Florentine t-bone steak (bistrecca alla fiorentina) - Italian Cuisine

A true Florentine steak uses Chianina beef, and is always served rare. The steaks are enormous and designed to be shared – as you can see from this recipe, one steak serves two to three people. Chianina is a large, muscular, slow-growing breed of cattle from the Chiana Valley in Italy. They were the oxen used to pull ploughs in the days of the Romans. Their meat is full flavoured, deeply coloured and surprisingly lean and tender – so tender you can eat it with a spoon.

Ingredients



1 hand-cut Chianina T-bone steak weighing 1.2–1.8 kg, aged for 4–5 weeks

sea salt

extra virgin olive oil

Cook's notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.



Instructions



Bring the steak to room temperature.



Light some coals in a charcoal grill and when the flames die down, evenly spread out the hot coals. Clean the grill with a steel brush and a dry cloth.



Grill the steak for 4–5 minutes on each side. The steak should be cooked rare.



Place on a serving platter, sprinkle with generous sea salt, drizzle with abundant olive oil, and serve immediately.