Grilled Beef Tagliata, Rucola and Parmigiano-Reggiano

With the Mozza cookbook now in hand, thanks to a friend, I can work and share through it to my heart's content.  Lured by a beautiful photo, Stella said, this looked pretty good.  So here we are.  The recipe calls for hangar steaks, but none to be found this morning, I went with New York strip and cut the recipe in half.

1/2 Cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 Cup whole fresh rosemary needles
4 Whole garlic cloves
1/4 Cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 to 2 lbs of New York Strip or Hangar Steak
Combine the balsamic vinegar, rosemary and garlic in a food processor fitted with a metal blade or a blender and pulse until the rosemary is finely chopped.  Add the oil and pulse until well combined.
In a large zip lock bag, add the steak and the marinade together.  Close and refrigerate for at least one hour or up to overnight.  Remove steaks from the marinade and bring to room temperature before grilling.  Discard marinade.
Prepare a hot fire in a  gas or charcoal grill.  Generously salt and pepper the steaks.  Grill steaks until they are well seared and deep brown, about 5-6 minutes per side for medium rare. Remove steaks to a platter or cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes before slicing.  Slice into 1/2 inch thick slices.


While the steaks are resting, prepare the arugula.
8 Cups loosely packed arugula
Wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano
Lemon Vinaigrette to taste (see below)
Maldon sea salt or another flaky salt such as fleur de sel, I used fleur de sel
Aged balsamico condimento
Finishing quality extra virgin olive oil
Using a mandolin or large knife cut the Parmigiano-Reggiano into very thin slices. I find a large vegetable peeler works as well.  Make sure the cheese is at room temp.
Put the arugula in a large, wide bowl and sprinkle with salt and toss gently to distribute evenly. Drizzle the vinaigrette and toss gently to coat the arugula.  Taste for seasoning and add more salt or vinaigrette if desired.


To serve, transfer 1/4 of the steak slices to each of four dinner plates.  Drizzle the steaks with any juices that have collected on the cutting board.
Lay a few slices of Parmigiano-Reggiano next to each serving of steak.  Build the arugula salad in two layers swing the largest slices of Parmigiano for the top.  Pile a handful of arugula on top of each layer of cheese finishing with a top layer of the cheese.
Sprinkle steaks with a pinch of fleur de del and drizzle with 1 teaspoon of balsamico condimento and the finishing quality olive oil.
Simple, tasty, a definite keeper.


Lemon Vinaigrette
1/4 Cup minced shallots
1/4 Cup fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp champagne vinegar
1 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 Cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
Combine shallots, lemon juice, vinegar and salt in a small bowl.  Set aside for 5-10 minutes to marinate the shallots.  Add the olive oil in a slow, steady stream whisking constantly.  Stir in the pepper.  Taste for seasoning and add more salt or pepper if needed.  Use immediately, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.  Bring back to room temp and whisk to recombine before serving.