loosely packed aruguc (preferably wild arugula: about ½  pound)

Lemon Vinaigrette, plus more to taste

Maldon sea salt or another flaky sab, such as fleur de sel

Aged balsamico condiment

Finishing-quality extra-virgin olive oil

Combine the balsamic vinegar, rosemary, and garlic in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade or the jar of blender and pulse until the rosemary is finely chopped. Add the olive oil and pulse until all the ingredients are combined.

If you are using hanger steaks, lay one on a cutting board and use a large sharp knife to cut out the silver skin running down the center of each steak; in the process you will cut each hanger steak into two long, narrow pieces, each similar in shape to a tenderloin. Place the steaks in a large bowl or nonreactive baking dish. Pour the marinade over and turn to coat them on all sides. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight. Remove the steaks from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before grilling.

Prepare a hot fire in a gas or charcoal grill or preheat a grill pan or heavy-bottomed skillet over high heat.

Remove the steaks from the marinade, discard the marinade, and generously season the steaks with salt and pepper on both sides, using about 1 teaspoon of salt per pound of meat. Put the steaks on the grill or in the grill pan and cook until the meat is seared and deep brown on all sides, 5 to 6 minutes per side for medium rare. Remove the steaks to a platter or cutting board and let them rest for about 5 minutes before slicing. Use a sharp knife to carve the steaks diagonally against the grain into 1/2-inch-thick slices.

While the steaks are resting, use a large knife or a mandolin to cut the wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano into very thin slices. Put the arugula in a large, wide bowl, sprinkle with salt and toss gently to distribute evenly. Drizzle the vinaigrette and toss gently to coat the leaves. Taste for seasoning and add more salt or vinaigrette, if desired.

Slide a long knife under one quarter of the steak slices and transfer them onto one of four dinner plates, gently fanning the slices out in a slightly curved line. Repeat, fanning the remaining steak slices on the other plates in the same way and drizzle the steaks with any juices that have collected on the cutting board. Lay a few slices of Parmigiano-Reggiano next to each serving of steak, in the space left by the curved line of the meat. Building the salad in two layers from here and, saving the largest slices for the top, pile a handful of arugula on each bed of cheese. Place another layer of Parmigiano-Reggiano slices on the arugula and top it with another handful of arugula. Lay the largest slices of Parmigiano-Reggiano on the finished salads. Sprinkle each serving of steak with a pinch of sea salt, drizzle each with 1 teaspoon of the balsamico condimento and the finishing-quality olive oil, and serve.