Slices of perfectly grilled, juicy steak on a bed of greens with cherry tomatoes, avocado, homemade blue cheese dressing and a sprinkling of fresh chives. The best steak salad you will make all summer long.
There's nothing I love more than a big main dish salad for dinner during the summer months. They're light, easy to throw together and incredibly tasty. You definitely want to try out this Baby Kale, Shrimp and Avocado Salad - it's also great for summer!
This black and blue steak salad makes the perfect meal. Tender slices of quick cooking, rich steak on top of a cool, crisp bed of greens with juicy tomatoes, creamy avocados, a sprinkling a fresh chives and a delicious homemade blue cheese dressing that's made with greek yogurt. The homemade dressing is definitely a must! It's easy to make and so much better for you than store-bought dressing.
If you're a fellow blue cheese fan, you will absolutely love this salad!
What kind of steak should I use?
You can use any kind of steak that you want - strip steak, ribeye, skirt steak, flank steak, hanger steak, or my personal favorite, flat iron steak. Also known as a top blade steak or top blade filet, flat iron is a shoulder cut with lots of beefy flavor. It cooks quickly and it's nearly as tender as a tenderloin at a fraction of the cost.
This cut is becoming more popular and can be found in a lot of local grocery stores. I subscribe to Butcherbox and I always make sure to add this cut to my order. I love having grass-fed beef and organic chicken delivered right to my door. They have great prices too!
Steak salad ingredients
All you need is a few fresh ingredients to make the salad of your dreams!
- Flat Iron Steak - or any steak of your choice
- Lettuce - I use butter or romaine lettuce. Make sure you choose a sturdier, crispy variety and not baby greens as they will wilt quickly. You want the base to stay crisp under the warm steak.
- Steak seasoning - I love Montreal Steak Seasoning.
- Cherry tomatoes
- Avocado
- Fresh Chives - you can also use thinly sliced red onion if you prefer.
- Blue cheese dressing - I highly recommend making a batch of my homemade blue cheese dressing with Greek yogurt. If blue cheese isn't your thing, this salad is also wonderful with a balsamic dressing.
Method
30 minutes before you're ready to grill, take your steak out of the refrigerator so it can get to room temperature. Pat them dry with a paper towel and liberally season both sides of the steaks with seasoning. Rub it in with a little bit of avocado oil or other high heat oil.
Heat your grill or grill pan to high heat. Grill steak for about 2-4 minutes per side, depending upon the thickness of your steaks, until the internal temperature of the meat reaches between 125-130 degrees for medium rare. Cook time on the steak will depend on what cut you're using but flat iron steaks are pretty thin and cook quickly. They definitely best cooked to medium rare.
While the steak is resting, assemble the rest of your salad. Let the steak rest on a cutting board, tented with aluminum foil, for 5-10 minutes before slicing.
Arrange a bed of lettuce on a large serving platter. Top it with halved cherry tomatoes, sliced avocado and chopped chives.
Cut the steak into thin slices, against the grain, and add them on top of the salad. Sprinkle with flaky salt and a few turns of fresh cracked black pepper if desired. Serve with homemade blue cheese dressing. I almost always add more blue cheese crumbles on top because I just can't get enough!
Recipe tips
- Prep the salad components ahead of time to save yourself some steps for a quick and easy dinner. The dressing lasts up to five days in an airtight container in the fridge so definitely make that beforehand. You can also wash and dry your lettuce and slice the tomatoes and chives or red onion in advance so everything is just ready to assemble!
- Use a meat thermometer. No reason to play the guessing game when it comes to cooking perfect steaks. A meat thermometer is a must, especially for grilling season.
- Let the steak rest before slicing. It's tempting to cut into your steak right away, but you always want to let it rest! This gives the juices time to redistribute throughout the meat. If you cut into it without resting, all of the juice will run out and you'll be left with less flavor and a chewier texture.
- Always slice steak against the grain. If you look closely, you can see the direction of the muscle fibers. Slice perpendicular to the direction of the grain for tender steak.
- This salad is best enjoyed fresh. Leftover steak slices can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. The dressed greens are best eaten right away as they will get pretty soggy if stored.
More summer salads to try
Grilled Steak Salad with Creamy Blue Cheese Dressing
Ingredients
- 12 oz flat iron steak
- 2 teaspoons steak seasoning
- 1 teaspoon avocado oil or other high heat oil
- 5 oz sturdy lettuce butter lettuce, romaine
- ½ pint cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 small avocado sliced
- 2 tablespoons chopped chives
- ⅓ cup homemade blue cheese dressing
- flakey salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Take steaks out of the refrigerator, season on both sides with steak seasoning and rub it in with oil. Let the steaks sit while you preheat the grill and gather the rest of the salad ingredients. Wash and thoroughly dry your salad greens if necessary.
- When the grill is hot, grill steaks for 2-4 minutes per side until the internal temperature reads between 125-130 degrees f for medium rare. Transfer to a cutting board and tent with foil to rest.
- While the steaks are resting, arrange the lettuce on a large serving platter. Top with halved cherry tomatoes, sliced avocado and chopped chives.
- Once the steaks are rested for 5-10 minutes, thinly slice against the grain and place on top of the salad. Add flaky sea salt and a few turns of fresh cracked pepper if desired.
- Serve immediately with homemade blue cheese dressing or dressing of your choice.
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