Mushroom-Stuffed Flank Steak Roll

Late March and the azaleas outside my apartment are in full bloom, pink and lavender and white, and the air smells like something beginning. I have been noticing spring more than usual this year, every sign of it, the way you notice things when you are paying close attention to something internal and the world outside keeps happening anyway and the contrast is beautiful rather than jarring.

Crystal and I have been texting. Short texts, careful, like two people who are trying to communicate across a distance without saying anything that will make the distance worse. She asked this week what I do for work and I told her and she said that sounds like important work. I said it is the work I want to do. She said she is glad. I said thank you. We are operating in these short precise exchanges and I think that is what the situation requires right now and I am letting it be what it is.

I made a batch of spring rolls this week, the fresh kind, rice paper wrappers filled with shrimp and cucumber and avocado and mint and vermicelli noodles, with a peanut dipping sauce. I have made them three times now and each time the assembly gets faster and cleaner. The first time the wrappers tore. Now I have the technique: wet the wrapper just until it is pliable and no further, work quickly, do not overfill. It is the same as most delicate things: you have to learn to move with them rather than against them.

I kept thinking about that lesson from the rice paper wrappers — work quickly, don’t overfill, move with the thing rather than against it — when I made this mushroom-stuffed flank steak roll later in the week. Rolling meat feels like it should be forgiving, and in some ways it is, but it has its own version of the same principle: you have to spread the filling just to the edge, roll firmly but not so tight that it splits, and tie it with the confidence of someone who has already decided it will hold. It did hold. It always holds when you stop fighting the process.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 1/2 lbs flank steak, butterflied and pounded to 1/2-inch thickness
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
10 oz cremini mushrooms, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
1/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus more for seasoning
Kitchen twine, for tying

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 400°F. Lay the butterflied flank steak flat on a cutting board and season lightly on both sides with salt and pepper.
Build the filling. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6—8 minutes until most of the moisture has cooked off and the mushrooms are golden. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more. Remove from heat and stir in the parsley, thyme, Parmesan, and breadcrumbs. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Let cool for 5 minutes.
Fill and roll. Spread the mushroom filling evenly over the surface of the steak, leaving a 1/2-inch border at the edges. Starting from one short end, roll the steak snugly around the filling. Tie at 1 1/2-inch intervals with kitchen twine to hold the roll together.
Sear. Heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the roll on all sides, turning every 1—2 minutes, until deeply browned all over, about 6—8 minutes total.
Roast. Transfer the skillet to the preheated oven and roast for 20—25 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 135°F for medium-rare or 145°F for medium.
Rest and slice. Transfer the roll to a cutting board and let it rest, loosely tented with foil, for 8—10 minutes. Remove the twine, slice into 3/4-inch rounds, and serve.

Nutrition (per serving)

Mushroom-Stuffed Flank Steak Roll — Learning to Move With Delicate Things