A lunchtime fave - Steak and Perl Las Sandwich

Food plays a big part in our life. Both my husband Adam and me love cooking and trying new things, especially if they involve locally and Welsh sourced produce. We are lucky to have such exceptional food right on our doorstep and when it comes to red meat and dairy produce, Wales, in our minds, leads the way. Who would dare argue with that? 

With a bit of spare time on our hands there has been an increase in kitchen activity - from baking bread, to a first attempt at brewing beer, slow cooking all sorts of beef and lamb, BBQ’s as soon as there is a bit of sunshine around. Dinner in our house is rarely a boring affair. 

Lunch on the other hand needed some attention. So we put our thinking caps on and it didn’t take long for inspiration to hit. What do we love to eat? What makes our soul sing with contentment? Beef steak, bread and cheese, of course. A fine combination as far as comfort food is concerned. Say hello to the Dunn Steak and Perl Las sandwich. 

All credit for this creation must go to my husband - who is by far the more talented out of the two of us when it comes to cooking up a storm. 

From our house to yours - we hope you enjoy! 

Anne & Adam Dunn

Ingredients (makes 2 sandwiches) :

2 PGI Welsh Sirloin steaks (share one between you or go all out and have one each)

4 Lettuce leaves or a handful of Rocket

0.5 Red Onion - sliced 

Handful of Chestnut Mushrooms - sliced

1 tbsp Welsh Butter

1 tbsp Mayonnaise

1 tbsp French or Wholegrain mustard

4 Pickled Gherkin slices

1 Tomato - sliced

4 slices Perl Las cheese

4 slices of bread or a baguette of your choice

Pinch of Salt & Pepper

Olive Oil

Welsh Cheese Coleslaw - optional side

Tools:

Griddle Pan

Tongs

Chopping board

Small saucepan

Bread knife 

Method:

1. Take your steak out the fridge and let it come up to room temperature, then season with salt and pepper.
2. Chop the mushrooms, onion and tomatoes into slices.
3. Mix the mustard with the mayonnaise (you can add more or less mustard, depending on how hot you want it)
4. Get your griddle pan hot - and toast the bread if you’re using sliced (we used a home baked sunflower seed loaf) - wait for a nice bit of charring. You want to be able to see those griddle pan lines. When that’s looking good, take them out and set to one side.
5. Melt a bit of butter in a small saucepan and add the mushroom. Saute and season with some salt and pepper. Add a bit of garlic if the fancy takes you.
6. Now the steak. Make sure your pan is really hot before you start frying. How long you leave it in there depends entirely on how you like your steak cooked. The choice is yours. But for the sake of all steak lovers - please don’t cremate it. 
7. When the steak is cooked, give it time to rest before you start slicing. Now is a good time to start stacking up the sandwich.
8. Bread, mustard mayonnaise, lettuce, steak slices, mushrooms, pickled gherkin slices, tomato and onion slices, topped off with a few slices of Perl Las. 
9. Time to get stuck in and enjoy!