Resetting the Table: Family Barbecue with Tim Hollingsworth
Recipe| November 8, 2020
Photo by Tanveer Badal
“These are some of our family’s favourite dishes. For this cowboy (bone-in rib-eye), we smoke it at a low temperature then sear it in a cast-iron skillet over a wood barbecue. The smoke, the caramelisation, and then the addition of butter, garlic and thyme all build a depth of flavour. This cooking style is called ‘reverse sear’ because you start by slowly bringing up the internal temperature, then finish by searing the outside of the steak over high heat – we’ve been loving this technique with steaks.
Westholme is special – it really has its own thing going on. You’re eating tender wagyu but at the same time you have that beefy flavour. It’s distinctive in the way it’s balanced.
If I think steak, I think potatoes. I’m a potato guy. I legitimately crave them! For this barbecue I made a version of Farmer’s Potatoes, layering them in a cast-iron pan in a rosette pattern, spiralling them up over and again with shallots, garlic and thyme and a little butter sprinkled throughout.
We also do a simple salad with tomatoes, corn and rosemary blossoms. We slice and season the tomatoes then let them sit to concentrate the flavour and let them leach out a bit of liquid which becomes part of the dressing. I toss through some raw, sweet, starchy corn and sprinkle rosemary blossoms over the top. The little flowers have a really nice herbaceous note.
The acidity and brightness of a salad is important with rich red meat – they work together, actually. Those super clean, vegetal aspects and the garden-fresh taste make me want to keep going back to the steak.”
Timothy Hollingsworth is the chef and owner of Otium, Los Angeles.
Serves 6
Time: 3 hours
Reverse-Seared Steak
Photo by Tanveer Badal
Serves 6
Time: 3 hours
Ingredients
1 thick-cut cowboy / bone-in rib-eye steak
1 tbsp sea salt *
1 tbsp black pepper, coarsely ground
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp butter
1 bunch thyme
3 cloves garlic, crushed
Method
- Season steak with salt and pepper, reserving for some for finishing.
- Smoke at 74C (165F) until internal temperature reaches 38C (100F). Without a smoker, cook in a low oven at the same temperature to achieve the same internal temperature.
- Heat cast iron plate or pan, add oil, and sear steak on both sides.
- Add butter, thyme and garlic, basting and turning as needed until steak reaches internal temperature of 49-54C (120-130F).
- Remove from heat and allow steak to rest for 15 minutes.
- Slice to serve, finishing with remaining salt and pepper.
Notes
- Tim’s preferred sea salt for this dish is ‘sel gris’, a grey French salt, also known as Celtic salt.
Farmer’s Potatoes
Making this dish is a meditation as you slowly layer the slices of potato in a baking dish. Eating it is pure celebration.
Ingredients
15 Yukon Creamer potatoes, medium, thinly sliced *
salt, to taste
black pepper, freshly ground, to taste
3 tbsp shallots, chopped
3 tbsp garlic, chopped
3 tbsp thyme, chopped
½ cup butter, softened or tempered *
½ cup chicken stock
Method
- Preheat oven to 220C (425F). Combine shallots, garlic and thyme in a bowl.
- Use a cast-iron pot or Dutch oven around 25cm (10 in) wide. Rub the bottom with butter.
- Arrange the sliced potatoes in a spiral around the pan, starting at the edges and slowly working in.
- Between each layer of spiral potatoes, season with salt and pepper, add a thin layer of the shallot mixture and a couple of dollops of butter. Do not add anything to the top layer of potatoes.
- Add stock, then put lid on pot and cook for 30 minutes. Remove lid and cook for a further 15 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender and golden brown.
Notes
- Kipfler potatoes would also be good in this recipe.
- Tim tempers the butter. This means melting and whisking it so it stays liquid and milky without separating into butterfat and milk solids. You can omit tempering (it’s pretty cheffy!) – just use little dollops of soft butter between your potato layers.
Rosemary-Scented Heirloom Tomato and Corn Salad
Photo by Tanveer Badal
Raw corn is unusual but the kernels’ crunch and creamy starchiness work so well with sweet in-season tomatoes and bright, floral rosemary.
Ingredients
900g (2 lbs) heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut in wedges
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
salt flakes, to taste
black pepper, freshly ground, to taste
1 tbsp shallots, finely chopped
3 ears sweet corn, kernels cut from cob
1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped
4 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp rosemary blossoms, optional
Method
- Place tomatoes on a serving dish, skin side down, then season with sugar, red wine vinegar, salt, pepper and shallots. Let marinate for 1 hour at room temperature.
- Add corn, rosemary and olive oil. Gently toss.
- Finish with rosemary blossoms, if using. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate for up to 4 hours before serving.
Photo by Tanveer Badal