What to do with Flap Steak?

I bought 2.5lbs of Flap Steak from Costco today.
I thought I'd seen Alton Brown do something interesting with it, but he used chain steak (which may be the same thing) to make philly sandwiches, which isn't what I'm looking for.

A recipe search online says to treat it much like skirt or flak, it appears, but I wasn't in the mood for fajitas or stir-fry.

I'd like to treat it like steak if I can. Am I looking at a bad idea?

We've pretty much entirely switched from ribeye to flap meat. It's the same texture, basically, as skirt but in a flank form factor, so it's thicker. I find it juicier than both. You could also treat it as a thinner tri-tip. What it boils down to is: don't overcook it, and slice fairly thin against the grain.

Anyway, I cook it the way I would any other steak. Either a hot pan and then in the oven to temp, or entirely on the stovetop. It's got a nice beefy flavor.

I dunno, I think it's a really great, versatile cut of meat. I like it more than skirt/flank/tritip, and at Costco's prices, it's a really great everyday steak.

It's incredibly tasty grilled: very hot and very fast.

It'll be chewy, but well worth it.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... BNBS01.DTL

Costco's only had it for a brief time--we're really lucky to get it!

Geo

Oh, also note that it does need a pretty considerable amount of trimming the way Costco sells it. Not as much as their tritips, but there's still some silverskin and some big blobs of exterior fat on it.

Geo wrote:It's incredibly tasty grilled: very hot and very fast.

It'll be chewy, but well worth it.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.c ... BNBS01.DTL

Costco's only had it for a brief time--we're really lucky to get it!

Geo

Damn! This was a fine, fine steak. I ended up using the bavette avec beurre rouge from that article, found independently (it was near the top of Google), with the rosemary added to the wine reduction instead of the potatoes, and MrsF sauteed some mushrooms in the pan drippings.

Extremely hot pan, then time in the oven where I had spuds baking, came out perfect: very soft but with enough chew to not feel like I'm eating mush, great flavor. The beurre rouge is rich -- the recipe makes a heck of a lot: we had 2.5 lbs of steak to the recipe's 1.5, it was poured onto some of the baked potatoes... and there's still leftover.

I will buy this steak whenever I see it at Costco.

Have to agree with JoelF that flap is one hell of a steak!

Picked up a pack at CostCo yesterday ($3.99/lb) and cooked a piece up in a cast iron skillet. This has to be my least favorite method of steak cooking as my "vent" simply pulls air from under the microwave and spits it out the top, but I am out of gas for the Silver B and charcoal for the kettle. Now my condo is smoker than my old college apartment after a MST3K marathon; although a steak that tasty would have come in handy back then...

Anyways, did 100% of cooking on stove top in the cast iron, and it turned out a super juicy and flavorful steak.

HIGHLY recommended!

Jamie

Dammit, people, keep quiet. I don't want the price per pound to skyrocket like it did with skirt and flank in so many markets.

I'm with gleam on this: PEOPLE! stop talking! buy your flap steak quietly, talk to no one, cook it and eat it.

As research will show, there AIN'T that many flap steaks on your standard critter... soooo, let's try to keep supply and demand nicely equilibrated.

Geo

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flap_steak

I needed the pictures to differentiate btwn skirt, flank, hanger and flap.

As I was eating my flap steak last night, I kept thinking that I had eaten this cut before. This morning it dawned one me: Is flap the Fraldinha cut served at Fogo and the like?

They texture and grain of the meat definately seemed the same to me, as well as the flavor.

Jamie

I believe that is correct. See also vacio, at Argentine spots such as Tango Sur. No one does more with humble cuts of beef, except maybe Belgians.

BTW, how did TOC do an edition on BYOB and not mention TS, one of the best BYOB experiences around? Ironically, one of the wine shops profiled, Que Syrah, is just down the street and has a symbiotic relationship with TS, as evidenced by its later hours and selection of rustic reds. The elegant and well-restored Blaine grammar school across from TS will ensure good patio views and BYOB evermore.

5.12lbs of flap for 20 bucks at costco today!

Woooohoo! Steak for a while for this guy!

Also picked up some of the Nov/dec extra-virgin olive oil for $11.99.

A deal!

jpeac2 wrote:5.12lbs of flap for 200 bucks at costco today!

Woooohoo! Steak for a while for this guy!

Shhhh! Didn't you read the notes above?
I've intentionally changed the price above to deter casual browsers from finding out.

The Tuscan olive oil was excellent last year, gotta snag some from this batch too.

