Barbecued rib-eye with confit garlic potatoes and baked cheese and onion

Begin with the confit garlic pressed potatoes, which you will need to start a day or two in advance. Slice the tops off the garlic bulbs and place in a small pan, then cover with oil. Place over a low heat and leave to simmer until soft (about 40 minutes). The oil should not be boiling, but a few bubbles are fine. Remove from the heat and allow the garlic to cool in the oil

Once the oil has cooled, sweat down the onions in the butter, thyme and 3 tablespoons of the garlic oil until golden (about 12 minutes)

Preheat an oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Line a small deep tray or ovenproof dish with parchment and find something that will fit snugly in the tray so you can press the potatoes once they're cooked

Peel and thinly slice the potatoes (use a mandoline if you have one). Now you are ready to layer up. Begin with two layers of sliced potatoes then season with salt and pepper. Add some confit garlic oil and onion and repeat until all the potatoes are used up (or your tray is full)

Cover the tray with a sheet of baking paper and then a sheet of foil. Bake for around 50 minutes or until the potatoes are soft all the way through. Remove the foil but keep the baking paper on the potatoes and, using the other tray or mould, press down and secure with some heavy objects such as tins or books. Allow to cool a little then transfer to the fridge to set overnight

The next day, remove the tray from the fridge, trim the edges and cut into the amount of portions you need (or leave it as a whole tray and allow people to serve themselves at the table). There might be more than you need but it will store well in the fridge for a few days. Heat through in the oven with a knob of butter before serving

To make the baked cheese and onion, peel the onions and slice off 2cm from one end to create a flat surface. Melt the butter and fry the onions flat-side down until dark and caramelised. Turn them over, pour in the stock and simmer for 35 minutes or until soft all the way through. Keep an eye on the stock levels and top up as needed so the onions cook evenly throughout. Once tender, allow to cool in the stock while you cook the beef

Take the steak out of the fridge about an hour before you want to cook it, season 30 minutes before you start cooking and lightly oil just before cooking. Set up a barbecue so you have a section over the coals and a section for indirect cooking

Once the coals in your barbecue have turned white and are glowing hot, add the beef and cook until coloured all over, which will take about 8–10 minutes. Keep turning the joint so it colours evenly

Indirect cooking can be done with either a special ceramic plate which sits above the coals, blocking some of the heat, or an area of the barbecue which has fewer or no coals underneath it. Once you have coloured the steak over the higher heat, move to the indirect section of the barbecue to continue cooking

Turn every 5–10 minutes or so until the core temperature is 45°C, then set aside and leave to rest until it reaches 53°C for medium-rare

While the beef rests, preheat an oven to 180°C/gas mark 4 and gently transfer the cooled onions to a baking tray. Cover the tops with grated cheese, then bake in the oven until it melts and slightly colours. Sprinkle over the Panko breadcrumbs, thyme and seasoning, then return to the oven and bake until the breadcrumbs turn golden

Serve the beef ready to be carved into steaks at the table along with the reheated potatoes and soft onions