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Oi Gente!!
Coulotte steaks aka Brazilian picanha is probably one of the best cuts of meat out there! This cut of beef, although one of the most popular cuts of beef in Brazil, is little known elsewhere. In this post, I’ll walk you through where to buy picanha, and how to make super simple, super delicious picanha steaks on the grill. Plus a bonus egg farofa recipe for the true Brazilian in you!
Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and I’ll earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links.
What is Picanha?
Picanha is the Portuguese name forcoulotte, a cut of meat sourced from the top sirloin – it’s so juicy and oh-so-tender. Picanha is seriously one of my absolute favorite cuts of meat. Not just me, though. Picanha is one of Brazil’s most prized beef cuts, and is typically the star of the Brazilian churrasco barbecue.
Ask a Brazilian around you and they’ll confirm, a churrasco isn’t a real churrasco without picanha. If you’ve tasted it, you already know why!If you haven’t tasted it, we can change that right now!
More steak recipes you’ll love: Tri Tip Marinade Recipe, Ribeye steak marinade recipe, Steak and Onions (Bife Acebolado).
Where to Buy Picanha
Overall, this unique cut of beef isn’t normally found at local grocery stores in my area. You can try asking your butcher if they have a whole piece of sirloin cap, but for the most part they’re already cut into steaks that are way too thin.
The good news is, there are 2 places I love that carry top quality picanha and they deliver all over the united states! Snake River Farms & ButcherBox (called sirloin cap).
We use both brands regularly, but in today’s post I’m using the Snake River Farms Wagyu Picanha.
Typically, a good Picanha comes with a thick layer of fat on top. This fat cap is really important! It’s the fat that provides all the flavor, silkiness, and mouthfeel to the meat while its cooking.
Up until recently, the SRF Picanha did not come with the fat cap (update: they do now!!), but I could live without it since they’re WAGYU anyway! So, you get all that gorgeous marble, and fat layers within the meat itself. It’s out of this world fantastic!!
Seriously, LOOK.AT.THAT!!
Before you buy Picanha anywhere, know that a good picanha will never be too big. If it is too big it includes parts of other cuts and therefore not really the same thing.In general, 2 to 2.5lbs max is a good size.
I think I gave you all the pre-cooking info you need to know, so, enough chit chat – let’s get to the picanha recipe!
Picanha Recipe tips and steps
This picanha recipe is super easy to make, as this cut of meat doesn’t need a whole lot to turn out delicious. If you want to just grill it with a little coarse salt, it’ll already be fantastic. I do that a lot!
But before you season, cut the meat with the grain into 3-4 chunky steaks. Only after the steaks are grilled and rested, you will cut them against the grain to get all that tender, juicy goodness.
To season it, I tend to keep it real simple. 8/10 times I just roll the Picanha in this type of coarse salt. This salt is really coarse and it’s the best for Brazilian style barbecue.
Rub the sofrito seasoning mixture all over the steaks, and add to your grill immediately (don’t let it marinate. We don’t want anything to distract us from the meat flavor. We just want that garlicky goodness to be added bonus. K?)
After that, add these babies to the hot grill, and grill to your favorite doneness.
Over here we like meat rare to medium rare, so I grill no more than 2-3 mins per side.
Rest the steaks for about 5 mins before slicing through it. This moment is emotionally hard to manage, because all you want is to just dive in. Be a little patient…go make the farofa to distract yourself!
Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and I’ll earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links.
Farofa de Ovo
Farofa de ovo literally means egg farofa. And if you’re wondering what is farofa, check this post,where I explain in detail. In a nutshell, though, farofa is a Brazilian side dish made of yuca flour, more commonly known as cassava flour, or how we call it in Portuguesefarinha demandioca,mainly eaten in Brazil or by the Brazilian diaspora.
For this farofa recipe, we just need to saute onions in a little butter, just until they are soft, no need to brown them.
Then add some eggs in there.
And scramble them.
Then add the cassava flour, and season with some salt and pepper.
Stir, stir, stir…
Finish with the cilantro, and bang! Farofa. is. done!
Now go on and slice the picanha steaks and serve it Brazilian churrasco style!
I hope you enjoy this Brazilian picanha recipe!
Eating a barbecued Brazilian picanha is definitely an experience worth having! If you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend you do, and you’ll see why this cut of meat is at the center of the Brazilian barbecue scene.
Bom Apetite!
Beijinhos!!xoxo
These side dishes will turn your bbq into a true Brazilian churrasco
- Brazilian Rice
- Cilantro Garlic Bread
- Brazilian Vinaigrette
- Brazilian Potato Salad
- Caipirinha co*cktail
More steak recipes you’ll love
- Tri Tip Marinade Recipe
- Ribeye Steak marinade
- Steak and Onions (Bife Acebolado)
BE SURE TO FOLLOW ME ONFACEBOOK,PINTEREST, ANDINSTAGRAMFOR MORE CHURRASCO INSPO!
Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links and I’ll earn a commission if you make a purchase through these links.
5 from 62 votes
Picanha Recipe | Brazilian Culotte Steaks
Coulotte Steak, aka Picanha is the almighty queen of the Brazilian churrasco!This juicy and tender grilled Picanha recipe will leave your amigos speechless!
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes minutes
Servings: 4 people
Author: Aline Shaw
Ingredients
For the Picanha
- 2.5 lbs of Picanha / SRF AMERICAN WAGYU BLACK GRADE CULOTTE
- Coarse Salt to taste
- 2 Tbsp of Brazilian Sofrito
- 1/4 tsp mustard powder
- lemon pepper or freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp dried parsley
For the Farofa
- 1 cup of toasted cassava flour
- 1/2 cup of unsalted butter
- 1/2 an onion sliced
- 2 Tbsp of fresh cilantro chopped
- 4 whole eggs
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat the grill to 350F.
In a small bowl, mix the sofrito, the mustard, the dry parsley and a drizzle of olive oil. Set aside.
Cut the meat the same direction as the fibers into 4 steaks.
Season the steaks with salt and the lemon pepper, then rub the sofrito mixture on the steaks.
Add the steaks to the grill, and grill them on all sides to your favorite doneness.
Remove the steaks from the grill, and let them rest for 5 mins before slicing them.
While the steaks are resting make the farofa.
On a stove top melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat.
Add the onions to the pan and sauté until the onions are transparent, about 2 minutes.
Add the eggs to the pan, and scramble them gently.
When the eggs are cooked, but still soft, add the cassava and stir.
Remove the pan from the heat, add the cilantro and stir to combine.
Season with salt and pepper.
Slice the steaks across the fibers, and serve with the farofa.
Bom Apetite!
Did you make this recipe? Show me how it turned out! Snap a photo and share with me on Instagram tagging @aline_shaw!
