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1
Slice and marinate the beef
35 Mins
No heat (room temperature, about 22°C / 72°F)
Lay each steak between sheets of cling film and pound gently with a meat mallet until about 5 mm thick. Mix 30 ml of lime juice with the garlic, parsley, black pepper and 4 g of salt, rub it over the steaks and leave them to marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature. The lime firms the surface slightly and seasons the meat all the way through.
Pound from the centre outward so the steak thins evenly instead of tearing at the edges.
Done when: Steaks evenly thin, coated in marinade, smelling of lime and garlic.
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2
Boil the mandioca
20 Mins
Boiling water, 100°C (212°F)
While the beef marinates, put the mandioca fingers in a pot of salted water, bring to a boil and cook for 18–20 minutes until tender all the way through but still holding their shape. Drain well and keep warm. Toss the tomato wedges and onion rings with the remaining 15 ml of lime juice, the olive oil and a pinch of salt.
Test the mandioca with a knife — it should slide in with no resistance, but the fingers must not fall apart.
Done when: Mandioca tender through, salad bright and lightly dressed.
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3
Whisk the egg batter
5 Mins
No heat
Whisk the 2 large eggs with 2 g of salt in a large bowl until very foamy, about 3 minutes. Add the milk and gradually whisk in the 150 g of flour until no lumps remain and the batter is smooth. Stir in the club soda a little at a time, whisking out any lumps, until the batter has the consistency of heavy cream — thick enough to coat a spoon, thin enough to drip off slowly.
If the batter is too thick it fries heavy and doughy; thin it with a splash more club soda, a tablespoon at a time.
Done when: Smooth batter, no lumps, coating a spoon and dripping off in a slow ribbon.
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4
Dredge, batter and fry
12 Mins
Oil at 175°C (350°F)
Heat the sunflower oil in a wide frying pan until it reaches 175°C (350°F) — a drop of batter should sizzle at once. Dredge each marinated steak lightly in the 60 g of flour, shake off the excess, dip it well in the batter and let the excess drip off. Fry 1 or 2 steaks at a time for about 3 minutes per side, pressing gently so they brown evenly, until deep golden and cooked through, 71°C (160°F) at the centre. Lift out and drain on a wire rack, not paper, so the crust stays crisp.
Do not crowd the pan — too many steaks at once drops the oil temperature and the batter turns greasy instead of crisp.
Done when: Deep golden crust, crisp all over, beef cooked through at 71°C (160°F) inside.
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5
Rest and serve
5 Mins
No heat
Rest the fried steaks for 2 minutes so the crust sets and the juices settle. Serve each steak hot beside a pile of boiled mandioca and the tomato-onion salad, with a wedge of lime and a sprinkle of chopped parsley over the top.
Serve at once — battered beef loses its crunch fast as it sits.
Done when: Crust still crisp and crackling, mandioca hot, salad fresh.
auto_awesome Finishing Touches & Plating
Serve the marinera the moment it leaves the pan, golden and crackling, with hot mandioca and the sharp little salad beside it. A squeeze of lime over the crust just before eating is the Paraguayan way.
Paraguay
1h 5m
