Balsamic vinegar is the 'wine' of Modena, Italy. It is rich, thick, expensive and marries up beautifully with sirloin steak to produce an unusual finish that greatly enhances the look and flavor of the meat.
But be warned. Not all vinegars labelled 'balsamic' are the real thing. In fact, most are decidedly not even though the label may insist they are. There are three things to look for on the label; either this 'Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena' or this 'Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale de Reggio Emilia', plus the fermenting age which should be at least 12 years.
Don't be fooled by the words 'Aceto Balsamico di Modena'. These are meaningless and appear on bottles which are little more than ordinary wine vinegar with a little coloring added. Most supermarket varieties are of this type and while they can be used in place of ordinary vinegar, they are not suitable for this dish.
Okay, lesson over, let's get cooking. You need:
4 sirloin steaks
120ml cup olive oil
60ml Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena, or the other one
1tsp dark soy sauce
Whisk the three liquids together and put two thirds of them, together with the steaks, into a food-proof plastic bag. This will keep the steaks fully covered with the marinade. Refrigerate overnight.
Take the steaks out of the marinade half an hour before cooking and allow them to come to room temperature. Keep enough of the marinade to brush the steaks while they are cooking and discard the rest.
Heat a lightly oiled pan or griddle to smoking point and drop the steaks on to it. Brush the top sides with the reserved marinade and turn after two minutes. Cook for a further two minutes, remove from the heat and keep warm.
Now if you have followed me so far you will still have one third of your original mixture to hand. Bring this rapidly to the boil and spoon a little over each steak just before serving.
