Grilled Picanha With Chimichurri Sauce

Method

Directions

1. 1
   Thaw: Place picanha in the refrigerator a full 24 hours before you plan to cook, allowing it to thaw fully.
2. 2
   To make the chimichurri sauce, place Italian parsley, cilantro, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, cumin, and salt into a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Remove from the food processor and place in a bowl. Refrigerate until ready to use. If ingredients separate during refrigeration, whisk together before serving.
3. 3
   Preheat grill for indirect grilling; for gas grills, light half the burners of your grill. For charcoal, once coals are lit, arrange all the coals on one side of the grill.
4. 4
   Remove picanha from packaging and pat dry with paper towels.
5. 5
   Lay the picanha on a cutting board. Using a sharp knife, remove any layers of silver skin from the meat side.
6. 6
   Take the fat cap on top and score the fat by slicing criss-cross cuts into it. Do your best not to cut into the meat. Sprinkle kosher salt all over the fat cap and meat-exposed sides. Scoring the fat prevents the picanha from shrinking, curling, and disfiguring while it grills, and creates small channels for the fat cap to seep into the meat.
7. 7
   Slice the picanha into 1-1.5 inch thick steaks, cutting with the grain of the meat. This way, the final cut when you slice into the finished steak will be against the grain. Aim to keep steaks an even thickness.
8. 8
   Season individually cut steaks generously with just salt on all sides — this is the traditional Brazilian method of seasoning picanha. Rock salt is preferable, but kosher salt works fine.
9. 9
   Fold each steak in half with the fat cap out, forming a C-shape. Using roasting skewers, skewer the steaks. Place skewers over direct heat and sear for 3-4 minutes with the fat cap side up first. Flip and sear the other side for another 3-4 minutes. After searing, move skewers to the indirect-heat side of the grill and continue cooking for about 40 minutes or until you reach an internal temperature of 135-140 degrees F for medium-rare. While grilling on indirect heat, flip skewers every 5-10 minutes.
10. 10
    Let skewers rest for 10 minutes.
11. 11
    For Brazilian preparation, thinly slice the steak against the grain off the skewers onto a cutting board and serve the sliced meat with a dollop of chimichurri sauce over it.