Here is one of the simplest and yet very presentable, grilled surf and turf meals, you can serve at a lazy Sunday lunch… Whenever we have friends over, we do try to go out of our way to prepare something special to eat. But sometimes, simpler is better. A few luxurious ingredients, quickly prepared, almost always results in a satisfying meal. It sounds relatively pricey to have a wagyu barbecue, but it is actually cheaper than a mediocre meal at a mediocre restaurant. First off, buy 500 grams or half a kilo of Wagyu beef slice in thin yakiniku cut at the Salcedo market from Viger Trading, say PHP500. Stick that in your freezer so you have it ready to go when you need it. Then, if you happen to have some fresh prawns, at say PHP225 for a half kilo, you are good to go…
Simply marinate the defrosted wagyu beef in some kikkoman, a little sesame oil, a touch of black pepper and some grated green apple, or without that, a touch of white sugar. Let the meat sit for 15-20 minutes in the marinade then sprinkle some sesame seeds and grill over a hot flame for a few seconds, say 30-45 seconds on each side. For the prawns, just sprinkle them with some olive oil, lots of kosher salt and red pepper flakes and grill these on the barbecue. Squeeze a bit of fresh lemon on the prawns after they are placed on the serving platter. Have a quickly stir-fried dark green vegetable with oyster sauce and lots of boiled white rice and that’s it. Takes less than half an hour to prep and cook! Serve with chopsticks, as I find eating this way makes the food stretch out longer, does that make sense? And total cost, approximately PHP1,100 total or PHP275 per person. :)
20 Responses
Thanks for this MM! Will try this out for lunch today. A Santi’s deli is just a 3 minute drive away from where I live. Dun na lang ako bili wagyu and pa slice ko. They have a slicer there naman. I have all the ingredients here in my house. Gotta use that bottle of sesame seed I bought from Good Shepherd sitting in the pantry.
Oh, by the way, do you have a recipe for that quick stir fry veggie in oyster sauce?
hahahaha….I like your reason for chopsticks!!
what a simple recipe. It looks great. Can’t wait to try it out!
As a self-confessed carnivore…that plate of grilled beef just made my eyes pop out along with a Homer-like drool..hehe..must try this simple recipe soon =)
How do you do small items like these on the barbie? Do you skewer them first? Gotta try it.
Now this looks yum! Every day’s a good day for wagyu and prawns. :-)
where do you get kosher salt? is that the same as rock salt?
I like that bit about chopsticks. I have a collection but I also have a LOT that is for everyday use. For some reason, I find eating with chopsticks vry satisfying. Even instant pancit canton tastes better with chopsticks! So I buy the 100-pieces for 88 pesos pack. *LOL*
I love having friends over and this is a GREAT idea. Uyab and I are raring to test the new grill we just brought. With a Santi’s a 20-minute walk away, this might just work! Thanks MM!
MM, may I ask, what is with the green apple thing?
Lei, Koreans often add grated pear or apple to their meat marinades to add a touch of natural sweetness, and I suspect the acid helps as well. The sweetness is more subtle than adding white sugar. Zak, they sell kosher salt at Metro Market!Market! It is coarse and very dry. Local organic (non-iodized) rock salt works too, but adjust amounts to taste. I really like osher salt as an everyday seasoning agent… I think I have gotten used to the saltiness calibration with this salt. Kasseopeia and toehrs… the wagyu at Santis might be a lot pricier than at the market. lojet, actually the pieces are about 3 square inches, big enough so they don’t easily fall through thte grills if you are reasonably careful. Tricia, take a nice veggie like chinese broccoli or some regualr broccoli and stir fry it in some oil then add a touch of oyster sauce (bottled) and its pretty much done.
:o
I just did that with my shabu-shabu-cut beef fillets last week! Not wagyu, and used caramelized onions, though, to sweeten, and stir-fried. But very, very good…
My rationale about chopsticks is that it makes me feel full faster than I can chomp via a spoon/fork, so a good tool during a food binge, hehe.
This is definitely on my menu for next weekend. I love surf and turf. Eating with chopsticks is second nature to hubby and I! Although, would it work to just serve a fresh salad, maybe mixed greens? We tend to favor veggies as raw as they can be…
did the same marinade with thinly sliced rib eye last sunday and “grilled” it on my cast iron skillet (high heat on the stovetop). ate the meat with iceberg lettuce bunched like lumpia. although it took me a couple of days to air out my apartment, it was worth it as it tasted like i used a weber grill. paired the beef with a shrimp salad with mayo-based dressing and a few drops of lemon juice.
the price for wagyu beef in manila is far cheaper compared with new york city prices!!! pre-recession, i’d thank my stars if i get to have the cheapest cut of wagyu on sale for $50/lb (a rare treat) as they usually retail for $85 per pound and up. nowadays, with skyrocketing food prices everywhere, i no longer look at the wagyu cuts. i now limit myself to stuff on sale and i thank the heavens for my grocer (fairway), i still get to have prime cuts ( not as well marbled as wagyu) sold as weekend specials at rock bottom prices.
Hi Tricia!
Try this…
fry some eggplant until golden brown and take it out of the frying pan when done. drain the oil and to the pan add oyster sauce. Put back the talong and stir so the oyster sauce coats the veggies.
then serve. Sarap with good rice and bagoong! :)
Tricia,
Try Kangkong. Make sure to dry it well with clean cloth towel.Stir fry using peanut oil until crisp then add oyster sauce. ENJOY!
What is a Wagyu beef? What if that is not available, what is another cut of beef comparable to wagyu?
Liz, wagyu is the generic name of the cow that eventually results in the more famous “kobe beef.” I have a post on it in the archives…
Thanks for featuring simple recipes like this. Looks great! I’ll try it out! ‘coz here in Syria they only have beef, chicken and lamb, but they have a lot of fresh herbs and spices. Hope you had fun in Istanbul….
I prefer to use Mirin (Japanese sweet cooking wine) myself, when in need of something sweet. In fact I do not use white sugar for cooking…I substitute molasses, maple syrup (the real stuff and yes maple syrup, and if I can’t find anything sweet last resort would be brown sugar. Sugar tends to be a little too sweet without imparting any real flavor, but then that’s my preference…