Italian Steak Supper

Italian Steak Supper with Garlic Flatbread

Lets be honest, steak isn't something which you would expect to appear on a healthy student cooking blog: it's delicious but high in saturated fat, and it's commonly thought of as being an expensive luxury. However I've thought of a way of getting around it, inspired by a recipe in Ideal Home Magazine. This dish is light, summery and full of fresh vegetables - the Garlic flatbread is completely optional, as the dish stands well on it's own as well.

Things you'll need:

Serves 2

• 2 x Frying Steaks*
• 2 x small Red Onion
• 1/2 Courgette
• 10 x Cherry Tomatoes
• 2 x Handful of Rocket
• 1 x Flatbread**

* Because you end up cutting the steak into slices, you don't need to worry too much about thickness, and standard frying steak will do (and is the cheapest option). Try Tesco's option, which can work out under £1 a steak!

** If you would like to have some carbohydrates with the meal, try one of these which we split between 3 people.

Price overall: £3.17 (£3.50 with Flatbread)

Per portion: £1.59 (£1.75 with Flatbread)

Cooking Instructions:

(If cooking a flatbread, preheat the oven before you start and cook according to packet guidelines.)

1. If you have one, use a griddle pan. Otherwise a regular frying pan will do. Heat some oil in the pan. Cut the small Red Onions in two and place in the pan. (If you have some skewers they will help hold the onions together if you slide them along it, if not then don't worry.) Turn the halved Onions every 1-2 minutes to brown all sides.
2. Slice the courgettes thinly and lengthways (as in the picture above) and add them to the pan alongside the onions. Cook for around 3 minutes on each side until they have that nice charcoaled effect. 
3. As the pan fills up, remove the slices of Courgette, place on a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Once you have space, add the cherry tomatoes. Keep moving everything around so each item is browned all over. 
4. Once your Tomatoes are cooked and removed from the pan (under the foil) add your Steaks. Cooking time is dependent on how you like your steak cooked, but stick to this as a guideline: 1 1/2 minutes each side - Rare. 2 minutes each side - Med Rare. 2 1/2 minutes each side - Medium. 3 minutes each side - Well done. 
5. Take everything off the heat and slice the cooked Steaks into strips. Place a handful of Rocket on each plate and top with your Courgettes, Tomatoes, Red Onions and Steak.

There you go! This is a real throw-together salad, with a nice mixture of hot and cold ingredients which work really well. And at this affordable price, it makes Steak student-friendly!