QUICK AND DIRTY SEVEN-THIRTY SKIRT (A MEAL FOR ONE)

SERVES 1

It’s 7:30 p.m., and you just got home from work. Do you know where your dinner is? If not, don’t worry. This recipe (a whole meal) will have you in and out of the kitchen faster than you can order a pizza—and you get to have a steak.

1 SINGLE SERVING-SIZE SKIRT STEAK (6 OUNCES)

CHILI POWDER (OR SEE RECIPE)

2 TABLESPOONS UNSALTED BUTTER, DIVIDED

OLIVE OIL, FOR FRYING

1 MEDIUM ONION, DICED

1 CUP WATER

1/2 CUP SHORT- OR LONG-GRAIN BROWN RICE

1 LARGE EGG

1/2 CAN (7 TO 8 FL. OZ) PINTO BEANS, BLACK BEANS, OR RED BEANS, RINSED AND DRAINED

MICROGREENS, FOR SERVING

1 LEMON WEDGE

SALT AND PEPPER

SPRINKLE chili spice all over your skirt steak and pat it in so it sticks (enough to coat but not so much that it cakes).

IN A FRYING PAN over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon butter with a splash of olive oil. Add onion and cook until golden brown. Transfer to a bowl and set aside, reserving pan.

IN A SAUCEPAN, combine water, rice, and egg (shell on). Cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the nearly hard-boiled egg and set aside. Cover pan and simmer for another 10 minutes (for a total of about 20 minutes). Fold in beans, cover, and cook until the rice just starts to stick to the bottom of the pot, about 5 minutes longer (the rice should be soft, with just a little bit of extra stiffness left in the centre). Fold in browned onions with remaining 1 tablespoon butter, then set pot aside.

HEAT RESERVED FRYING PAN over high heat until you can feel heat emanating when you hold your hand 2 inches above the pan’s cooking surface, about 4 minutes. Add your seasoned skirt steak and cook, flipping as you see fit, until both sides develop a rather dark crust, about 5 minutes total. Check your steak for doneness with a small incision: juices should flow from a medium-rare (pinky-red) centre. If they don’t, cook steak for another minute or two until they do. Let steak rest loosely wrapped in foil for 5 minutes (skirts don’t need much resting time).

MEANWHILE, peel the hard-boiled egg (the yolk’s centre should still be a tiny bit runny) and cut it in half lengthwise. Set aside.

PLACE MICROGREENS in a bowl, splash with a little lemon juice and olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

SERVE THE SKIRT whole or cut into 1/4-inch slices (across the grain if you like, and on a bias to get more steak surface per slice), with the dirty rice and beans, the boiled egg, and your dressed microgreens alongside.

TIP: This recipe works equally well grilling the skirt steak on a hot grill. Just make the rice ahead of time.