This Steak Salad is equal parts hearty and full of flavor, while still feeling light and fresh! The combination of perfectly tender steak, mixed greens, caramelized onions, radishes, avocado, and the most glorious onion vinaigrette is perfect for the warmer months. It’s a dinner-worthy salad that’s great for an easy weeknight meal!
Table of contents
This Salad Packs in Lots of Protein to Keep You Full
If you think that a salad for dinner won’t be filling or satisfying enough, I urge you to give this steak salad a try! Satiety comes in the form of hearty steak and all the huge flavors that this salad packs. The salad mix is a combination of butter lettuce, radicchio, and arugula — so flavorful!
I love a salad for dinner, but I’m only into hearty and interesting salads, i.e. those with lots of texture and full of flavor.
If you’re a meal-prepper, this recipe is great for weekly lunches, too! The steak is delicious even chilled. Just keep the dressing separate so that the lettuces don’t get soggy.
Tools Needed
Ingredients You’ll Need
You can find the full list of ingredients, quantities, and method in the recipe card at the end of the page.
- Steak. I love using NY strip or flank steak for this recipe, but use your favorite as long as it’s tender.
- Onions. A mix of sweet Vidalia onions and shallots make the best caramelized onions.
- Salad Mix. I used a mix of butter lettuce, radicchio, and arugula, but use your favorite.
- Radishes. Sliced radishes add a nice crunch to the salad.
- Avocado. I LOVE avocado on salad. The creaminess is the perfect contrast to the juicy steak.
- Gouda. Some aged gouda grated on top is the perfect punch of saltiness.
- Caramelized onion vinaigrette. I love this dressing so much! It’s made with some of the caramelized onions and a bit of honey, sherry vinegar, dijon, Worcestershire, olive oil, salt and pepper.
The Best Cuts of Steak to Use
Using the perfect cut of steak for steak salad is paramount! You want a cut that has enough fat and marbling to keep it tender. Below are my favorites:
NY Strip. NY strip is my absolute favorite cut of steak. It’s packed with flavor and as long as you go with a choice or prime grade, it’s very tender with great marbling. Slice diagonally to make sure you’re slicing against the grain.
Flat Iron. Flat iron comes from the top blade and is extremely tender and well marbled making it my absolute favorite for grilling.
Ribeye. Ribeye is a little fattier, but it still makes for an incredibly tender and flavorful grilled steak.
Sirloin. Sirloin is a great economical option with big beefy flavor! They’re a bit leaner so I wouldn’t cook them past medium temperature.
Flank Steak. Grilling is actually the best way to cook flank steak. It’s very lean so you absolutely cannot cook it past medium. Make sure to slice flank steak thinly across the grain.
An Overview of How This Salad Is Prepared
- Caramelize the onions first. This will take 30+ minutes, so you want to slice the onions and get them cooking ASAP. The trick to caramelizing onions properly is to cook them slowly over low to medium-low heat.
- Season the steaks. I used a little Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper to give the steaks lots of flavor without detracting from its naturally meaty flavor.
- Make the dressing. You’ll have to wait to blend together the dressing until the onions have finished caramelizing. Just a few tablespoons go into the vinaigrette, and the rest are reserved for the salad.
- Cook the steaks. If you have an outdoor grill, use that! Otherwise I preheat my favorite cast iron skillet on the stove and cook the steaks that way.
Jenny’s Tip: If you cut your steak immediately after cooking, all the juices will run out leaving the steak tough and dry. Give the steaks at least 10 minutes to rest before slicing so that the juices can redistribute.
- Slice the steak against the grain. If you look at a piece of steak, you can see the direction that the stringy muscle fibers run. You want to cut perpendicular, or ‘across the grain’, to those fibers. This ensures that every bite is tender and easy to chew. After slicing, I always sprinkle some flaky sea salt over the top. It makes every bite a perfectly flavorful one!
- Assemble your salad. When serving this salad to company, I like to layer the ingredients on a big platter rather than in a serving bowl so they can see what’s in it.
If you do give it a try, be sure to let me know! Leave a comment with a star rating below. You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram. I LOVE hearing about & seeing your SMF creations!
More Steak Recipes You’ll Love
- Thai Steak Salad
- Flank Steak with Burrata
- Grilled Ribeye with Chimichurri
- Grilled Steak Sandwiches
- Steak Kabobs
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Steak Salad with Caramelized Onion Vinaigrette
Ingredients
Steaks
- 2-3 NY strip steaks, 1 inch thick (or other steak)
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- kosher salt
- freshly cracked pepper
Onion Vinaigrette
- 3 tablespoons chopped caramelized onions
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- kosher salt, to taste
Salad
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 sweet Vidalia onions, thinly sliced
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- 6 radishes, sliced
- 2 avocados, sliced
- 1 bunch chives, cut into 1" batons
- 2 heads butter lettuce, torn
- 1 head radicchio, core removed and chopped
- 3 cups arugula
- 2 oz aged gouda, grated
Instructions
- Caramelize the onions. Melt the butter in a large skillet and add the sliced onions and shallots. Toss to coat the onions in the butter and season with a bit of salt. Cook low and slow, stirring occasionally, until the onions are deeply golden brown.
- Season the steak. While the onions cook, liberally season the steaks with salt and pepper on both sides. Drizzle the Worcestershire sauce over the steaks and really rub the seasoning in. Let the steaks sit at room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- Make the vinaigrette. Combine all the ingredients in a mason jar and blend with an immersion blender. If the dressing is really thick, thin it with a bit of water. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Cook the steak. Heat 1 tablespoon of a high-heat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Sear the steaks for 4-5 minutes per side depending on thickness. You're aiming for an internal temperature of 130-140ºF for medium-rare/medium. Alternately, you can grill the steaks on a grill pan or outdoors. Rest the steaks for 10 minutes before slicing.
- Assemble the salad. Layer the salad greens in a large bowl or serving platter. Spread the caramelized onions over the salad and top with the sliced radishes, avocado, and chives. Top with the sliced steak and onion vinaigrette and finish with the grated gouda. Serve immediately!
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