Make a $5 Steak taste like $50

I went to the store the other day and they had an amazing sale on not so quality cuts of meat. Granted the steak that I picked up was a rib-eye, it didn’t have marbling and it was cut quite thin. However, I figured that it would be a good time to discuss how to make substandard meat extraordinary. Through the use of rubs, marinades and sauces you can improve the flavor of steaks. However, marinades also help tenderize a steak. So the perfect addition to any substandard cut of meat is to use a marinade. Below I used a Korean inspired marinade to tenderize and flavor my not-so-perfect cut of steak.

The spicy sweet marinade did a double feature and was reduced in a pan to create an amazing sauce for the steak and rice.

Marinating the Steak

Place the steaks in a zip-top bag and then add the marinade ingredients. No need to dirty a bowl, just mix everything up so that the sugar dissolves.

Next allow the meat to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

Making the Sauce

Pour the marinade out of the bag into a sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to simmer. Let it simmer until it reduces by 1/3.

Grilling the Steak

Preheat your grill to medium/high heat.

Place the steaks directly over the heat and grill for 2-4 minutes depending on the thickness of your steaks.

Flip and cook for another 2-4 minutes. Check to make sure that the steaks are done to your liking and remove from the grill. Let the steaks rest for 3-5 minutes before serving.

Serving

Serve the steaks over steamed rice with the reduced sauce.

The steaks were perfectly tender and flavorful. Now I would not recommend using a marinade on a nice cut of meat. However, sometimes it is nice to get a unique flavor profile with the texture of steak. That is where the $5 steak comes in.

Korean Style Budget Steak

Korean marinade that transforms budget-friendly thin-cut steaks into tender, flavorful meat. The marinade doubles as a delicious sauce that is reduced and served over rice.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 1 day d 6 hours hrs

Cook Time 15 hours hrs

Total Time 1 day d 21 hours hrs

Servings: 4 steaks

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

For the Marinade

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 4 cloves garlic finely diced
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes optional
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

For Grilling

• 4 thin-cut steaks budget cuts like thin rib-eye
• Steamed rice for serving

Method

 

1. Place steaks in a zip-top bag.
2. Add all marinade ingredients to the bag with the steaks.
3. Mix everything together in the bag until sugar dissolves.
4. Marinate for at least 30 minutes.
5. Pour marinade out of bag into a saucepan.
6. Bring marinade to boil, then reduce heat to simmer.
7. Simmer until mixture reduces by 1/3 (about 10-15 minutes).
8. Preheat grill to medium-high heat.
9. Place steaks directly over heat and grill 2-4 minutes depending on thickness.
10. Flip steaks and grill another 2-4 minutes.
11. Check doneness and remove from grill.
12. Let steaks rest for 3-5 minutes before serving.
13. Serve steaks over steamed rice and drizzle with reduced Korean sauce.

Notes

This Korean marinade is perfect for budget-friendly or thin cuts of meat that might not have the quality marbling of premium steaks. The marinade tenderizes the meat while infusing it with rich Korean flavors. The dual use of the marinade as both a tenderizing medium and a finishing sauce makes this recipe economical and flavorful. For best results with thin cuts, do not use this marinade technique on premium cuts of steak – save those for other preparations. Equipment needed: grill, saucepan, zip-top bag, rice cooker or steamer.