Steak in Curry

My wife's recipe.

I try my best to eat as healthy as I can. Every so often however, I like to have a “cheat meal” where I indulge in foods I don't eat regularly. One of my favorite meals is having steak made Pakistani style- spicy and with a lot of curry. The method is quite simple, but does take a few hours to cook.

To begin, we first marinate the steak. You can use any cut of steak for this, but my favorites are T-bone and ribeye. I like to marinate overnight, but if that isn't possible, then the steaks should be marinated for at least 4 hours. Poke holes all over the steak using a fork. My wife doesn't use exact measurements for her marinade, but the measurements I give will be approximations.

Ingredients for marinade:

1/2 cup yogurt
4 tblsp lemon juice
2 tblsp Worcestershire sauce
salt to taste
1 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp cumin powder
cayenne pepper to tase
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp steak seasoning (my wife uses Mcormick brand)
2 tblsp barbecue sauce

Rub the marinade all over the steaks, cover, and refrigerate overnight. We take it out of the fridge about an hour or so before cooking.

For the sauce- or curry- you will need the following ingredients:

4 tblsp. canola oil
1 onion thinly sliced and chopped
2 tblsp ginger garlic paste
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp turmeric
3 tomatoes chopped
2 tblsp tomato sauce
Serrano peppers sliced length wise as desired (you can skip this if you want to skip the spiciness)
2 tomatoes cut round and thin
1 onion thinly sliced into rings
cilantro chopped finely for garnish

Heat the oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and sauté until the onions turn a nice golden brown color. Next, add the garlic ginger paste. Let that cook for 2-3 minutes before adding all the spices. You may need to add a little bit of water at this point, but don't add more than few splashes. You want to let the spices roast. After about 3 minutes, add the tomatoes and tomato paste. Add a little bit of water and it cook until the tomatoes are fully cooked and the curry looks almost smooth. This usually takes about 30 minutes. When the oil starts separating from the sauce, place each steak in the pan carefully. Add water, cover, and lower the heat to medium. Turn the steaks over about every half hour, but try not to open the pan too often. Let it cook for a while until the meat is nice and tender. It takes approximately 3-4 hours for it to be the exact tenderness I prefer (where the meat is falling apart when checked with a fork). Take off the lid and garnish with the serrano peppers, onions, and tomatoes. Cover with lid again for about 10 minutes and lower heat. Uncover and if you want more sauce, add some water, increase the heat and let it cook until the oil separates again. Turn off heat and garnish with cilantro. Enjoy with potatoes and naan!