Why you should try this coffee and chilli butter steak recipe – and how to slice it properly

Learn why cutting against the grain makes all the difference, then try this speedy steak recipe with a bold marinade of coffee, chilli and lime butter

A speedy steak with a bold kick of coffee, chilli and lime butter – tender every time if you slice it right (Kim Lightbody)

Award-winning cook and food writer Ixta Belfrage has shared a vital tip for achieving perfectly tender steak, advising home cooks to always 'slice against the grain'.

She explains the technique:

"Look at the meat and observe the lines or strands running through it – these are the muscle fibres, or the ‘grain’. Position your knife (make sure it’s nice and sharp) so that you cut across these lines, rather than along them. By cutting against the grain, you shorten the muscle fibres, which makes the meat feel softer and easier to chew."

And here’s the recipe:

Quick steaks with coffee and chilli butter

Serves: 2

Prep time: 5 minutes | Cook time: 4½ minutes | Rest time: 8 minutes

Ingredients:

2 x 220g rump steaks

Fine sea salt

30g salted butter

5g spring onion green ends, very finely chopped (use the whites in another recipe)

5g fresh coriander, very finely chopped

2 limes, halved

Flaked sea salt

For the marinade:

1 tbsp mild olive oil

½ tbsp maple syrup

¾ tsp ground coffee

¾ tsp Urfa chilli flakes

¾ tsp ground urucum (AKA annatto/achiote)

50 twists of freshly cracked pepper

Method:

‘Fusão’ showcases bold, untraditional Brazilian-inspired recipes from award-winning cook Ixta Belfrage (Ebury Press)

1. Bring the steak to room temperature 1 hour before cooking. Pat dry with kitchen paper, then generously season both sides with fine sea salt.

2. Mix all the marinade ingredients together, then use enough of the marinade to coat both sides of the steak (you won’t need it all – keep the rest for the sauce).

3. Open the windows and turn on your extraction fan. Heat a large frying pan on a high heat. Once the pan is very hot, place the steaks in the pan, spaced apart, and cook for 2½ minutes. Flip the steaks over and cook for another 2 minutes. Transfer to a board to rest for 8 minutes while you prep the butter.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool for a few minutes. Add the butter, spring onion greens, coriander, the juice of 1 lime and the remaining marinade to the pan and swirl, letting the butter melt in the residual heat.

5. Slice the steak against the grain (see intro) and plate. Sprinkle with flaked salt, then spoon over the butter. Serve with the remaining lime.

‘FUSÃO’ by Ixta Belfrage (Ebury Press, £28).