Taken from Cooking, Blokes & Artichokes by Brendan Collins (£20, Kyle Books)
WHY
Skirt steak is the ideal sandwich cut. It’s cheap, fast and easy to cook, tender enough that you won’t put your jaw out trying to bite through it and it has a rich, intense beefy flavour. It’s also a naturally slim piece of meat, no more than half an inch (1¼cm) thick and about ten centimetres wide, which makes it the perfect dimensions for laying a slab between two slices of bread. Adding the heat of horseradish, creamy mayo and peppery rocket rounds out the flavours perfectly. If you think you like sandwiches made with grey deli roast beef, you’ll go nuts for this.
WHAT
350g skirt steak
Steak is high in protein (with around 25g per 100g) and B vitamins.
2x10cm slices ciabatta
It’s higher in good fats than other bread because it’s made with olive oil.
30g unsalted butter
Unlike other spreads, butter contains a healthy hit of vitamins A and D.
2 handfuls of rocket
The dark leaves are packed with potassium and vitamins A and C.
1½ tbsp horseradish
Horseradish is surprisingly high in the antioxidant vitamin C.
75g mayonnaise
Let’s be honest: there’s nothing healthy about mayo… but it tastes good.
HOW
1 Trim any excess fat off the steak, rub it with the marinade (see below), and place it in a sealed food bag or covered container in the refrigerator for at least two, but no more than eight hours – more than that and the meat will turn mushy when you cook it.
2 Heat up the barbecue or place a grill pan or cast-iron pan over a high heat for five minutes. Remove the steak from the marinade, scrape off any excess herbs and garlic, season it with salt, then grill the meat to your liking. Mediumrare will take about one minute per side.
3 Toast the bread if you want, or simply butter it. In a small bowl, mix the mayonnaise and horseradish.
4 Spread the horseradish mayo on the bottom slice of bread, then put down a bed of rocket, followed by your meat, a seasoning of black pepper and the top slice of bread.