2010 Saveur 100, #25

My absolute favorite issue of Saveur each year is the Saveur 100. It sparks a crazy desire in me to consume, cook, and splurge on many of the items listed. How else would I have ended up with dried mulberries in my pantry? I forget which year that was...

This year did not disappoint. I must get a hold of #93, Lingham's Hot Sauce. I know with all certainty that I need flour sack towels, #60, so that I can finally dry my wine glasses lint-free.

I was especially delighted to stumble over #25, The New York Times International Cookbook by Craig Claiborne. My mother has been cooking from that book for us my entire life.

When I went to college and first started to cook for myself, I wanted to follow in my mother's footsteps. She was my inspiration –– the best cook I knew. I scoured the used bookstores looking for her cookbooks.

I've had my own copy for years, copyright 1971. That's one year before I was born. It's categorized by countries and offers recipes from Barbados, Dahomey, France, Morocco, Trinidad and beyond.

Tonight I'm cooking from the Japan section... Beef Teriyaki I.

Perhaps the name won't win you over, but the simplicity of the recipe should. I've been eating it forever. Here's my take:

Beef Teriyaki I

1/3 cup sake or dry sherry
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. grated or minced fresh ginger or 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lemon, thinly sliced
1 to 1 1/2 lbs. flank steak

Combine the sake, soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, and lemon and stir until the sugar is dissolved.

Add the flank steak whole and marinate for a half hour or longer.

Take the meat from the marinade and pat dry.

Heat the marinade in a small pan. This will be your sauce. Don't be alarmed by how thin the sauce is. It will still be delicious.

Cook the meat under the broiler for approximately four minutes per side until meat is cooked no more than medium rare. If you are afraid of your broiler, like I am, feel free to cook in a pan on the stove. Hot pan, vegetable oil... four minutes per side until just past rare.

Slice against the grain and serve over rice with sauce.