beef chimichurri with roast mealies

Chimichurri sauce is a fresh South American green sauce, and is traditionally served with grilled steak.  It's an essential part of the Argentinian parilla, but it goes really well with chicken and fish too.

You will develop your own proportions in this recipe. You can add more garlic, use only parsley (if you don't like coriander), leave out the chilli - experiment to come up with your own signature chimichurri.

4 rump (or fillet) steaks

4 mealies (with husks on)
butter
grated cheese
1/2 a chopped chilli

2 cups fresh parsley and/or coriander, firmly packed
1/4 cup fresh oregano leaves (or 2 tsp dried oregano)
3-6 cloves of garlic
2 tablespoons chopped red onion (or spring onions)
1/2 chilli roughly chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tblsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp lime juice (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

for the chimichurri sauce :

Pulse the garlic, chilli and onion in the food processor until finely chopped.

Add the parsley, coriander, and oregano and pulse briefly, until finely chopped.  Add the olive oil, vinegar and lime juice and combine.  Season to taste and put in a bowl.

for the roast mealies :

For this recipe (Jamie Oliver's Mexican corn) you want one side of your braai to be a bit hotter than the other so stack your coals higher on one side. While it's heating up put all your mealies (with the husks still on) in a big bowl, cover with cold water and leave to soak.

Once your braai is nice and hot drain your mealies – make sure you shake off any excess water. Keeping the husks on the corn, put them on the cooler side of the braai and leave them to cook for about 20 minutes (If you are cooking on a gas braai with a lid then shut the lid for this stage). The husks will act like a natural layer of greaseproof paper, allowing the kernels inside to steam and smoke beautifully.

After 20 minutes, any water will have evaporated and the skins will be blackened – there should be a wonderful sweet and smoky smell. Carefully peel back the papery husks, then transfer the mealies to the hotter side of the barbecue. (If you are cooking on a gas braai, this time leave the lid open). The husks will start to burn off but this is exactly what you want – keep turning them for 5 to 10 minutes until all of the kernels are lightly charred.

While your mealies cooking, scatter come chopped chilli onto a large chopping board then grate some cheese over the top. Put to one side.

Season steak with salt and pepper and cook to taste on the braai.  Cover in foil and leave to rest for 10 mins.

Once you're happy with the mealies, remove from the braai then chop off the papery end and discard.  Roll the mealies around in some butter until they're glossy and coated all over, then one by one, roll the cobs in the cheesy chilli mixture, making sure they are evenly coated.

Serve them lovely and hot with wedge of lime for squeezing over.

(Leftover chimichurri can be mixed with sour cream or cream cheese to make a dip for corn chips or raw vegetables)