If you want to make a truly traditional churrasco, you may not need to innovate a lot regarding the meat. Rock salt and a grill are enough to make most people happy. But, if you want to innovate then try this:
You can try the Inverted Picanha recipe. The best part of it, it’s that it doesn’t require much more than you already have. All you need is the basics, a good piece of Picanha cut up and a grill.
How To Get The Picanha Cut Just Right
Inverting a picanha means cutting a hole across, and then turning it inside out (like you are turning a sock inside out). This will make it the fat layer that is usually above the meat face inwards, which will give your meat a most distinct flavor. Sometimes, if the fat layer above the picanha is too thick, it can become difficult to turn it inside out without tearing the meat apart. This is solved by simply cutting slices of the fat to diminish it (paying attention to not cut out any piece of the actual meat).
Take care when cutting the hole across the picanha. It doesn’t need to be very wide. Count 1 centimeter from each side, and that should be enough. Be careful not to cut across the picanha “walls”, you’ll probably ruin your piece. The operation by itself is not particularly difficult, but it can easily go wrong if you don’t take care.
This tactic by itself will improve the taste of your Churrasco grilling. You want to make the most of your meat if you fill the picanha with more than it’s own fat. Cheese, red or green bell pepper, onions, bacon, carrots and garlic are great fillings. Also, seasoning it with black pepper it’s a great idea.
After you finish inverting your picanha, a hint is to close it with a few toothpicks, so it cooks better inside. This is particularly valuable if you filled it with more than it’s own fat too, so the fillings won’t drop out of the picanha.
The rest is pretty standard. Rock Salt, and grill it. Then it’s done, you’ve just upgraded your picanha.