Grilled flank steak with salsa criolla is a delicious grilled meat dish that is so full of flavor and really easy to make. The criolla sauce is Argentinian and it is so amazing and really big on flavor.
About this steak with salsa criolla:
If you like to grill steaks with just salt and pepper, the criolla sauce added to the top when serving will take care of the rest! This Argentinian steak recipe with salsa criolla has a step by step guide for flavoring the meat along with making the criolla sauce that goes on the meat after cooking.
Origins of Argentinian Salsa Criolla:
This flank steak and salsa criolla recipe comes from my sister in law who is a wonderful chef and someone who has studied the history of food extensively, especially regarding the countries of South America. While this dish is used all over Argentina to this day, the exact origins is believed to have come about during the time of the Spanish colonization many years ago.
From studying the Peruvian culture (which was greatly intertwined with other South American countries at the time) what was learned was that many countries in South America called foods that were invented in the new world, but that were made with old world ingredients (and eaten mostly by Europeans) creole or "criolla," as opposed to indigenous."
I love learning about the different foods we eat and how they came about!
Two other sauces that come from the Argentinian region are chimmichuri and rojo chimichurri. Those are full of parsley and garlic and both are equally delicious!
Ingredients for the steak and salsa criolla:
Most of the items for the salsa criolla, you will probably have in your refrigerator or pantry making this a great recipe to have on hand. The items you will need for this flank steak recipe are:
Salsa Criolla
- red pepper
- tomatoes
- shallot or Spanish onion
- White vinegar
- dried or fresh thyme
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
Flank Steak
- flank steak (or skirt steak)
- garlic
- brown sugar
- salt and pepper
- dried thyme
- chili powder
Another thing that I really love about this dish is it is really fool proof! This will never come out bland and it will always be a hit! The criolla sauce can be used on many different items too.
I love using it on chicken or as a dip for french fries. You could even scoop it up with tortilla chips. I love any type of salsa to be honest!
Make it Ahead of time
Flank steak with salsa criolla can be made the night before and will actually taste even better that way. The salsa criolla will have time for the flavors to all marry together.
If you are using the rub recipe for the steak, that will also need a bit of time to absorb into the meat.
As I mentioned above, I often skip the rub and just make the salsa criolla and then season the meat with salt and pepper before grilling. No matter what your schedule allows for, it will come out great.
For more delicious steak recipes:
Grilled Flank Steak with Salsa Criolla
Tried the Recipe? We Would Love To Hear From You In The Comments Below!
Ingredients
Flank steak and rub
- 2 lbs flank steak
- 4 cloves garlic minced and mashed to a paste with a pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoon chili powder
- 3 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2.5 lbs steak
Salsa Criolla
- 2 large ripe tomatoes cored, seeded, and finely diced
- ¼ Cup yellow onion minced
- ¼ Cup red bell pepper finely chopped
- ½ Cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ tablespoon white-wine vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 pinch of pepper
- ¼ teaspoon fresh thyme or ⅛ teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
Flank steak rub
- In a small bowl, mix the garlic paste with the thyme, black pepper, the chili powder, brown sugar, and salt.
- Arrange the steaks on a rimmed baking sheet and pat the spice rub all over them.
- Cover and let sit for at least 4 hours and up to 1 day in the refrigerator.
Salsa Criolla
- In a medium bowl, combine the tomato, onion, red pepper, oil, and vinegar, salt, black pepper and thyme. Mix well. Refrigerate for up to 3 hours - 1 day before serving.
Cooking the steak
- Heat a gas grill to medium high or prepare a hot charcoal fire.
- Grill the steak (covered on a gas grill) until it has good grill marks on the first side, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip the steak; if using a gas grill, reduce the heat to medium and cover the grill.
- Continue to cook until done to your liking (make a slit in the steak to take a peek), 4 to 5 minutes more for medium rare; 6 to 7 minutes more for medium.
- Remove steak from grill, cover with foil and let rest for 15 minutes.
- Slice VERY THINLY across the grain. Stir the salsa criolla and serve on the side with the steak.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Values are estimates only.
See full nutrition disclaimer here
Billie says
Such a bright and delicious sauce. Perfect for the steak.