Spicy Beer Marinated Flank Steak

Flank SteakThe Fast and the Flank Steak

At any given time you will find boneless chicken thighs and at least one flank steak in my refrigerator or freezer. Chicken thighs are all-purpose, and juicier than chicken breasts. They can be sautéed, grilled, sliced up for panini, thrown in pasta…the possibilities are endless.

Flank steaks are equally versatile—plus inexpensive. You can butterfly them, stir fry them, fill them, roll them up and roast them like in this recipe for Italian Stuffed Flank Steak, you can throw them on the grill for great tacos or slice ‘em up to top a salad.

One of my favorite ways to prepare flank steak is with this Spicy Beer Marinade that I have been using for years. It travels with us up to Tahoe in the summer for use on Tri Tips when we need to feed a crowd.

For mid-week cooking, I like it on a flank steak. Mix the ingredients together the night before or in the morning before you go to work. Pour it in a Ziploc bag with the flank steak. Pull it out when you get home, throw it on the grill for a few minutes, and dinner is done! Pair that with your favorite tossed salad and some roasted baby potatoes and you have an awesome mid-week hot weather meal. Now we just need some hot weather…

Spicy Beer Marinade
Makes 2 1/3 to 3 cups
Recipe adapted from The Complete Meat Cookbook
by Bruce Aidells and Denis Kelly

Ingredients
1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
3 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 12 oz. bottle of lager beer
1 tablespoon coarse-grained mustard
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce or A-1 steak sauce
½ cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 1 to 1 ¼ pound flank steak (serves  4)

Directions
Mix ingredients together in a small bowl.

Pierce the steak all over on both sides with a sharp fork or skewer. Place it in a Ziplock bag or (covered) shallow glass baking dish. Pour the marinade over the meat, and refrigerate overnight. Let it come to room temperature before cooking.

Pat the steak dry. Grill the steak over medium-hot coals in a covered or uncovered barbecue or directly over the flames of a gas grill.

Flank steak is best cooked medium-rare and should not be cooked more than medium to an internal temperature of 130-135 degrees F. This will take roughly 4 to 5 minutes per side on a standard grill.

Allow the steak to rest for 5 minutes, covered loosely with foil, before carving into ¼ -inch thick diagonal slices across the grain.

Comments are closed.