5 Steaks You Don't Need to Cook to Medium Rare

Here are five steaks to cook up this week—even if you don't eat red meat.

It's easy to feel left out at a barbecue if you're not a meat eater. When the grill master shouts out, "Steaks just hit the grill!" and everyone cooes in unison, you find solace in your potato salad.

Here at Food52, we talk about steak a lot—except the thing is, it's probably not the juicy, hot-off-the-grill variety you're thinking of. Instead, we talk about cauliflower steaks, tuna steaks, and beefsteak tomatoes. It's safe to say that our working definition of steak looks something like this: Steak (n): Any cross-section of a hearty vegetable, fruit, meat, or fish that requires a knife and fork to eat. So whether you're thinking beyond red meat, are a vegetarian, or are looking for an excuse to eat delicious slabs of vegetables for dinner tonight, look no further. But make no mistake—these are steaks:

Cauliflower steak: Dan Barber's Cauliflower Steaks with Cauliflower Purée by Genius Recipes

 

Tuna steak: Grilled Fresh Tomato Sauce with Tuna with Mint Oil and Pepperonata by chris fischer

 

Tofu steaks: Grilled Peanut Tofu by enbe

 

Eggplant steak: Barbara Kafka's Marinated Eggplant by Genius Recipes

 

Beefsteak tomatoes: Brown Butter Tomatoes by Amanda Hesser

What non-steak steak would you add to this list? Tell us in the comments below!

Photos by James Ransom