Grilled Steak and Cuke Salad

What do these 2 food have in common ?

NOTHING, except both are on tonight’s dinner menu. Yes, it’s true,  not every meal at The Frog & PenguINN is chicken. Despite the garden being smaller (much), and despite Grenville only planting 3 cucumber plants, we have an (over) abundance of fresh cukes — these are TODAY’S harvest.

And, despite yesterday’s rains, it’s still HOT and muggy now too — we definitely have the 3H’s— hot, hotter and here. Weekend grilling is definitely in order.

Getting back to those excess cukes. I’ve tried several cuke salads. This new one is easy, light, and refreshing and uses rice vinegar. We keep assorted vinegars: apple cider, balsamic, white, red, and rice — all come in handy.

Sure, we have a mandoline slicer, as Grenville posted about, also a food processor, but both are too large and cumbersome to slice a couple of cukes, so I used a sharp knife and cut as thinly as possible, without cutting myself,  that’s good cause it’s really hard to work in the kitchen with bandaged fingers.
Asic Cucumber Salad

• 2 medium cucumbers, small and less seedy
• 1/4 C rice vinegar
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Fresh ground pepper
• 2 TBSP toasted sesame seed OR dill

1. Run a fork along the cucumber, but don’t peel it. Peel cucumbers to leave alternating green stripes. (If you don’t like seeds, either use English or seedless cukes or cut the cukes in half and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds.)
2. Using a food processor or sharp knife, cut into very thin slices. Sprinkle lightly with salt and place slices in a small colander to drain. Remove after 30 minutes and place slices between a double layer of paper towel, squeezing gently to remove any excess moisture.
3. Combine vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper in a medium bowl, using a whisk to mix together. Add the cucumbers and dill seed OR sesame seeds; toss well to combine. Chill before serving.

Toast sesame seeds: Heat a small dry skillet over low heat. Add sesame seeds and stir constantly until golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Cool before using.

The main ingredient for tonight’s dinner is marinated steak on the grill. It’s easy to skip store-bought marinades; everything needed  to make a homemade version may already be in your pantry/fridge. Check out this easy version.

Grilled Steak Marinade (also uses vinegar)

• 1/4 C soy sauce (low-sodium)
• 1/3 C Worcestershire sauce (low-sodium)
• 2 TBSP Dijon mustard
• 3 TBSP Balsamic vinegar (or red wine vinegar)
• 3 TBSP minced garlic (jarred one is easier)
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Mix all ingredients together using a wire whisk. Pour over steak and marinate several hours; refrigerate and turn once or twice. Discard excess sauce after grilling.

ENJOY !