Prego no Pão (Portuguese Steak Sandwich)
- Prep
- 35 min
- Total
- 45 min
- rolls
- 4
Prego no pão is the Portuguese snack you can order at any café, tasca or beer hall from north to south: a thin beef steak seasoned with garlic and bay leaf, seared and tucked into a crusty roll. It’s what people eat after a football match or in the middle of the afternoon, often with a glass of red wine or a cold imperial.
Recipe
Prego no Pão
A thin beef steak seasoned with garlic and bay leaf, seared and served in a crusty roll with the juices from the pan. The quick snack of Portuguese cafés and beer halls.
Ingredients
Method
- 1Season the steaks with salt, pepper, the chopped garlic and the bay leaves. Drizzle with olive oil and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
- 2Heat a frying pan with a little olive oil until very hot.
- 3Sear the steaks for 1 to 2 minutes per side, depending on how you like them. Take them out and set aside.
- 4Cut the rolls in half and warm them lightly in the same pan, in the meat juices.
- 5Put a steak in each roll, pour the pan juices over it and serve right away, with mustard or piri-piri to taste.
Tips
The seasoning makes it. Leave the steak with the garlic, bay and olive oil for at least 30 minutes, or a few hours in the fridge; the longer it sits, the stronger the garlic.
Use a very hot pan so the steak sears fast and stays juicy.
Don’t waste the juices left in the pan: warm the bread in them and pour them over the steak before closing the sandwich. A little mustard or piri-piri sauce on the bread is classic too.
For a richer prego, use garlic butter in the pan instead of olive oil alone, and melt a slice of cheese over the steak.
