Monday, August 24, 2020

Ribeye Steak with White Beans and Bacon

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A popular dish in Tuscany is a straight-forward T-bone steak with white beans. So this quick steak dinner that I made this past weekend is Tuscan-inspired but Appalachian-influenced since I'm using East Tennessee's own Bush's® Beans. 


Certified Angus Beef Ribeye with White Beans and Bacon
I used a ribeye instead of a T-bone because the ribeyes looked the best. 


Cooking Strategy

My strategy was to set up a two-zone fire on a simple charcoal grill. I did my skillet cooking directly over the coals until it was time to simmer. Then I slid the beans to the indirect side, raised the grill temperature, and seared the steak directly over the coals. 

Equipment Strategy

For this cook, I chose to use my old CharBroil 500x. This tabletop grill is no longer in production but the Oklahoma Joe Rambler is an improved similar version. Tuscan grilling is basic (in a good way) and this aged grill is like that too. That's really the main reason that I picked this particular grill for this cook. 

Setting up a two-zone fire in a small, tabletop grill from Charbroil
This grill is set up for a two-zone fire with all of the fuel on the right side for sauteing and grilling and the left side is left open for indirect cooking.

 

Certified Angus Beef Ribeye Steak with White Beans and Bacon
Certified Angus Beef Brand® ribeye steak with white beans and bacon

Confession:  This is my bean and bacon soup recipe with less stock. Just about 1/2 to 1 cup more of stock and you'll have a quick and tasty soup. 

White Beans and Bacon

www.nibblemethis.com

Published 06/22/2020

Ingredients

  • 3 strips Smithfield Homestyle bacon, chopped
  • 1/4 cup carrot, peeled and finely diced
  • 1/4 cup sweet onion, peeled and finely chopped
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup chicken stock
  • 1 can Bush's Great Northern Beans or other white beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon finely ground white pepper

Instructions

  1. Place cast-iron skillet or another grill-safe, non-stick skillet on a 350°f grill (medium heat) and allow it to preheat for 5 minutes.
  2. Add the bacon, carrot and onion and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is turning brown and slightly crispy.
  3. Sprinkle the flour into the skillet and whisk until the flour and bacon fat combine to form a light roux, 1-2 minutes. Slowly add the stock while whisking until it is fully combined. OPTIONS - If you want rustic beans, leave this as is and move to step 4. For a finer sauce, use an immersion blender to process the liquid mixture before proceeding to step 4. We like it both ways.
  4. Stir in the drained white beans. Season with the salt and pepper. Push to the indirect heat on the grill or over a low heat burner, and let simmer lightly while you cook the steak.
  5. Season to taste with additional salt, as desired.

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 00 hrs. 10 mins.

Cook time: 00 hrs. 20 mins.

Total time: 30 mins.

Tags: skillet


Certified Angus Beef Brand ribeye steak from Food City in Knoxville
I seasoned this beautiful Certified Angus Beef® ribeye steak from Food City with my NMT Beef Rub v.2 recipe, loosely covered it, and put it back in the fridge for about 4 hours to let it "dry brine". I took it back out 1 hour before I was ready to grill.

Lighting up Kingsford original using a JJ George grill torch
Lighting up a stack of Kingsford blue bag using a JJ George grill torch. Kingsford is doing a pretty cool thing to help support BBQ joints right now. They are opening a $5,000 tab at certain restaurants on a scheduled day.  Check out their Famous Bites page for details and recipes from those restaurants.

The mise en place for my beans. If you do a lot of cooking outdoors, do yourself a favor and get a tray like this. They reduce the number of trips back and forth and also make clean up easier.

I started the grill on medium heat (350°f) by having most of the vents shut down. Then when it was time to grill the steaks, I opened up the vents and opened the front access door to let more oxygen to the coals. That bumps the heat up real quick.


This view gives you a good visualization of the two-zone fire. I'm using direct heat to saute in this picture and will shift the skillet to the void on the left when it's time to let it simmer. That skillet is a 80+ year old Griswold #5.

Stirring in the flour to make the light roux. Your flour should be completely incorporated with no white lumps to be seen. You also might notice a "nutty" aroma that tells you it's done as well but that's harder to detect when grilling compared to using the stovetop. It shouldn't take but 1-2 minutes.

Making white beans and bacon while I grill the steak
Finishing up.  If your beans simmer too long and get thicker than you like, you can always stir in a smidgen more of stock to thin it out. I like them thick.


Certified Angus Beef ribeye steak with white beans and bacon
There you have it. Straight forward, tender, and amazing.


Want more delicious recipes and grilling tips?
I have two great books available for sale through Ulysses Press.

The Kamado Smoker and Grill Cookbook  
The Offset Smoker and Grill Cookbook.