This easy London Broil recipe highlights the bold, beefy flavor of top round steak and requires minimal work. Your only job as a cook is to avoid overcooking the meat. This cut of beef should be served medium-rare.
Much like tri-tip roast, top round steak is an inexpensive yet flavorful cut of beef. "London broil" refers to the cooking technique used for this cut: It's usually broiled or grilled, but I like to cook it on the stove, in a cast-iron skillet, with delicious, reliably juicy results.
Ingredients and Variations
Here's an overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.
- For the marinade: Balsamic vinegar, soy sauce (or a gluten-free alternative), Dijon mustard, garlic powder, and cumin. You can use any mustard you like, but I like the creaminess and flavor of Dijon mustard.
- Top round steak: I usually get it at the butcher counter at Whole Foods Market. It's also available in many supermarkets.
- Kosher salt and black pepper: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt and freshly ground black pepper.
The best way to vary this recipe is to add more spices to the marinade. Good options include smoked paprika (½ teaspoon), chili powder (½ teaspoon), and cayenne pepper (¼ teaspoon).
Instructions
The detailed instructions for making this recipe are included in the recipe card below. Here's an overview of the steps:
Combine the marinade ingredients. Place the steak in a resealable bag. Pour the marinade into the bag and rub it all over the steak. Seal the bag and place it on a plate in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Remove the steak from the fridge an hour before cooking to allow it to reach room temperature. Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Remove the steak from the bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Sprinkle it on both sides with salt and pepper.
Place the steak in the hot skillet. Cook it for 3 minutes without moving. Flip to the other side and cook for 3 more minutes, again without moving it.
Using oven mitts, remove the skillet from the heat. Tent it with foil to allow the steak to rest and finish cooking from the skillet's heat for five minutes. Transfer the steak to a cutting board, slice it thinly, and serve.
Recipe Tips
London broil is a lean and flavorful cut that can easily become tough. To make sure your steak comes out tender, you need to do three things:
- Marinate the beef before cooking. Marinating, especially with a marinade that contains vinegar, tenderizes the meat.
- Cook the steak to rare (120°F) and certainly to no more than medium-rare (135°F). Note that the USDA says we should cook steaks to 145°F.
- Slice the cooked steak thinly. Slicing it thinly is another trick that helps with chewing it. Other tough cuts of beef, like flank steak and skirt steak, are also sliced thinly.
Featured Comment
This was delicious. This was my second time making this recipe. The first time, I followed your instructions, and the steak was too rare for my taste. Tonight, I cooked it for 4 minutes per side instead of three, and it turned out PERFECT. - Andy Read more comments
Recipe FAQs
If you have a frozen top round steak, it's perfectly fine to marinate it while it's still frozen. I often do. Simply place the frozen steak in a resealable bag with the marinade and place it in the fridge overnight.
If your cast-iron skillet is well seasoned, there's no need to add oil to the pan before frying the steak. If you'd like to add fat to the skillet, it's best to use fats appropriate for high-heat cooking, such as avocado oil or ghee.
No. Some tender cuts don't need a marinade (flat iron steak, New York strip, and ribeye steak). But this steak is tough and benefits from a vinegar-containing marinade that helps break down the muscle fibers.
Serving Suggestions
London Broil is a versatile main dish. You can serve it with any side. I often serve it with one of the following:
- Mashed cauliflower
- Steamed asparagus
- Sauteed mushrooms
- Microwave sweet potato
- Creamed spinach
- Roasted Brussels sprouts
Alternatively, I serve it with a side salad, such as asparagus salad, tomato salad, or the salad shown below of tomatoes, hearts of palm, cilantro, and olives:
Storing and Using the Leftovers
You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Thinly sliced and served cold, they make the perfect topping for salads such as this arugula salad. Sometimes, I use them in this Cobb salad instead of chicken.
I also like to make a plate, as shown below, of cold beef slices with fresh-cut veggies, salsa or sriracha mayo, and quick pickles or store-bought pickles:
Recipe Card
Easy London Broil Recipe
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce - or a gluten-free alternative
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1.5 pound top round steak - 1 - 1.25 inches thick
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Marinate the steak:
- Whisk the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, mustard, garlic powder, and cumin in a small bowl.
- Place the steak in a Ziploc bag. Pour the marinade into the bag and rub it all over the steak. Seal the bag, removing as much air as possible. Place the bag on a plate in the fridge for at least 4 hours or overnight. If you're home while the steak is marinating, flip it occasionally.
Cook the steak:
- Remove the steak from the fridge 1-2 hours before cooking to allow it to reach room temperature. Heat a well-seasoned cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, for about 3 minutes.
- Remove the steak from the bag and pat it dry with paper towels. Sprinkle it on both sides with salt and pepper.
- Place the steak in the hot skillet. Cook it for 3 minutes without moving.
- Flip the steak to the other side (it should be deeply browned and slightly charred on the first side) and cook for 3 more minutes, again without moving it.
- Using oven mitts, remove the skillet from the heat. Tent it with foil to allow the steak to rest and finish cooking from the skillet's heat for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the steak to a cutting board. Slice it thinly and serve.
Notes
- If you have a frozen top round steak, it's perfectly fine to marinate it while it's still frozen. I often do. Simply place the frozen steak in a resealable bag with the marinade and place it in the fridge overnight.
- If your cast-iron skillet is well seasoned, there's no need to add oil to the pan before frying the steak. If you'd like to add fat to the skillet, it's best to use fats appropriate for high-heat cooking, such as avocado oil or ghee.
- The best way to make sure the steak is done to your liking is using an instant-read thermometer. Rare is 120-125°F (a warm red center). Medium-rare is 130-135°F (mostly pink center with some red in the middle). However, the USDA recommends cooking meat to an internal temperature of 145°F.
- You can keep the leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Thinly sliced and served cold, they make the perfect topping for salads. You can also freeze them in freezer bags for up to three months.
Nutrition per Serving
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Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
Sue Travis says
if you dont have a cast iron pan will stainless steel work?
Thank you
Vered DeLeeuw says
Hi Sue,
I only tested this recipe in a cast-iron skillet. Stainless steel should work. However, I prefer to heat a stainless steel pan slowly over medium heat, so the steak will likely need 4-5 minutes on each side. After resting it, check with an instant-read thermometer. If it's undercooked, you can place it in a 400°F oven for 5 minutes to finish cooking.
Mike Kramer says
Trying to make this and follow the instructions but the ads make the instructions jump so I continually have to re-find the instructions. Not a good experience.
Vered DeLeeuw says
Hi Mike,
That sounds incredibly annoying. I'm sorry. I will reach out to my ad provider to see if we can address this issue.
Andy says
This was delicious. This was my second time making this recipe. The first time, I followed your instructions and the steak was too rare to my taste. Tonight, I cooked it for 4 minutes per side instead of three and it turned out PERFECT.
Vered DeLeeuw says
I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Andy! Thank you for the feedback.