$40/lb for flap steak, yeah, that's about right. Good price. (wink, wink)

Geo

Geo wrote:$40/lb for flap steak, yeah, that's about right. Good price. (wink, wink)

Geo

No guys, we want to do it more like this:

"$1.99/lb for Flap steak? That price is ridiculous! I wouldn't even think of buying it again for more than $.99/lb"

Else we end up with another "Is $9.99/lb for skirt steak a good deal" post.

Right now I'm marinating it in Goya Mojo, and debating whether it's too cold to grill outside or not... Weather.com says it's 23 F, so that's probably OK to do outside.

leek wrote:Right now I'm marinating it in Goya Mojo, and debating whether it's too cold to grill outside or not... Weather.com says it's 23 F, so that's probably OK to do outside.

If using a gas grill, bring your tank inside to warm up for a bit, will make grilling much easier.
Jamie

I did it over charcoal. The steak was fine, but I didn't like the way it took up the Mojo. It was much saltier than I have found Mojo to be on other steaks or chicken. So I'll try it un-marinated next time.

Sigh. Up to $4.99/lb.

We have only ourselves to blame. : (

Geo

Can we get this thread locked?

Gonna use some flap for some steak sandwiches. Should I slice this up before cooking? Or cook then chop?

I dont make these that often and am looking for some ways to spruce them up.

Plan:

Sautee green and red peppers with onion in an olive oil/butter combo. French bread, gonna drizzle some garlic infused olive oil over this and then throw into overn to brown up a little.

Should I sautee the steak with the onions/peppers? Or should I do it separately?

Well, turned out pretty darn good. For me the peppers and onions make the meal. Soooo tasty. Flap wasn't bad either. Sliced when it was still somewhat forzen and then let it thaw out before cooking.

Pretty good overall.

I tried the pepper and onion version with the mojo marinade, and it turned out quite nice, better than it did grilled for me with the mojo. I sautee 2 peppers and 1 onion (red peppers, onions cut in 1/2 rings), toss in some ground up coriander, cumin and chile molido to warm it up, and set that on plates. The steak has been marinated in the Mojo, and sliced thin against the grain. I saute half of it at a time so it doesn't steam, but I haven't yet gotten it to brown (I think it would if I cooked the life out of it) since it exudes a lot of juice (I do take the steak out of the marinade, dry it off, and let it sit for 20 mins or so to air dry). But it's tasty, nonetheless, and a quick weeknight supper with a salad, some green veggies and a starch (usually Trader Joe chimichurri rice, sometimes sweet potatoes).

Forgive my flap steak ignorance. Of course, since it's only worth .99 a pound, I probably won't get it, but just in case I feel like being ripped off, I'd be more comfortable knowing what I should do with it. . .

Since it's summer time, I have a grill and one of the previous posts talk about a hot pan, I thought this might be an appropriate cooking method. Can (and maybe should) flap steak be cooked on a hot grill?

Also, can it tolerate medium to well? I am all for rare, but my in-laws would be ill if they saw blood, particularly my BIL. I'm serving brisket, which he loves, so he doesn't have to have it, but just in case he wants it well done, will it be edible? (Why am I asking that???? NO steak is edible well done. . .)

One of the posts mentioned some trimming required - outer fat, silver skin. How much work should I put into this? For example, I can take 1/2 hour to do a leg of lamb, removing the silver skin etc. Does this require that type of work or a more simple pass to remove these?

I keep looking at this at Costco and wanting to try it, but with only two of us it hasn't been feasible. It seems a wonderful opportunity to try it since I have a crowd to feed. I'd like to make the most of this opportunity - or pass it up if it really isn't an opportunity at all. . .

In my experience you can trim 2.5 lbs of flap steak in about 5 minutes. Yes, you can and should do it over a hot grill. No, it really won't tolerate anything past medium, and even medium is a close call.

Thank you, Gleam. I may just have to try some of this overpriced stuff.

Tonite I grilled some 6 month old (yes, I froze it) flap meat that I had purchased at Costco ....other than a 4 hour marinade all I did was grill it on the gas Weber. All I can say is ....GREAT STUFF!!!

The problem is that I haven't seen it at Costco for a while and I have very little left. Does anyone know any other sources or if Costco will carry it again?

The IMPS/NAMP number for flap meat/flap steak is 185A, so you might be able to find a friendly butcher and ask them if they carry it/can special order it for you by giving them that number. You might need to buy a pretty large amount, though.