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Want to add juicy flavor to steaks? You just need 5 minutes of prep time with this flank steak marinade recipe. Most of the ingredients are pantry and fridge staples. Let’s make it!
Table of Contents
Why marinade flank steak?
Did you know flank steak is a pretty tough cut of meat? Using a simple acidic marinade like this one will help to tenderize those otherwise chewy muscle fibers. The result is meat that is juicy and tender.
In addition, a marinade adds so much more flavor than just adding salt and pepper to steak.
3 easy steps to marinating success
- Whisk together marinade ingredients.
- Marinade steak in the fridge for 2-24 hours. (marinating overnight is great)
- Sear, BBQ grill, or broil finish marinated flank steak to perfection.
See how to smoke flank steak…
Ingredients to make it
Grab your pantry staples and flavor boosters to make this marinade in just a few minutes.
- Steak: 1.5 lb flank steak will feed about 2 people. Substitute skirt steak.
- Base marinade ingredients: olive oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice (substitute lemon juice), honey, dijon mustard, fresh garlic, pepper.
- Optional flavor-boosters: fresh ginger, red pepper flakes, cilantro.
- To cook and plate it: olive oil and fresh chopped cilantro.
Don’t have some of the ingredients above? No problem!
Check out the recipe at the bottom of this post for substitutions including brown sugar and worcestershire sauce.
Check out this homemade flap steak marinade to break down tough cuts of beef…
How to Make Flank Steak Marinade
Step 1. Make the marinade in a large bowl or freezer bag.
Add the olive oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, honey, dijon mustard, garlic, pepper, ginger, and red pepper flakes.
Whisk to combine.
Set aside ¼ cup of the marinade for later (refrigerate if desired, though the olive oil will solidify at a colder temperature for a longer period of time).
Step 2. Marinade flank steak. Add flank steak and cilantro to the marinade bowl and toss to cover it in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight or 24 hours. Once done marinated, remove steak from marinade and discard cilantro and excess marinade liquid.
Step 3. Grill, broil, or sear finish marinated steak. See the printable recipe at the bottom of this page for steps to grilling the steak or doing a broil flank steak finish.
To sear it, heat a large cast iron skillet to medium high to high heat. Add half the olive oil to the pan.
When the oil is hot and shiny and begins to smoke, remove the steak from the marinade and add the steak to the pan.
Sear for about 3-4 minutes per side until the outside begins to brown.
See how to make a steak salsa marinade…
While cooking, add more olive oil to the pan if the steak begins to stick. Use tongs to sear the edges of the flank steak for about 30 seconds. Check the internal temperature of the flank steak and remove from heat when desired temperature is reached.
Suggestion: until desired temperature is reached, continue flipping steak every 10-20 seconds so it gets a beautiful brown crust and doesn’t burn.
Final step: Rest cooked flank steak for at least 10 minutes.
To plate the meat, thinly slice steak against the grain and serve with a drizzle of reserved marinade (that was set aside and not in contact with the raw beef, from the first step).
Very thinly sliced steak about ½″ thick or less is perfect for steak sandwiches or to add steak to tacos.
Sprinkle steak with fresh cilantro and enjoy.
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FAQs
What to serve with flank steak?
– Make it carne asada style and serve with guacamole dip or salsa.
– A sauce like jalapeno ranch, chimichurri sauce, or basil spinach pesto.
– Regular rice or Trader Joe’s cauliflower rice.
– Red wine caramelized onions.
– Veggies like sous vide corn on the cob.
– Genius idea: throw all these things in a bowl and devour!
Do you need to tenderize flank steak?
You definitely can, but don’t need to. If you have a mallet, tenderize the steak with a few hits on each side before adding it to the marinade bowl.
Can you marinate steak in a bag instead of a bowl?
Yes, use a large ziplock bag to marinate the steak with the liquid mixture and fresh cilantro. When I use a bag instead of a bowl, I place a plate under the bag while the steak is in the fridge.
What are the best steak temperatures?
I usually cook steak medium-rare to medium with the help of a meat thermometer. Here’s a temperature chart:
– Rare steak (125-130°F) is still red inside.
– Medium rare steak (130-140°F) is red to pink inside.
– Medium steak (140-150°F) is mostly pink, similar to my photos.
– Medium well steak (150-160°F) has just a slight bit of pink inside.
– Well cooked steak (160°F) has no red or pink inside.
When do you say marinate vs marinade?
Just a quick little English lesson here for my foodie friends. I looked it up! You say “marinade” when referring to the liquid (a noun). And you say “marinate” (as a verb) when the steak is sitting in the juice, marinating.
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Meat thermometer recommendations
Every home chef needs a reliable meat thermometer to cook food perfectly.
On Sip Bite Go, you’ll often see me using:
- Meater thermometer – a fancy wireless thermometer that connects to a phone app – gifted to me from a Traeger partnership.
