Today, I’m delighted to welcome Dave Wendel to Nom Nom Paleo as a guest blogger. Unlike yours truly, Dave’s a classically trained chef who earned his chops at what Paul Bocuse called “the best culinary school in the world,” so you know he’s got the goods.
 
Dave has graciously agreed to share his flank steak roulade recipe (and step-by-step photos!) with us, and trust me – this meal is a guaranteed home run. Take it away, Dave!
 

 
I was fortunate enough to meet Michelle and Henry at AHS12. We quickly bonded over our common love for delicious food. When Michelle asked me to do a guest post for her blog, I was excited to create a main course that looks impressive, yet doesn’t keep you in the kitchen for hours. I came up with the idea of doing a roulade.
One nice feature of a roulade is that it can be made several days prior to your event and then cooked just before serving. Additionally, you can experiment with the stuffing, changing it by adding or subtracting ingredients. A roulade tastes great and your guests will be impressed by the visual appeal of the pinwheel on their plate.
Enjoy!
-Dave

Here’s what to gather to feed 4-6 people:

  • ½ pound baby spinach
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1½ pounds flank steak
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper, divided
  • 4 thick slices of bacon, diced
  • 1 medium red pepper, diced
  • 1 small green zucchini, diced
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 garlic clove, pressed
  • 2 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil

Here’s what to do:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. Heat large saute pan over high heat until very hot.

3. Add spinach and water to the pan and cover.

4. Allow the spinach to steam undisturbed until wilted (about 2 minutes).  Uncover and allow spinach to cool.

5. Drain and press spinach to get all the water out.

6. Butterfly the flank steak with the fibers running parallel to your stabilizing hand, being careful not to slice it into two pieces.

7. Season inside of flank steak with salt and pepper to taste (approximately ¼ teaspoon of each).

8. Heat a separate saute pan over medium heat. Add bacon and cook for 3-4 minutes.

9. Toss in peppers and zucchini, cooking for 3-4 more minutes.

10. Next, sprinkle on chili powder, garlic, and ½ teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Mix well. Continue to cook until vegetables are tender and remove from heat to cool.

11. Spread cooled bacon and vegetable mixture evenly over the seasoned flank steak.

11. Cover vegetable mixture with the steamed spinach. This will help keep the vegetables in place.

12. Roll the flank steak.

 13. Tie with butcher twine, and season the outside of the roulade with salt and pepper (approximately ¼ teaspoon each).

(If you are serving the roulade later (up to 3 days), place it in the fridge at this step. When you are ready to serve it, remove it from the fridge for about an hour to bring to room temperature. Then, follow the rest of the instructions.)

14. Heat large saute pan over high heat. Add ghee or coconut oil until it starts to smoke. Sear all of the sides of the roulade until golden brown.

15. Place roulade in oven and cook until the internal temperature reaches 120°F for medium rare (approximately 18-20 minutes). Let the roulade rest for 20 minutes after removing from the oven and the residual heat will raise the temperature of the meat to 125-130°F.

16. Slice and remove twine before serving.


Dave Wendel is a 1999 graduate of The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY. He has worked in the food service industry for 20 years, and currently works as a buyer for a gourmet foods company. Dave became interested in Paleo as part of the comprehensive plan to manage his Type 1 Diabetes. In his free time, Dave relaxes with his wife, Ann Wendel, the owner of Prana Physical Therapy. You can connect with Dave here. 

About Michelle Tam

Hello! My name is Michelle Tam, and I love to eat. I think about food all the time. It borders on obsession. I’ve always loved the sights and smells of the kitchen. My mother was (and is) an excellent cook, and as a kid, I was her little shadow as she prepared supper each night. From her, I gained a deep, abiding love for magically transforming pantry items into mouth-watering family meals.

Other Recipes You May Like

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

1 Comment

  1. Amazing recipe! My first time cooking Flank steak. I had two steaks – each approx 1.5 lbs- for 8 people.
    I used leftover roasted red onion, zucchini and red peppers. Mixed with rehydrated wild mushrooms. Seasoned every step of the way with salt and pepper. Added seasoning to chopped up veggies what I had on hand: hot paprika, Chili flakes, cinnamon, lemon zest and more salt and pepper (didn’t use bacon so tried to ensure stuffing was flavour and moist). Cooking times were bang on to get to medium in thicker part in center and more done on ends.
    Flavour and tenderness was amazing ! Presentation beautiful and impressive!
    Easy to do when using left over already roasted veggies.
    Will definitely make again!
    Thanks!