Steak with puttanesca sauce
This is a really quick recipe for dressing up lean round steak. A gutsy tomato sauce, boosted with anchovies and capers, is made in the same pan, and all that’s needed is some crusty French bread and a side salad for a deliciously easy meal.
30 grams (1 oz) anchovy fillets, drained
2 tablespoons 1% milk
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, roughly chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 red chili pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
350 grams (12 oz) cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tablespoons bottled capers, rinsed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
4 lean round steaks
1.Lay the anchovies flat in a small dish, spoon over the milk and leave to soak while you begin preparing the sauce. (This soaking will remove a lot of the saltiness from the anchovies to give a mellower flavour.)
2.Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large, heavy-based, ridged frying pan, add the onion and cook gently for 3–4 minutes until soft.
3.Stir in the garlic and chili pepper, then add the tomatoes, capers and oregano. Drain off and discard the milk from the anchovies, roughly chop the anchovies and add to the sauce. Stir around and cook gently for 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are lightly cooked. Tip the sauce out into a bowl and set aside while cooking the steaks.
4.Rinse out the pan and reheat. Brush the steaks lightly on both sides with the remaining oil and season with some freshly ground black pepper. Place the steaks in the hot pan and cook over a medium–high heat for 2–3 minutes on each side for rare or 4–6 minutes on each side for medium.
5.Pour the sauce over the steaks in the pan and heat through, then serve immediately.
Variations• This sauce is equally good served with pan-fried skinless chicken breasts or chunky white fish steaks.• For a vegetarian option, leave out the anchovies and serve the puttanesca sauce with pasta or cheesy potato cakes.
Serves 4
Preparation time 10 minutes
Cooking time 15 minutes
Each serving
28 g protein • 15.5 g fat of which 4 g saturates • 5 g carbohydrate• 2.5 g fibre • 275 Calories