- ThermoPro digital thermometer – which has a wire that connects the thermometer to a display box outside the oven/grill.
It’s like being psychic! The great thing about either of the thermometers above is that I don’t have to take the food out of the oven to know the temperature.
How to use ‘em… What I do is stick the digital thermometer in steak, pork, chicken, whatever… Then put the food in the oven, on the smoker, or grill.
While the meat cooks, it reads the temperature so I know exactly what temp meat is as it’s cooking. Without having to take it out and check. It’s really difficult to overcook food when you know exactly what temp it is inside!
Are you a foodie, too?
I want to know what you think about this easy marinade and see photos of your food! Find me on Instagram @sipbitego to tag me and connect. And don’t forget to check out the Sip Bite Go channel on YouTube.
Flank Steak Marinade Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Want to add juicy flavor to steaks? You just need 5 minutes of prep time with this flank steak marinade recipe. Most of the ingredients are pantry and fridge staples. Let’s make it!
5 from 6 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dinner, Main Course
Cuisine: American, Asian
Prep Time: 2 hours hours 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
Finish Time: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 2 hours hours 25 minutes minutes
Servings: 2
Calories: 937kcal
Author: Jenna Passaro
Ingredients
Simpleflank steak marinade ingredients
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil substitute vegetable oil
- ⅓ cup soy sauce substitute Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tbsp Champagne vinegar substitute white or redwine vinegar
- ½ lime juiced
- 2 tbsp honey substitute brown sugar
- 1 tbsp dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- ½ tsp black pepper ground
- ½ tbsp ginger minced, optional
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes optional
- 1.5 lb flank steak substitute skirt steak
- 2 tsp cilantro fresh chopped, optional
Ingredientsfor flank steak searing and plating
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp cilantro fresh chopped
Instructions
Make the marinade in a large bowl. Add the olive oil, soy sauce, vinegar, lime juice, honey, dijon mustard, garlic, pepper, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Whisk to combine. Set aside ¼ cup of the marinade for later (refrigerate if desired, though the olive oil will solidify at a colder temperature for a longer period of time).
Marinade flank steak. Add flank steak and cilantro to the marinade bowl and toss to cover it in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, up to overnight or 24 hours. Once done marinated, remove steak from marinade and discard cilantro and liquid.
Option 1: Sear finish marinated steak. Heat a large cast iron skillet to medium high to high heat. Add half the olive oil to the pan and when the oil is hot and shiny and begins to smoke, add the steak. Sear for about 3-4 minutes on each side until it begins to brown. While cooking, add more olive oil to the pan if the steak begins to stick. Use tongs to sear the edges of the flank steak for about 30 seconds. Check the internal temperature of the flank steak and remove from heat when desired temperature is reached. Suggestion: until desired temperature is reached, continue flipping steak every 10-20 seconds so it gets a beautiful brown crust and doesn't burn.
Option 2: Grill finish marinated steak. Brush grill grates with a little olive oil if desired to prevent the steak from sticking and heat the grill to high, about 500°F. Add the steak once the grill has reached temperature. Grill on each side of the flank steak for 3-4 minutes until grill marks form. Check the internal temperature of the steak and remove from heat when desired temperature is reached. Suggestion: until desired steak temperature is reached, continue flipping grilled flank steak so it gets beautiful BBQ grill marks.
Option 3: Broil finish marinated steak. Preheat the oven broiler to high heat. Drizzle or brush 1 tsp of olive oil on a rimmed baking sheet, to cover an area that matches the size of the steak. Add the steak to the pan, then brush the remaining olive oil on top. Broil on high for 6 minutes, then flip and broil another 6 minutes or until desired temperature is reached.
Rest cooked flank steak on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes. Slice against the grain and serve with a drizzle of reserved marinade (that was set aside and not in contact with the raw beef, from the first step). Sprinkle steak with fresh cilantro and enjoy.
Video
Notes
Marinade steaks for at least 2 hours, up to overnight or 24 hours for delicious results.
In this recipe, you’ll see the cast iron seared flank steak is served with fresh guacamole and a drizzle of reserved marinade. Remember to take out ¼ cup of the marinade before adding the steak to it, so you have steak marinade to drizzle over the steak in this final step.
To make my simple guac, smash 1 ripe avocado with a squeeze of lime juice and pinch of garlic salt.
STEAK TEMPERATURE CHART
- Rare steak (125-130°F) is still red inside.
- Medium rare steak (130-140°F) is red to pink inside.
- Medium steak (140-150°F) is mostly pink, similar to Sip Bite Go photos.
- Medium well steak (150-160°F) has just a slight bit of pink inside.
- Well cooked steak (160°F) has no red or pink inside.
See the Sip Bite Go recipe video on how to make a marinade for flank steak.
Nutrition
Calories: 937kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 78g | Fat: 58g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 207mg | Sodium: 2439mg | Potassium: 1325mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 179IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 103mg | Iron: 7mg
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