Grilling Steak & Veggies For Valtteri Bottas And The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix
If Valtteri says he loves a grilled steak, than I am going to grill the steakiest steak you've ever seen
Welcome to Grand Prix Gastronomy! In 2024, this series is dedicated to cooking the favorite dishes of every driver on the grid.
The Foods That Valtteri Bottas Loves
Oh, Valtteri Bottas, what is your favorite food? Depending on where you look, you might find a few different answers. Back in 2020, Bottas told Formula 1 that he loves making a good wood-fired pizza and that he'd been experimenting with different dough blends. I love that! I also don't have a wood-fired oven, and I also simply cannot bring myself to make a pizza every time someone requests one (you'll notice this becomes a trend).
Instead, I found a fun Q&A with Valtteri from 2017 where he opts for something different: a barbecued steak with some vegetables. I'm going to assume here that “barbecued” means “grilled” (this is important to us Texans) — and since I didn't whip out my grill for any Grand Prix Gastronomy meals in 2023, I thought this would be an excellent way to kick off this new year!
I was a little perplexed as to when to cook Valtteri's dish; he was one of those drivers who just didn't quite fit into any race weekend. But because the weather is gorgeous here in Texas, I thought that early March would be the best time to get the grill out. If you live in a cooler clime, I apologize; I, however, will be soaking up all the moderate weather while I can!
This Week's Recipes
Okay, so, with the whole “recipe selection” thing… maybe I got a little crazy. Maybe I decided it was finally time for me to achieve a lifelong dream and grill myself up a huge-ass piece of meat. Maybe it's time… for a tomahawk.
I'll be entirely honest with y'all: I bought a bottle of wine about 100 years ago that I've been intending to drink with a tomahawk steak. It just so happened that Valtteri Bottas enjoys grilled steak — so why not go ahead and whip up a grilled tomahawk, then drink that sweet, sweet wine I've been hoarding?
I've got a tomahawk recipe from Kiss My Smoke; we cheated a little on this one and made our own recipe by cooking the meat through in the oven, then finishing it off with a sear on the grill. It was a little easier for my novice tomahawk ass to go that route than trying to navigate the grill for over an hour. I'll talk more about that below.
When it comes to veggies on the grill, I don't think there's a whole lot that I would turn down, but if I had to pick a favorite, it'd be asparagus. I know that's not everyone's jam, but it is mine, and I will be making it. You can also opt for anything your heart desires: eggplant, zucchini, mushrooms, literally anything. If you can grill it, then I recommend grilling it. I opted for a grilled asparagus with parmesan recipe from Kalyn’s Kitchen.
And because steak without a good sauce is a crime, I whipped up a chimichurri from The Forked Spoon. The bright herby flavors really help bring the smoky char to life.
Core Recipes:
Additional Recipes:
Grilling Steak & Asparagus
In the past, I've never really offered a whole lot of advice on the selection of the foods we'll be cooking in GPG, but for this Saudi Arabian/Valtteri Bottas dinner, I've got some advice. Make sure you nab a tomahawk with really yummy looking marbling and a nice fat cap — especially if you, like me, were not buying the world's fanciest or finest meat. The only tomahawk options I had in my area were USDA Select; in and of itself, that's not a bad thing, even if it isn't the highest quality option, but you'll just want to be attentive to the way you prepare and cook it. With lower grades of meat, you'll want to make sure you've got a nice amount of fat in order to really pull flavor throughout the meat. Also, if you've decided to grill asparagus, make sure you get the chunkiest fellas you can find, since they hold up better on the hot grill!
At least an hour before you want to cook your tomahawk, remove it from the fridge and let it come up to room temperature. (If you, like me, have needy, hungry pets who act like they've never been fed a single day in their lives, pop the steak into the oven or microwave; just make sure you do not turn it on.) This is critical because it helps the cooking process!
While you let your meat come to temperature, get started on your chimichurri, since that's going to taste better the longer you let the flavors mingle. Pop some chopped asparagus, shallot, garlic, red pepper, salt, pepper, oregano, and red wine vinegar into a food processor and make sure everything is finely chopped. It doesn't need to be a total paste — fine chunks are welcome! Then, transfer the chopped bits to a bowl and pour over some good quality olive oil. Mix it carefully, then pop it in the fridge until you're ready to serve.
