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Flat iron steak is now a widely available cut of meat that makes juicy flavorsome steak meals much more affordable.
Cooking with this cut of meat does mean paying attention to some basic rules. These rules are easily mastered and demonstrated in this selection of quick and easy flat iron steak recipes.
Quick Flat Iron Steak Marinade
Marinades are often thought to be used for imparting taste but they also perform another function that is important when cooking flat iron steak.
A good marinade will also tenderize the meat by using ingredients that begin to breakdown muscle tissue before the cooking process starts.
Acid ingredients such as vinegars, fruit juices such as lemon, lime or pineapple all make excellent tenderizers.
To make a quick marinade for flat iron steak:
- Mix together one tablespoon of honey with the same amount of vinegar and lemon juice with a whisk
- Add a cup of extra virgin olive oil
- Then flavour the marinade with Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, tarragon, garlic powder and white pepper
- Add the marinade to a sealable food-safe plastic bag, along with your steaks and place in the fridge for up to three hours
- Do not marinade for more than 2 hours at the room temperature (overnight in the fridge is fine) as this will change the texture of the meat, turning it into mush-like substance
Remove your steak from the marinade bag and put to one side, 40 minutes before cooking it using your preferred method.
Flat Iron Steak with Red Wine Sauce
A good red wine sauce is quick and easy to make if you cook your steak in a skillet or other heavy pan.
- Start by marinating the flat iron steak in your favourite marinade for up to three hours and then transfer from the refrigerator to the kitchen for it to come to room temperature
- Heat a heavy skillet until it is smoking hot
- Cook your steaks without adding extra oil until they reach your required degree of doneness
- Put them to one side on a warm plate
- Add a nob of butter to the skillet and add a finely chopped shallot and a handful of finely sliced mushrooms
- Cook until the shallots are translucent and the mushrooms have softened
- Add one tablespoon of tomato paste and cook through for a further two minutes
- Add a cup of cabernet sauvignon or shiraz red wine
- Stir thoroughly to loosen all of the browned bits from the base of the pan and then simmer until the wine has reduced by two thirds
- Add three or four nobs of cold butter (opt for organic grass-fed like Kerrygold if available), one at a time and stir in to make the sauce thick and glossy
Serve the steak thinly sliced, across the grain with a large bowl of fresh green salad and a bottle of lightly chilled red wine – delicious!
Flat Iron Steak Tacos
Flat iron steaks make a perfect alternative for filling tacos.
- Start by rubbing your streaks with taco seasoning and lime juice leaving them to marinade for up to three hours
- Take them out of the marinade and put to one side in the kitchen 40 minutes before cooking
- Heat your broiler to a high heat and place a rack four inches from the heat
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil
- Sprinkle the steaks with ground cumin, salt and pepper
- Place on the rack and broil for four minutes per side for a medium rare steak.
- Combine shredded cabbage, lime juice garlic, salt and pepper in a bowl and lx well to coat the cabbage with the seasoning
- Once cooked move the streaks to a warm plate to rest for four minutes
- Stack your favorite tortillas with a layer of damp paper towel between them and microwave until warm. Once warm, gently toast each one over a flame until brown
- Finally slice the flat iron steak across the grain
- Assemble each tortilla with a combination of cabbage, steak, cheese and sour cream
Blue Cheese Flat Iron Steaks
The robust flavor of a flat iron steak makes a perfect taste combo when mixed with a blue cheese sauce.
- Start by marinating your flat iron steak for up to three hours with your favorite marinade. Red wine vinegar, citrus fruit juice, olive oil and strong herbs such as rosemary or thyme are perfect ingredients
- Bring the steak to room temperature for 40 minutes before cooking
- Cook to your favourite degree of doneness
- Once cooked, place the steaks on a warm plate
- Deglaze the pan with a half cup of brandy by flaming the brandy and stirring to remove all of the brown caramelized bits on the bottom of the pan
- In a small bowl mix ¼ cup pf crumbled blue cheese with three tablespoons of softened butter, chives and pepper and salt.
- Add the reduced brandy to the bowl and stir thoroughly
Serve your steaks, cut across the grain with some sweet potatoes and a fresh green salad.
Top the steak with a large table spoon of the blue cheese butter sauce to achieve perfection!
All flat iron steak cooking methods:
- See how to broil flat iron steak in oven
- Grill flat iron steak on gas grill
- Pan sear flat iron steak on stove
- Learn to marinate flat iron steak
- Prepare flat iron steak in cast iron skillet
- Sous vide flat iron steak to perfection
- Slow cook flat iron steak in a crock pot
- Try 3 simple flat iron steak recipes
- Cook flat iron steak in oven
Return to main page – how to cook flat iron steak.
