4Very thick steaksporterhouse of T-bone & look for a steak that’s just under a kg and cut about 4 cm thick
Top quality sea salt – like Fleur de Sel de Guérande
Searing hot coals made from a hard wood
Freshly cracked pepper
Instructions
PREPARE THE GRILL
Make sure the coals are quite hot – you should not be able to hold your hand over the coals for more than about 4 seconds; put the grill about 10cm over the coals and let it heat up.
PREPARE THE STEAK
If the steak comes right out of the fridge, it will cook a little longer than something that is, already, at room temperature – I like meat cooked from room temperature. For the perfect steak florentine, leave the steak at room temperature for at least 30 minutes prior cooking it.
COOK THE BISTECCA ALLA FIORENTINA
Pop the steak onto the grill so that it can sear & then lift the grill but don’t move the steak; it can only be flipped once it comes off the grill easily – flip it off & onto a plate and salt liberally (you’re salting the seared side so that the salt can’t draw out the excess moisture) and then pop the other side onto the grill.
Continue in this fashion: a few minutes on, flip, lightly pepper, salt, flip and so on – you know the drill.
It’s very important that the heat remains constant so fan the coals back to life if the look as if they’re going to die (which they shouldn’t if you’ve made a decent fire).
It should cook in a few minutes & when the steak is done it should still be rare – but it’s all a matter of taste.
Notes
Slice it with the best kitchen knife you have. Serve a with a little pat of butter or olive oil and with a lemon wedge & a tossed green salad, a dish of simply boiled cannellini beans and served with olive oil, salt and pepper and good Chianti Classico Riserva or a Brunello.