Jose Luis Chavez leans into his Peruvian roots to create tiradito and chaufa
In this episode of Give a Chef: a Steak, chef Jose Luis Chavez turns a T-bone steak into, not one, but two distinct meals. Celebrating his Peruvian roots, Chavez uses aji amarillo, a signature chili pepper in Peruvian cuisine, to turn the steak into tiradito and chaufa.
To start his process, Chavez expertly cuts away the tenderloin and the strip off the T-bone. He then generously salts and peppers the strip before searing it in a hot cast-iron pan. “The only way you’re gonna know it’s really hot is, you have to put your finger,” Chavez jokes, miming touching the sizzling pan. “Nah, just kidding.” Once the meat is seared, he tosses in cubed pineapple and the aji amarillo in the hot pan then deglazes it all with pineapple juice.
After allowing it all to cool, Chavez moves the pineapple and peppers into a blender and mixes them with lime, celery, red habanero, salt, ginger, and cilantro to create tiger’s milk — a Peruvian marinade commonly used to cure fish. Once the sauce is done, Chavez neatly slices his cooked strip, “one cut, like a samurai,” and plates it with the tiger’s milk, a little more habanero, and fresh herbs.
With the tiradito complete, Chavez moves on to making the chaufa. He shows off his expert knife skills as he slices through bok choy, scallions, hearts of palm, bell peppers, and more pineapple. Chavez then ties a scallion around the filet to help maintain its shape, seasons the meat, and sears it. After removing the steak, Chavez adds olive and sesame oils, the slices vegetables, an egg, soy sauce, and oyster sauce to the still-hot pan. Once everything is cooked, he arranges the chaufa in a stunning handmade bowl from Peru.
“I’m actually very surprised how this T-bone was able to create these beautiful dishes,” Chavez remarks before taking his first bite.
Watch the newest episode of Give a Chef: a Steak to watch Jose Luis Chavez transform one steak into two colorful dishes.
