It's not the most well known or widely ordered cuts of steak, but hanger steak is becoming more and more popular and there is a very good reason why. Also known as butchers cut, as butchers often reserve this portion for themselves, hanger steak was most commonly used for mince beef. This cut of beef gets it's name from based on its location - it literally hangs between the tenderloin and the rib. Based on where it is, it's a relatively tender piece of meat. You may have had hanger steak in France, where it's known as Onglet; it's a popular cut for the ever famous and mouth watering Steak Frites served in almost all bistros. Hence another name for hanger steak is bistro hanger steak!
It's popularity has grown for home cooking in recent years, partly due to its affordability compared to other cuts of steaks. 15 quids worth of tasty hanger steak could easily feed a family of four, compared to 4 good quality rib eye steaks costing you north of 20.
This little tasty dish was definitely an experiment that paid off. I'd had miso hanger steak before, but wasn't sure on what the marinade was exactly comprised of, hence this concoction of a bit of this and a bit of that. It's a dish that leans towards Asian cuisine, but with different side dishes, it could easily become a fusion banquet. I served my steak with grilled pak choi and a steaming bowl of jasmine rice.
Ingredients to serve 2-3
650 grams hanger steak
4-5 large bunches of pak choi (8 or so smaller bunches)
Olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
Sea salt and pepper for seasoning
Marinade
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon sriracha sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese wine
3 tablespoons white miso paste
1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1 teaspoon minced garlic
Method
Mix the marinade together, give it a little taste test and see if you want to adjust the flavour. Add more sriracha if you like spice, add more rice wine vinegar for tang, or sugar and soy to balance. If there is no need to adjust and you're happy move on to step 2.
Trim away any unwanted parts of the hanger steak then place in a dish deep enough to hold the meat and the marinade. Pour marinade over the beef ensuring to coat all over. You could also use a ziplock bag/sandwich bag to marinate the meat. Place the meat and marinade in the fridge, and leave for up to two hours, but at least one hour.
Turn the meat around every half hour to evenly marinate the beef.
When the beef has finished marinating, take it out and let it stand in room temp for 15-20 mins or so. This is to allow it to cook more evenly. Heat the oven to 220 degrees Celsius.
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over high heat (if you don't have a cast-iron skillet use any oven safe pan). When oil is shimmering hot, place steak in skillet. Cook until browned on bottom (approx 2 mins), then turn over and brown other side (approx 2 mins). Add the butter to the pan and using a spoon baste the top of the steak. Once browned, turn quickly on both sides to give it a quick sear (a minute on each side). We only want to sear the outside of the steak and give it a nice colour as we will be cooking it further in the oven.
Place skillet with the steaks into the oven. Cook steaks in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 55-57 degrees Celsius for medium rare, or cook for a few mins longer to reach internal temperature of 60-63 degrees Celsius for medium.
While the steak is in the oven, slice the pak choi into quarters if you have large bunches, slice the pak choi into halves if you have smaller bunches. Wash your veg thoroughly, and dry even more thoroughly (you don't want excess water trapped in the pak choi). Put the dried pak choi into a mixing bowl and drizzle some olive oil (approx 1 tablespoon) all over. Season lightly with sea salt and cracked black pepper. Mix the veggies to ensure the olive oil and seasoning has coated the leaves and stems well. Set aside.
Remove steak from pan and let it rest for 10 minutes before serving.
While steak is resting, place pak choi on a baking tray in a single layer with baking paper. Place in hot oven and roast until the stems are crisp tender and leaves are browned and starting to crisp. Roast for approx 7-9 mins.
Slice hanger steak and place on a serving plate with the roasted pak choi. Add some hot jasmine rice and you're ready to serve!
Bonus step - mix one tablespoon of miso paste with 3 tablespoons of butter for to use as a dip!