Now, to the meat. I set my oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit and let it warm while I prepared the tomahawk by patting it dry, then sprinkling it with salt, pepper, and a St. Elmo's seasoning blend from the iconic Indianapolis steakhouse. There are a lot of folks who will tell you that good meat doesn't need anything but salt and pepper for flavor; I think those folks are boring. Live a little. Season your meat.
Because I live in Texas, and because cooking lots of meat is critical to my mental and spiritual well-being, I have a meat thermometer probe that you can stick right into your hottest cooking vessels. If you do cook a lot of thick meat cuts, one of these bad boys is a critical investment; you stab the probe into the meat, then stick the meat into wherever the hell you intend to cook it. You can set your desired temperature on the probe, and it'll beep at you when you hit that temperature. That way, you don't have to open the oven, smoker, or grill to check the doneness of your meat and let out all your heat.
We cooked our tomahawk in the oven until it reached an internal temperature of 115 degrees Fahrenheit. When it hits that temperature, you'll then slap it on the grill for a few minutes until you hit an internal temp of 130 degrees Fahrenheit. Make sure you sear all sides of your meat, about 90 seconds per side, to get those tasty grill marks. Then, when it's cooked through, remove it from the grill and let it rest for about 10 minutes before you cut into it.
That gives you plenty of time to grill up your veggies. I coated my asparagus in olive oil, salt, and pepper, then gave them a few minutes on the grill — until I was happy with the char pattern. When you're done, the recipe I included calls for you to sprinkle some grated parmesan cheese over the asparagus, but I entirely forgot that step because I was more than happy with the flavor of the asparagus itself. Do what makes you happy.
When it came time to serve everything up, I let my husband handle cutting the meat because I was not confident I'd do anything resembling a good job. I recommend giving the meat its own plate and your side another, then drizzling the meat with some of the chimichurri. Or you could just dip the meat in the sauce. I do not judge.
The Wine List
Confession time: I primarily wanted to make a tomahawk at some point during this project because I had a bottle of wine that I bought ages ago and promised myself I'd drink with a tomahawk. It was worth the wait.
I opted for a 2016 carignan from P.S. Garcia, a Chilean winery that's part of the VIGNO movement, which is dedicated to putting carginan back on the map. It places strict requirements on the wineries that participate, which ensures quality. The movement is based in the Maule valley, long considered the birthplace of Chilean viticulture thanks to the arrival of Spaniards and their beloved país grape that was primarily used to make ceremonial wines.
País grapes can make some uninspired wines, so after an earthquake devastated the Maule region, the Chilean government replanted it with carignan to give the local wines some more color and oomph — only for those wines to end up relegated as cheap table wines. The VIGNO movement has helped reestablish the region's viticultural credibility, and the wines are damn good.
The 2016 P.S. Garcia carignan made for a great steak pairing; it's a very acid-forward drink that carries an earthy but floral flavor. While a lot of folks will recommend a more robust grape to pair with your steaks, I'm not convinced that we need to always opt for a cabernet sauvignon or a zinfandel — especially not when the spicy acidity of this carignan served as a great counterbalance to the smoky meat.
So, What's The Verdict?
I am not even kidding when I say that this is easily the best steak I've ever made at home. Honestly.
If you're skeptical about the reverse sear, don't be. I love the char flavor and texture you get from grilling, but it can be difficult to preserve all that by searing first and cooking through later. Using a low heat to cook the inside of the steak before finishing it off with a delicious sear will guarantee a tender inside and a crisp outside. (It's also how we made last year's prime rib for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.)
Grilled asparagus is one of my favorite sides, ever, but I do think the true star of this show was the chimichurri sauce. While I enjoy red meat, I can also get overwhelmed by it; sometimes, it can feel very heavy, and the grill can continue to weigh it down. Topping grilled steak with a creamy or buttery sauce can therefore feel like overkill.
But the chimichurri is great. It has an incredible freshness that counterbalances the smokiness of the meat, and it adds a little extra punch of flavor.
I'm sure you're not eating this kind of grilled steak and veggies on the regular, Valtteri — but my goodness, I give you kudos for giving me a chance to do it!
Ready… Set… COOK!
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