Grilled Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

This grilled flank steak is amazingly tender and flavorful when marinated in a delicious sauce then grilled to med-rare, cut on the bias, and covered in fresh and fragrant chimichurri sauce.  Great for feeding a crowd and for leftover steak sandwiches! 

Flank steak is often overlooked and cast aside for fillet minion or rib-eyes, and mind you, those cuts are great, but for those of you who have had a properly prepared marinated and grilled flank steak, you know it won’t be your last.

Typically a tougher cut of beef, if its marinated and cooked to medium rare and then cut on the bias (against the grain), it becomes so flavorful, tender and versatile.

Why this Recipe Works

• Its got a ton of flavor! Both from the steak, the marinade, and the sauce!
• Its very easy to make, even for novice cooks.
• It makes an impressive and delicious dish to serve to guests with minimal work, and that’s what we like around here!
  

Ingredients You Need

For the Marinade

• soy sauce
• citrus juice (orange juice, pineapple juice or a mix works too)
• garlic 
• grated ginger
• brown sugar or honey

For the Chimichuri Sauce

• cilantro
• parsley
• garlic
• lime juice
• ground cumin
• cayenne pepper
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup olive oil

How to Make the Chimichuri Sauce

This sauce is so easy to make. You literally throw everything in a blender and your done! Or you can also use a food processor.

• Fill a blender or food processor with the cilantro and parsley.
• Then add the lime juice, garlic, cumin and cayenne, and salt.  
• While the blender is on, add the olive oil slowly. 
• Keep blending until it is well pureed and somewhat smooth.

Marinating the Steak

Marinating steak is super easy and it really upgrades the flavor of your flank steak. There are a few things to remember when marinating:

• You can use a sealable bag to marinate your steak, however we prefer to use a shallow dish as it reduces plastic waste and is just as effective. You just want to have a lid or a cover for the dish. You will also want to turn your steak over in the marinade so that you can make sure to coat all sides.
• Always marinate in the fridge. You don’t want to leave your steak out on the counter as it could grow some nasty bacteria.
• Marinate your steak for 2 to 24 hours. The longer it marinates, the more tender and juicy the steak will be after grilling.
• When you are done, discard the used marinade. It no longer good for consumption unless you were to boil it in a pot before using it for anything.

How to Cook Flank Steak

• Bring your steaks to room temperature or at least let it sit on the counter for about an hour. Having your steaks at room temperature when you cook them means that they will cook evenly.
• Turn the grill to medium-high heat. Add the steaks. Cook on each side for 3 minutes or until outside is browned. Reduce heat to medium-high. Cook the steaks to the desired doneness. Mine took about 10 minutes flipping 3 times to get a medium well.
• Top with butter and garnish with the chimichurri sauce.
• Make sure to let the steak rest for 5-10 minutes covered on a cutting board. This will let the meat relax and distribute the juices within the steak. And then cut across the grain in very thin strips.

Cooking Temperatures for Steak:

Learning how to cook steak the way you like it takes a little practice. It’s best to under cook your steak a touch and then it will continue to cook a bit as its resting. Using a meat thermometer is key to cooking your steak perfectly!

• Rare: Temperature: 115°F; Remove when it reaches 110°F
• Medium-Rare: Temperature: 125°F; Remove when it reaches 120°F
• Medium: Temperature: 135°F; Remove when it reaches 130°F
• Medium-Well: Temperature: 140°F; Remove when it reaches 135°F
• Well Done: Temperature: 150°F; Remove when it reaches 145°F

We prefer our flank steak medium-rare or medium.

Expert Tip

• When cutting your flank steak, remember to cut across the bias, or essentially, against the grain. The lines in the meat are the direction you want to find and cut opposite of those lines. This will enhance the flavor of the meat as well as keep it tender. To see the grain, look at the steak and you will see that it has parallel lines running in one direction – cut across the lines, in the opposite direction. It makes a huge difference in how tender your meat will be when you eat it and trust me, you can definitely tell the difference when you’re chewing juicy and super tender steak instead of chewy tough flank steak.

Ways to eat this grilled flank steak:

• as is with the chimichuri sauce
• the most amazing steak sandwiches
• steak tacos are amazing with grilled flank steak too
• make these cheesesteak stuffed portabellos with your leftovers!

If you’ve tried this grilled flank steak recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let us know how it turned out in the comments below.  We love hearing from you!

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