Beefing up the menu

By Bev Bennett
Los Angeles Times Syndicate

(Los Angeles Times Syndicate) -- If you're cooking for two, choosing a piece of beef can be challenging. You want something delicious, savory and succulent, and nothing fits that description like a steak. But a typical 16- to 24-ounce steak is more meat than you probably want, and certainly more than you need for a healthy diet.

Consider skirt steak instead of a sirloin or porterhouse. Skirt steak is the diaphragm of a steer, explains Bruce Aidells in "The Complete Meat Cookbook" (Houghton Mifflin, 1998). It's a small piece of meat, weighing in at about eight ounces, and it's as flavorful as the bigger hunks of meat.

"It has a coarse texture and a rich, beefy taste only matched by hanger steak," writes Aidells, who suggests you marinate skirt steak first. Its loose grain soaks in flavor.

You can get the same effect faster if you rub skirt steak with seasonings before cooking. Broil the meat just to medium doneness. Overcooking makes it tough.

Try the following recipe when you crave beef. Season the meat with garlic and cumin and add a Nectarine Relish for a juicy finish.

Skirt Steak with Nectarine Relish