Cuban Steak with baked Yuca and Arroz Armarillo

(Transferred from the old blog, Numeenum)

One of the great things about living in Florida is the access to Cuban cuisine. I experienced the best I've had yet while on vacation with my Mom, Ry, & Kenna in Miami a few months ago.

We were recommended a little place quite nearby our oceanfront hotel. We weren't in touristy South Beach, so everyone at this restaurant was a local except us. The food was absolutely divine. My mom ordered snapper in a red sauce (which after looking through recipes I believe it was a paprika sauce), I had Cuban fried chicken, an amazing dish of well seasoned thin chicken layered with ham, cheese, and a tomato based sauce, and Ryan ordered what I have here: Cuban steak.

Needless to say that memorable restaurant visit inspired me to go to the library and pick up some Cuban cookbooks. I have many recipes now, and just started my effort at them in the past week.

My first try is this thin beef steak, marinated with onions, garlic, cumin, and sour orange juice (think sour like a lime), grilled, then seasoned with a bit more lime. Way good! The following recipe is from the book Cuba Cocina by Joyce Lafray, as with all of the Cuban recipes for the week to follow.

Cuban Steak 4-6 servings
8 (1/4 inch thick) slices top round or top butt steak, butterflied
3 tablespoons olive oil or salted butter
1 onion thinly sliced
1 lime cut into 8 thin wedges
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Marinade:
8 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 cup sour orange juice ( or 1/2 cup orange juice and 1/4 cup lime juice)
1 large onion, diced

Using a metal meat mallet, pound steaks on both sides to tenderize. Mix together marinade ingredients well and pour over steaks in a large glass bowl. Put in refrigerator, turning often as to get the juices evenly distributed.

Heat olive oil in large heavy skillet. Place onions, steaks, and just enough marinade in the pan to make a sauce. Cook until done, and until onions have wilted. Place steaks on a plate and pour the sauce over them. Garnish with parsley & lime wedges, squeezing the lime juice on the steak when ready to eat.


For the side dishes I had baked Yuca and yellow rice. The yellow rice I simply bought in the Hispanic isle at the grocery store. Yuca is a root, and may or may not be available in your area. If you can get it and want to give it a try, was the root off well, coat with vegetable oil, then bake in an oven at 375 for at least 45 minutes or longer. Yuca will be soft when done.

I accidentally did not cook mine long enough, and the parts that were still hard were quite bitter.

Everything else turned out well enough and quite yummy. Kenna adored the rice, asking for 2nds.