Steak And Avocado Taco Salad

We’re still working on cleaning out the freezer and while digging around the other day, I found a flat iron steak and a whole chuck eye. In talking with Bev, I wasn’t surprised when she said she’d like them atop a salad. Back on Mar 25, I’d posted a Chimichurri Marinade that we really liked so we decided to use it again. The flat iron was about right for one person and the chuck eye was enough for two – so I sliced it into 4 nice steaks. After I learned Bev’s sis wouldn’t be joining us, I put two of the chucks back in the fridge and the little light bulb lit up in my mind – it’s time for a steak taste test.


I made up the marinade and soaked the steaks about 5 hours in a plastic bag – massaged and turned a couple of times. Here’s Bobby Flay’s recipe:

Chimichurri Marinade:

· 6 cloves garlic
· 3 fresh bay leaves
· 2 jalapeno peppers, coarsely chopped
· 1 tablespoon kosher salt
· 1/2 cup white wine vinegar
· 1 tablespoon ancho chile powder
· 1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
· 1/2 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
· 1/4 cup finely chopped oregano leaves
· 3/4 cup olive oil

· Place all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.

It says finely chopped herbs because the food processor does little to chop them smaller.

Bev is a big fan of her food processor and I’m not, except for big jobs, mostly because I don’t like to wash it. And for the same reason, I love the mini food processor that we got with our immersion blender – which I also really love. If you don’t have these two devices, you should consider running out today to get them. Think making soup when the recipe says “after cooking run thru your blender in batches after it’s cooled a little,” or just use the immersion blender right now in the cooking pan – you’ll have it pureed before you can drag your blender out.


I put the thicker chuck eyes on several minutes ahead of the flat iron.


The chucks now over low heat and the flat iron on high.


The meat is finished and ready for the taste test.


For the salad, we decided to go with the Avocado Taco Salad posted by Pam over at For The Love Of Cooking – I’d had it book marked and we had avocados we needed to eat plus everything else on hand – I love it when a plan comes together. We just followed the recipe except used a plate rather than the tortilla (I may have to get me one of those molds), and our own paste tomatoes. Also, we used the Pecorino Romano cheese we had on had. Here’s her ingredients list but check out her site for the complete recipe and some great pics:

· Flour tortilla, baked into a bowl
· Flank steak, marinated for at least 6 hours (see marinade here)
· Lettuce, chopped
· Black beans, rinsed, drained and warmed
· 1/2 avocado, diced
· Cherry tomatoes, diced
· Black olives, sliced
· Red onion, diced
· Fresh cilantro, chopped (omitted and put in the dressing)
· Green onions, diced
· Cotija cheese, grated
· Salsa
· Sour cream

I decided to use a vinaigrette with the steak rather than salsa and sour cream and when I did a web search on southwestern vinaigrette, the second one up was from, of all people, Pam. I thought it would go fine with the steak marinade so I used it:

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

½ cup of chopped cilantro
¼ cup canola oil
1-2 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar OR red wine vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp oregano

Here’s the finished salad


And the finished dish. We considered some garlic-cheese Naan bread but decided this salad would be more than enough.


We both thought each part (salad, dressing, meat) of the meal was delicious and they were delicious together. Bev said I’ll have to use this dressing more often and I think this is a must-try steak marinade. We ended up eating only one chuck eye and about ¾ of the flat iron – fortunately breakfast is just around the corner.

As for the taste test, Bev preferred the chuck eye and so did I, at first. They both come from the beef chuck area but are very different. The chuck eye has the texture and fat content typical of chuck, but the flat iron is more like flank steak. As I ate my salad, I decided I liked them both, but if I had to choose one it would be the flat iron.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by.

Larry