This delicious steak salad is made with marinated and grilled skirt steak and a classic vinaigrette of olive oil and vinegar. This filling salad is ready in about an hour. It makes the perfect lunch, and I also like it as a light dinner.
Main-course salads are perfect for lunch or a light dinner. I often enjoy Thai chicken salad, turkey salad, keto taco salad, and chicken Cobb salad. This steak salad is especially good because it's so satiating. To make it, I arrange veggies on a plate, top them with marinated and grilled skirt steak, and dress the salad with a simple vinaigrette. The combination of crisp vegetables, a tangy vinaigrette, and warm, flavorful steak is amazing!
Ingredients
Here's a look at the ingredients needed to make this salad. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.
For the vinaigrette: Olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, mustard, salt, and pepper.
For the salad: Arugula, red onion, tomatoes, olives, and crumbled goat cheese.
For the steak and marinade: Skirt steak, spices, olive oil, red wine vinegar, and hot sauce.
Variations
- Sometimes, I replace the arugula with mixed salad greens or baby spinach leaves. For a crunchy salad, shredded iceberg lettuce is an excellent option.
- The sliced Roma tomatoes can be substituted with halved cherry tomatoes.
- Blue cheese crumbles are a great alternative to goat cheese crumbles.
- Sometimes, I make this salad with flat iron steak and ranch dressing, as shown in the photo below.
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this salad:
Mix a simple marinade and marinate the steak for 30 minutes.
Grill the steak to your desired doneness. Let it rest for 5-10 minutes.
Meanwhile, mix the dressing and arrange the salad ingredients on plates.
Slice the steak thinly across the grain and arrange it on top of the veggies. Drizzle the salad with the dressing and serve.
Expert Tips
- Marinating the steak is a must. Skirt steak has tough muscle fibers, and a vinegar marinade helps break them down.
- It's also important to slice this steak across the grain to make it easier to chew. Because the muscle fibers run along the width of this steak, you can't just slice it crosswise. Instead, cut it into manageable pieces, rotate each 90 degrees, and slice it, as shown in the photo below.
- Having said that, skirt steak will always be a little chewy. If you want a tender steak that doesn't require marinating (or cutting across the grain), use flat iron steak.
Recipe FAQs
Most recipes use a relatively cheap and tough cut like skirt steak or flank steak. These cuts should be marinated, quickly grilled, and sliced across the grain to sever the muscle fibers.
I usually use skirt steak, but I also like flat iron steak. The advantage of flat iron steak is that it's a relatively tender cut, so you don't need to marinate it or slice it against the grain.
I use a simple vinaigrette, keeping the classic ratio of 3 parts oil to 1 part vinegar and adding Dijon mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper.
Other delicious options include blue cheese dressing, ranch dressing, and diluted tahini sauce.
Yes. Whole cherry tomatoes tend to slide off the fork and are difficult to eat unless you slice them. In this cherry tomato salad, for example, I always slice the tomatoes.
Serving Suggestions
This main dish salad is a complete meal. If you want to serve it with something on the side, you can serve it with cheese muffins, cheese biscuits, keto focaccia, or buttered slices of almond flour bread.
Storing Leftovers
You won't be able to keep the dressed salad greens. They will wilt. But you can keep the cooked steak in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 4 days.
Reheat the leftovers gently, covered, in the microwave at 50% power. Or enjoy them cold like you would cold cuts! I like to make a plate with cold steak cubes, cheese cubes, fresh-cut veggies with ranch dressing, and homemade quick pickles.
More Steak Recipes
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Recipe Card
Grilled Steak Salad
Video
Ingredients
Vinaigrette:
- 3 tablespoons olive oil - extra virgin
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 garlic clove - minced
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or a pinch of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper - freshly ground
Salad:
- 5 ounces arugula
- 2 Roma tomatoes - sliced
- ¼ cup red onion - thinly sliced
- ¼ cup kalamata olives - pitted, halved
- ½ cup goat cheese - crumbled
Steak and Marinade:
- 1 ½ pound skirt steak
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
- 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt - or ½ teaspoon of any other salt, including Morton kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
Instructions
Prepare the vinaigrette:
- In a small jar with a tight fitting lid, add the olive oil, vinegar, garlic, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Seal the lid tightly and shake the jar for a few seconds, until the dressing is emulsified. Set aside.
Marinate the steak:
- Cut the steak in half crosswise into two parts. This will make the ultra-long steak easier to handle and help it better fit on your grill. Blot the steak dry with paper towels.
- In a small bowl, mix the marinade ingredients (olive oil, vinegar, hot sauce, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and ground cumin).
- Rub the mixture on both sides of the steak, massaging it into the meat. Let the steak marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Grill the steak:
- Preheat your grill to medium-high and lightly grease it. Grill the steak for about 3 minutes per side for medium-rare (about 2 minutes per side on a dual-contact grill). (See notes).
- Let the steak rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
- Slice the steak thinly against the grain. Cut each piece crosswise into 2-3 smaller pieces, rotate each piece 90 degrees, and slice it. This way, you'll cut the tough muscle fibers, making the meat easier to chew.
Assemble the Salad:
- In a large mixing bowl, add the arugula, red onions, and half the dressing. Mix to coat. Transfer the arugula and onions to plates.
- Arrange the tomato slices around the arugula. Scatter the olives and goat cheese crumbles on top.
- Top the salad with slices of steak. Drizzle with the remaining dressing and serve.
Notes
- Marinating the steak is a must. Skirt steak has tough muscle fibers, and a vinegar marinade helps break them down.
- It's also important to slice this steak across the grain to make it easier to chew. Because the muscle fibers run along the width of this steak, you can't just slice it crosswise. Instead, cut it into manageable pieces, rotate each 90 degrees, and slice it.
- Having said that, skirt steak will always be a little chewy. If you want a tender steak that doesn't require marinating (or cutting across the grain), use flat iron steak.
- You won't be able to keep the dressed salad greens. They will wilt. But you can keep the cooked steak in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 4 days. Reheat the leftovers gently, covered, in the microwave at 50% power. Or enjoy them cold like you would cold cuts.
- The USDA recommends cooking steaks to 145°F with a 3-minute rest.
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.
Doreen C Carroll says
Delicious and easy to prepare. I added a garlic parmesan butter from Better Butter.
Vered DeLeeuw says
That butter sounds amazing! Glad you liked this salad, Doreen.