This is my favorite steak. I like the chewiness of the cut and the faint marbling of fat, just enough to keep it well lubricated. And I find it a good size for the single cook. A skirt steak of approximately 14 ounces gives me three fine meals. First I have a piece of rare steak quickly sautéed and garnished with a little pan sauce of wine and shallots; then I have a few slices of it cold for lunch with a piquant sauce; and finally, later in the week, I’ll use what remains in a delicious baked dish with mushrooms and breadcrumbs, an inspiration of the late Mireille Johnston, whose books taught us so much of what regional French home cooking is all about—thriftiness, inventiveness, and good taste.

　　

Ingredients

1 or 2 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled

　　Salt

　　About 1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, peeled and grated (optional)

　　Freshly ground pepper

　　A skirt steak of about 14 ounces, preferably grass-fed

　　Light olive oil

　　1 tablespoon butter

　　1 fat shallot, finely chopped

　　1/4 cup red wine

　　A sprinkling of chopped fresh parsley

　　

Step 1

Chop the garlic fine, then sprinkle on about 1/4 teaspoon of salt, and with the flat of your knife, mash the two together until you have a paste. Mix the ginger into the paste, if you’re using it—it isn’t French, but it adds a je ne sais quoi that’s delicious. Sprinkle on several generous grindings of pepper, rub this paste onto both sides of the steak, and cut it in thirds or in half, so that it will fit into your skillet. Smear just a little oil on the bottom of a heavy 8-inch skillet, and heat until almost smoking, then lay in the steak and sear over high heat for 1 minute on each side. Now put the pan in a preheated 350° oven for about 4 minutes (or more if you don’t want it rare). Remove the steak to a warm plate while you quickly make the sauce. Swirl the butter in the hot skillet, and sauté the shallot for a minute. Splash in the wine, and reduce by half. Pour the sauce over the portion of the steak you are going to eat immediately. Top with some chopped parsley.

　　

Second Round: Beef with Sauce Gribiche

Step 2

Even better than a steak sandwich is a plate of thinly sliced rare beef with Sauce Gribiche spooned over and a garnish of cucumbers and small tomatoes. I first experienced this sauce at a little brasserie on the rue de Seine in Paris and immediately went home to work out the ingredients and create my own version. There are many variations (mine is on page 160), and it’s a sauce to treasure, because it enhances so many cold meats, especially the organ meats I relish, as well as fish.

　　The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones. Copyright © 2009 by Judith Jones. Published by Knopf. All Rights Reserved.Judith Jones is senior editor and vice president at Alfred A. Knopf. She is the author of The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food and the coauthor with Evan Jones (her late husband) of three books: The Book of Bread; Knead It, Punch It, Bake It!; and The Book of New New England Cookery. She also collaborated with Angus Cameron on The L. L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook, and has contributed to Vogue, Saveur, and Gourmet magazines. In 2006, she was awarded the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. She lives in New York City and Vermont.