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Bistecca alla fiorentina (florentine porterhouse steak)

Name: Bistecca alla fiorentina (florentine porterhouse steak)
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: Serves 2
Cuisine: Italian recipes
Ingredients: 1kg porterhouse steak, at least 5cm thick (see Before you start); ½ x 20g bunch rosemary; Olive oil; Specialist kit; Ridged cast iron griddle pan (ideally enamelled); Useful to have; Probe thermometer

By: Pollyanna Coupland
Food producer, delicious.

Published: 28 Aug 24
Updated: 19 Sep 24

Bistecca alla fiorentina (florentine porterhouse steak)

When Italians do steak, boy do they go for it. This iconic dish, a porterhouse, is a staple of restaurants in Florence, with the gigantic cut always cooked rare and served at the table for diners to share. Flavoured with rosemary and oil, it’s sometimes served with cannellini beans and, of course, a bottle of good Tuscan red wine.

A cast iron griddle pan is essential for this recipe – find out how to make the most of your pan with our expert guide. And explore more of makes Tuscan food so exceptional in our food lover’s guide to the region…

Easy
September` 2024

Test kitchen approved

Serves 2
Hands-on time 30 min

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 805kcals
Fat: 56g (19g saturated)
Protein: 75g
Carbohydrates: 0.5g (0.5g sugars)
Fibre: 0.5g
Salt: 1.6g

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Before you start

A porterhouse is essentially a big T-bone (a cut with the bone in, comprising both sirloin and fillet) but it’s an important part of the dish to have a steak thick enough to get gnarly on the outside while staying rare within. Ask your butcher to ensure it’s 5-7cm thick. Any thinner and it won’t have the right texture (and it will be tricky to stand it up on its side, which is an integral part of the cooking process).

Make sure your griddle is smoking hot. It should be making you nervous about setting off the smoke alarm. Putting it over the highest heat for at least 5 minutes should do the trick.

Before you start

Make sure your griddle is smoking hot. It should be making you nervous about setting off the smoke alarm. Putting it over the highest heat for at least 5 minutes should do the trick.

Ingredients

1kg porterhouse steak, at least 5cm thick (see Before you start)
½ x 20g bunch rosemary
Olive oil

Specialist kit

Ridged cast iron griddle pan (ideally enamelled)

Useful to have

Probe thermometer

Cook Mode Sticky screen? No thanks! Tap to prevent your screen from going off while cooking.

Method

An hour before you cook the steak, remove any packaging and pat dry with kitchen paper. Leave to come to room temperature.
Heat the griddle pan on a high heat until smoking hot. Dip the rosemary in oil, then use it to brush the steak all over. Just before griddling, season the steak on both sides with salt and pepper. Still on a high heat, griddle undisturbed for 7 minutes, then flip and cook for another 7 minutes. Use the rosemary to brush more oil on as it cooks.
Stand the steak up on its edges for about a minute each to sear. If you have a probe, it should read 49-54°C for rare. Leave the steak on a warmed plate to rest uncovered on top of the rosemary for 15 minutes, then carve thickly against the grain (at a 90-degree angle to the meat fibres). Buon appetito!

Recipe from September` 2024 Issue

Nutrition

Nutrition: per serving

Calories: 805kcals
Fat: 56g (19g saturated)
Protein: 75g
Carbohydrates: 0.5g (0.5g sugars)
Fibre: 0.5g
Salt: 1.6g

Sear vegetables and meat – like this Florentine steak – to perfection with ProCook’s enamelled cast iron griddle. Designed to last a lifetime, this durable piece of kit comes with a 25-year guarantee and can be used on all hob types – plus the barbecue.