Sirloin and London Broil

[bigsteve]

Lots of questions today............

I have some petite Sirloin steaks. Mama bought them "buy one get TWO free" some time ago. The label says "Beef Loin Petite Sirloin Steak" They are about 2 inches thick, and are VERY lean. I grilled one pack a few weeks ago. I marinaded it overnight first. It was so-so. A couple of bites really good, a couple of bites tough. I accidently went a little past med rare, and they were about med I'd say. BTW I only just now noticed in teeny-tiny print on the label that the meat is a product of Canada and/or Mexico, if that tells you anything........

Anyway, I was wondering about smoking them, but they are so lean I'm not sure that would do much for them. What would you guys do with them?

London Broil:

I do pretty well grilling London Broil. I'm wondering if any of you smoke a hunk of meat marked "London Broil?" I know there is some debate among cooks. Some insist London Broil is a CUT while others insist London Broil is the METHOD of preparing meat. Regardless, the meat is labeled: "Beef round Top round First cut London Broil." Like I said, I can do this meat justice on the grill. Just looking to see if you guys have smoked that cut, and what you thought.

Thanks!

 

[voldaddy]

Steve, I have smoked london broil many times, and it's great! Look up Abelman's post on it...the pics will make you drool.

I soak mine out of the fridge in Dales for an hour, and on the smoker. I have "seared" before smoking, and not seared. I couldn't honestly tell a difference.

I smoke mine to about 130 and foil for an hour in a cooler. Slice it thin against the grain, and that stuff is great. We eat it by itself, and also make some great steak fajitas from them.

Good luck, and post some Q-vue. You won't be disappointed!

 

[davenh]

Voldaddy got you covered, Abelman's LB post are awesome! Slice thin and against the grain is key.

 

[fire it up]

Though I have never smoked a london broil I am in the category that agrees it is the specific cut and not the way of cooking it.
Though how could you go wrong smoking almost anything?

As for your steaks, seeing as they are so thin I'm not sure how much flavor you could really get out of the smoke if you are only going for med-rare, unless you were planning on going low and slow for a while and cooking them all the way through? If so, like you said, they are so lean that you might be better off brining them in a smoky solution or maybe crusting them with a smoked salt for a while then rinse and just grill or pan sear?
Couldn't hurt to smoke some garlic, mix it with some butter and any other herbs you like, roll it up in saran wrap (sort of like rolling a fattie in plastic wrap) and freeze it, then just cut a slice off and let it melt over your steak.
No matter what you decide, hope to see some Qview

 

[alx]

I used to grill top round alot-i always marinated.I think you could smoke it- as it can be tough.Notch a corner the direction you will cut it. Top round should be cut against grain like brisket- so it isnt chewey.Let us know how it turns out-might smoke one when on sale.Whoops-Voldaddy nailed it.

 

[bigsteve]

Thanks for the tips. I think with the London broil I may just go with what has always worked, grilling. I always grill London broil slightly past rare and take it off. It's generally med rare when I slice it. I top it with a sauce I make from boullion powder, butter and chopped onions. I make the boullion taste strong. Everyone loves it, so I think I'll stick with it.

I think for the steaks, I'm going to try the kosher salt for an hour method this time, then grill them again. But that's another weekend. Last night I smoked turds and a fatty. Tonight we're getting a bite out, and Sunday will be my first chuckie. Going to make it pulled for sandwhiches.

 

[rivet]

Good post! But still not sure.....is London Broil a larger piece of meat that cuts down into more common steaks/cuts etcetera or is it a large piece of meat unique to itself?

Sorry for the dumb question...

Thanks for any help.

 

[mgwerks]

London Broil is a dish/preparation method starting in the 30's that began it's rise to popularity in the 60's. It was prepared using flank steak almost exclusively back then. It was a good flavorful way of preparing a challenging piece of meat (which was cheap back then!). Since then, it seems like stores are selling all kinds of meats labeled "London Broil", and people are making it in many different ways than the original.

A London Broil recipe that has been in my family for over 4o years combines a simple marinade, scoring the meat, and grilling or broiling the meat 4-5 minutes each side. Finish by slicing across the grain, but at a shallow angle for serving larger pieces of meat. It really needs to be cooked rare or no more than medium rare, or you'll have to sharpen your teeth to eat it. As lean as it is, I wouldn't put it on a smoker.

London Broil is kind of like fajitas. Once a staple of financially challenged mostly Hispanic folks, it has skyrocketed into things barely recognizable as related to the original.

 

[azrocker]

I think the salted steak method might be a way to go!
http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/sho...t=salted+steak

 

[rons]

If your Q-ing them (the sirloins), I know what I'd do (what I do actually even), I marinate them overnight in 50% terryaki and 50% pineapple juice, it makes the most awesome hawiian-terryaki flavor and tenderizes them quite a bit.

You smoked turds??? I know that doesn't mean what is says, but what are turds and how does one get an appetite for something named that? lol

 

[bigsteve]

Hey, Cheech and Chong smoked turds, so it must okay, right? Cough-gag.

I give you "Atomic Buffalo Turds" aka "ABTs'"

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/showthread.php?t=74822

 

[tasunkawitko]

>>>I give you "Atomic Buffalo Turds" aka "ABTs'"

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/showthread.php?t=74822<<<

i think you just gained a disciple - those things are incredible.

 

[bigsteve]

LOL Anything I know about ABT's came from this site! I'm just a lowly follower..........

 

[rons]

LOL, you must have been a teen in the 70's too eh?

OHHH that's what ATB's are you guys are talking about, I had no idea.. but what really is that? It looks like stuff glazed meat loaf?

 

[tasunkawitko]

ron -

in its simplest form, an ABT (atomic buffalo turd) is a japapeno pepper sliced in half or hollowed out, then stuffed with cream cheese, wrapped in bacon and smoked until the bacon is done.

needless to say, there are many, many variations on this.

you can learn more by checking this out:

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/forumdisplay.php?f=176

be sure to take some good looks at the qview and we will be waiting for your own variations and qview! :)

 

[rons]

oh wow a stuff jalapeno, ouch. They look really good, I think it'd kill me though but what a way to die

Thanks!

 

[bigsteve]

The ABT's are Jalapenos cut in half, then you use a spoon to carve out all the seeds and veins that the seeds were growing on. Rinse them in cold water, then stuff with something. The ones in the picture were stuffed with Cream cheese with chilli pepper and onion powder mixed in. I stuffed 1/2 a Jalpeno with that, on the other half I put a breafast link sausage, and put the two halves back together, then wrapped in a piece of Turkey Bacon.

The "Stuffed glazed meatloaf" is a fatty. Search, and Ye shall find.

I chopped up that fatty and froze it. Tomorrow I'm making ABT's for a potluck. I'm going to halve them, stuff them, but not put them back together. I think 1/2 Jalpeno wrapped in bacon looks more appetizing than a whole one. It doesn't matter to me, but it's gotta look good on a buffet line. Anyway, I'm putting the chopped up fatty into the cream cheese, and that's the whole filling. No sausage this time.

 

[tasunkawitko]

>>>I think it'd kill me though but what a way to die<<<

just try a milder pepper - or maybe a tomato ~

 

[bigsteve]

They lose a whole lot of pop when you hollow them out and rinse them. Someone else mentioned recently that he soaked his (after hollowing them out) in milk over night to really neutralize them.

 

[rons]

Ah interesting, thanks for the info. I might have to try that and soak in milk. I love the flavor of jalapenos, but man do they burn!!!

Ooops ok THAT was a fatty, I gotta learn all this smoker slang stuff