This delicious flap steak recipe is a great one to have up your sleeves, in fact flap steak in general and knowing how to cook it is one everyone should know about! Succulent perfectly cooked beef, crisp pear, crunchy broccoli and some raisins all tossed in a delicious maple mustard dressing. Salivating much?
sponsored by Hobbs of Barossa, Barossa Valley
What Is Flap Steak
Flap steak, also known as bavette steak is a cut that comes from abdominal muscle. It's highly grained and heavily worked. It can be tough if not handled correctly so check out my "how to cook bavette" advice below!
Sometimes, it's known as the butcher's cut as often the butcher puts it aside for him/herself as it's such a tasty cut.
How To Cook Flap Meat
Cooking most steak is pretty simple - once you know-how. Yeah, as I read that I realise how unhelpful it is but hey, I've typed it now! Cooking flap steak or any steak goes a little something like this...
- Remove steak from the fridge 30 minutes prior to cooking to allow to come to temperature
- Season you steak generously. Do this 30+ minutes prior to cooking or just before you cook it. The reason for this is salt removes moisture from the meat but after about 20-30 minutes the moisture is sucked back into the steak. If you salt it say 10-15 minutes before cooking then when you go to sear it the moisture will sit on top and you wont get the same nice crusty sear
- HOT pan or grill. I set my BBQ to 300c and cook it hot and fast. Only a few minutes per side and she should be right! If you have a whole piece of bavette then you may need to cut it into 2 pieces as one end is often thicker than the other.
- REST it - flap steak requires a little longer to rest than a ribeye or sirloin so rest it for 8-10 minutes or else you will lose all the beautiful juices from your steak
- Get stuck in with your favourite bottle of red!
Hobbs of Barossa Wines
The story of Hobbs winery starts back in '95 when Greg & Allison moved their family from the big smoke to a 15-acre vineyard in Barossa Ranges. To date, even though the life of a winemaker isn't an easy one they have never looked back. I was fortunate to taste an early 2000s vintage of their Tango shiraz and I myself haven't looked back and have been loving the other drops coming out of their vineyard.
Hand pruned, with the help of their neighbour Chris Ringland - a little bit of a wine legend over here they have learnt, developed and grown one of the oldest vineyards in the Valley in my opinion to be a forced to be reckoned with! Chris aside from being a good friend still consults but Allison has taken over the winemaking alongside Pete Schell of Spinifex wines.
Hobbs is part of the Artisans of Barossa group - a collection of 8 wineries who strive to promote (and succeed) in showing the best of small-batch wines in the Valley.
Aside from this, both Greg & Allison are truly lovely people and are hugely passionate and deeply care about every step of the winemaking process so you know that the beautifully wax-dipped bottle you get every ounce of love and dedication has gone into making that the best possible wine Hobbs can produce! That's why it's an honour for me to create this flap steak recipe to pair with their Gregor shiraz!
Wine Pairing
As you guessed the wine we are tucking into alongside this simply delicious flap steak recipe is the Gregor shiraz from Hobbs.
The story of this wine comes from a ski instructor who struggled to pronounce Gregory which brought many a laugh to the family so the wine is one that holds a special place in their heart. Maybe next time you are in you can ask them for the full story!
The wine is made using the appassimento method - which is the method used in Italy for Amarone. The direct translation is "passionate" which describes Allison & Greg perfectly! The grapes are handpicked and semi-dried. This helps to concentrate the fruit and also reduces the water content on the fruit so adds almost raisinated qualities. This as you can imagine lowers the yield but certainly ups the quality levels in my opinion.
A beautiful concentration of fruit with plums being the main taste I get. Licorice, coffee, vanilla, a little cocoa with velvet tannins. It's not a light wine but boy is it balanced! Alongside a delicious flap steak and you are in for a treat. Let's just say it didn't last long!
Alternative Steak Recipes
Inspired by my delicious flap steak recipe and need more tasty steak dishes in your life? Check out these crackers below and get cooking!!
Bavette Steak, Peach, Tomato & Whipped Goat Cheese Salad
Steak Tacos - Carne Asada Style
Ingredients
- 800 g bavette steak
- 2 tbsp oil
- salt
Dressing
- 2 tbsp tahini
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
- 150 ml olive oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 2 tbsp cold water
- salt
Salad
- 300 g broccoli
- 300 g brussel sprouts
- 250 g pear
- 100 ml olive oil
- salt
- 50 g raisins
Essential Tools
- Chef Knives
- Chopping board
- measuring/weighing utensils
- mixing bowl x 2
- BBQ/grill pan
- whisk
Instructions
Steak
- Remove steak 30 minutes prior to cooking (prepare dressing & salad ingredients)
- Heat BBQ to 300c
- Rub steak in olive oil and season generously with salt
- Sear for 3-4 minutes per side or until internal temperature is 52c. Rest on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes before slicing
Dressing
- Crush garlic and mix all ingredients together EXCEPT oil & water
- Gradually whisk the oil into the mixture
- Once combined whisk in the cold water to thin it out, taste and adjust seasoning
Salad
- Slice the sprouts thinly
- Cut the broccoli into small florets
- Chop the pear into matchsticks – no need to peel the pear
- Using ½ the oil frying the sprouts for 3 minutes on medium/high heat – remove and do the same for the broccoli florets
- Allow to cool until the steak has rested and then add raisins, pear and toss in salad dressing – add ½ the dressing initially, taste and add more as necessary
Notes
Tips/Tricks
- ALWAYS allow your steak to rest before slicing – this allows the juices to redistribute and makes for a tastier steak
- bavette/flap and flank steak tend to require a little more time to rest. This salad is meant to be served only slightly warm so don’t worry about the steak cooling
- if cooking in a pan then sear the steak for 2-3 minutes per side and finish in the oven for a further 2-3 minutes or until temperature is 52c for medium rare
nope never heard of flap steak tho this looks very tasty. i've never cooked steak either (must hark back to my vego days)...
flap is also known as bavette - super tasty. Cook it hot and fast for best results!