Charcoal Grilled U.S. Porterhouse Steaks with Thyme Salt

1200 gram Angus Porterhouse (about 1 ½ to 2 inches thick)
Rock Salt and Pepper
as needed Olive Oil

For the Thyme Salt: - combine ingredients below

1/2 cup Rock Salt
1 tbs Fresh Thyme Leaves, stems removed

Defrost steaks overnight in the refrigerator. Bring to room temperature before cooking. Pat the steak dry with paper towels, season generously with rock salt and freshly cracked black pepper and marinate for 15-25 minutes. Prepare charcoal grill until coals ash over and are very hot.

Place the steak on charcoal grill and cook until well seared on 1 side, 6 to 8 minutes.

Turn and sear the second side, again for 6 to 8 minutes. To be sure, check doneness with an instant read thermometer, 130F degrees for medium.

Transfer the meat to a serving plate, cover it loosely with foil, and allow it to rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Serve with Thyme Salt or your favorite sauce and vegetables.

Cirkulo's Paella a la Montana Mushroom Paella

1/4 cup Olive oil
4 cloves Garlic peeled
1/2 cup Onions, minced
1 1/2 cup Mushrooms, Portabella, Sliced
1/2 cup Mushrooms, Button, Sliced pinch Saffron
1 cup Rice, Short Grain
2 cup Chicken Stock
TT Salt and Pepper
10 pcs Asparagus, blanched to taste
Truffle Oil

  1. 1. In a sauté pan or paellera, heat olive oil. Add Garlic and sauté until golden brown. Remove garlic and set aside.
  2. 2. To the oil, sauté the onions and all the mushrooms until soft. Set half aside together with garlic.
  3. 3. To the remaining mushrooms add the saffron and rice. Sauté for 3 minutes.
  4. 4. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Bring down to a simmer and cover for 12 minutes or until rice is almost done.
  5. 5. Season blanched asparagus with salt and pepper. Top the paella with asparagus and reserved mushrooms and garlic. Drizzle with some truffle oil. Serve.

Cirkulo's Slow Roasted U.S. Beef Belly

1/2 cup whole peppercorns, crushed
1/2 cloves rock salt
2 heads garlic peeled and minced

  • 1. Preheat oven to 280 degrees F.
  • 2. Combine crushed peppercorns, salt and garlic into a paste. Rub on top of beef.
  • 3. Place beef on a rack and onto a roasting pan. Place in oven. Cook at 280F for 4 to 5 hours or until tender. IMPORTANT: oven temperature must be this low in order to break down the connective tissues of the beef resulting in a melt in your mouth succulent roast beef. Test for tenderness with a kitchen fork after 4 hours. Once done, remove from oven and rest for at least 1 hour before slicing. Serve with horseradish sauce.
  • 4. You may cook the beef up to 2 days before and keep in refrigerator. To reheat, slice beef while cold into 1/3 inch thick slices. Arrange beef slices overlapping each other in a baking tray, pour ½ cup f stock or water over the beef. Cover with foil, and bake in a 350F oven for about 15-20 minutes or until heated through. Serve.
  • 5. You can serve this dish with steamed asparagus and zucchini, roasted tomatoes.

For the sauce:

1 cup prepared horseradish, available at delis and supermarket
1 cup milk
1 tsp chopped parsley to taste salt and pepper
Combine all ingredients. Mix well. Serve with beef on the side.

Cirkulo's Cochinillo Asado

6 kg Suckling Pig
1/2 cup olive oil
Salt
Pepper
1 Tbsp Paprika (Pimenton de la Vera)
2-3 sprigs fresh parsley
1 sprig fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 small onions chopped
1 carrot chopped
3 celery stalk chopped
1 cup dry white wined

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Have your butcher butterfly the pig, or do it yourself by opening the underside, leaving the backbone and the head intact. Rub the skin with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the pig in a large clay casserole, skin-side down. Chop the herbs, garlic, onion, celery and carrot and spread evenly across the body of the pig. Pour the wine and let marinate overnight. Place in oven and cook for an hour. Turn pig over, skin side up and cook until golden brown and crisp (about 90 minutes). Pour off cooking liquid from pan, degrease, season and serve as sauce. Cochinillo Asado may be accompanied with a salad or surrounded with roast potatoes.