Espetada Madeirense

Ingredients

• 900 g beef sirloin, cut into 4 cm cubes
• 6 garlic
• 2 tsp salt
• 8 bay leaf
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 60 g butter
• 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

Method

1. 1.

   Pound the garlic paste — Pound the garlic to a rough paste with the salt in a mortar — the coarse salt does the grinding. Work in 2 tbsp of the olive oil, the black pepper and 3 of the bay leaves, torn very small.

2. 2.

   Rub the beef and let it sit — Rub the paste hard into every face of the beef cubes, cover and leave at room temperature for 1 hour. There is no acid and no marinade here — just garlic and salt going into the meat, which is the whole character of the dish.

3. 3.

   Thread the skewers with bay — Thread the beef onto long metal skewers, pushing a whole bay leaf between every two cubes and leaving a finger's gap between them so the heat can get right round each piece.

4. 4.

   Grill over white-hot coals — Heat a charcoal grill until the coals are covered in white ash, or a grill pan until it smokes. Grill the skewers for 10-12 minutes, turning every 3 minutes, until a dark crust has formed on all four faces and the centre is still rosy.

5. 5.

   Brush with bay butter — Meanwhile melt the butter with the last bay leaves and 1 tbsp olive oil in a small pan at the edge of the grill. Brush it over the skewers in the final two minutes and again the moment they come off the heat.

6. 6.

   Rest, then serve on the skewer — Rest the skewers on a warm plate for 5 minutes so the juices settle back into the meat, then serve them still on the skewer, scattered with parsley, with the bay butter poured over and lemon wedges alongside.