Chipotle Steak with Brussels Sprout Slaw

This is a meal I have been wanting to recreate for a while now.  It's an attempt (a successful one!) at a fabulous dish I had at a favorite local restaurant, Allium, on one of their tapas nights.  The sadly small (but appropriate for tapas) portion size left me wanting more, I couldn't get this dish out of my head.  Robust, smoky chipotle flat iron steak with creamy chipotle aioli, accompannied by a light, grassy brussels sprout slaw.  It was great!  I did a very decent job with my copycat recipe.  I finally got my fill of this great dish!  Try it out...or visit Allium for the real thing!

Chipotle Flat Iron Steak

Origin: Inspired by Chef Arup Jana, Allium

Notes:  Allium used "flat iron steak" for this dish, my cut of beef was called an "inside blade steak", I believe both are from the shoulder, just cut slightly different.

Ingredients:

2 chipotle peppers, finely chopped (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce)

1 teaspoon adobo sauce

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

3 tablespoons olive oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper
upto 2 lbs beef steak, flat iron or blade steak

Mix the chipotle peppers, adobo sauce, balsamic vinegar and olive oil in a glass baking dish or a resealable plastic bag large enough to hold your beef.  Add steaks and toss to coat, marinate for about an hour (or more if desired).

When you are ready to grill, remove steaks from marinade, sprinkle with salt and pepper and grill.  This a tougher cut of meat so medium (even medium-rare) doneness is ideal.  Make sure to get a good sear on the meat but don't cook it too long.  We grilled it on high heat for about 4-5 minutes per side.

Chipotle Aioli
Origin: Inspired by Chef Arup Jana, Allium

Notes:  You can adjust the amount of chipotle pepper to control the heat to your liking.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup mayonnaise (I make my own olive oil based mayo)
1 chipotle pepper, finely chopped (from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce)
1/2 teaspoon adobo sauce
1 small clove garlic, minced
salt

In a small bowl, combine the mayo, chipotle, adobo sauce and garlic.  Season with salt.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

Brussels Sprout Slaw
Origin: Inspired by Chef Arup Jana, Allium 

Notes:  This slaw is really good!  Forget everything you think you know about brussels sprouts.  The raw, shredded brussels sprouts are surprisingly mild with a nice crunch.

Ingredients:

brussels sprouts, about 5 cups shredded
1 green pepper, sliced as thin as possible
4 shallots, halved and sliced as thin as possible
4 tablespoons cider vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper

To prepare the brussels sprouts, trim the end slightly and slice them in half lengthwise.  Starting at the top of the brussels sprout, thinly slice them, stopping when you get the the core/hard bits. 

In a large bowl combine the shredded brussels sprouts, sliced green pepper and shallots.  Drizzle with the vinegar and olive oil, season with a generous amount of salt and pepper and toss to combine.  Serve immediately or chill for an hour before serving.  Serves 4.