I don’t eat much red meat but when I do it usually is in the warmer weather when I am ready to grill. There is nothing better than a local steak perfectly grilled! I also like simple and fresh. My Grilled Flank Steak & Avocado Salad recipe is great because it pairs a juicy, rich piece of red meat with a light and crisp salad. The avocado is the star ingredient in this recipe and the creaminess matches the richness of the steak perfectly.
For the pairing, you might be surprised that I didn’t choose red wine. I tried that but something wasn’t working. I quickly remembered one of my own suggestions about pairings – pair the wine with the sauce, not the protein. This also applies to an accompanying salad. Once I started thinking about what to pair with the salad – the avocado specifically – great things started to happen. Albariño, a white wine from Spain, is the perfect balance of acidity, citrus and stone fruit flavors to complement the avocado and lime in the salad and cut-through the richness of the flank steak. To learn more about Albariño wine from Spain, check out my Albariño pairing page.
Grilled Flank Steak With Avocado Salad
Ingredients
- 1 medium flank steak
- ½ cup white balsamic vinegar
- ½ tablespoon Herbs De Provence
- ½ tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups baby arugula
- 2 Persian cucumbers, cut in ½ moon slices
- 1 scallion finely chopped – green part only
- 2 avocados, ½ inch dice
- Juice of 1 lime
- Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
Directions
- Step 1 Dry the flank steak in paper towels and place in a glass dish or Ziploc bag.
- Step 2 For the marinade, whisk together the vinegar, Herbs De Provence, Dijon mustard, garlic cloves, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Season the marinade with some salt & pepper. Pour the marinade over the steak and refrigerate for 3-4 hours.
- Step 3 Remove the flank steak from marinade and let stand at room temperature for about a ½ hour. Prepare the grill. Place the flank steak on the grill and cook for approximately 6-7 minutes per side based on the thickness of the steak. Use a meat thermometer to check the temperature. Let stand for 8-10 minutes.
- Step 4 Combine the arugula, cucumber, scallion, and avocado in a large bowl. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and lime juice. Season with salt & pepper.
- Step 5 To serve, slice the steak on diagonal in ¼ inch pieces and assemble on the platter. Spoon salad on top of steak and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.
