Grilled Steak Salad

This salad is simple enough for a weeknight but worthy of planning a dinner party around, thanks to its star ingredient—ribeye steak. You’ll grill it (and red onions), then combine it with cherry tomatoes, blue cheese, basil, and a drizzle of tangy balsamic dressing, turning it into the kind of impressive-but-secretly-easy dish you’ll be making all the time. Keep reading on for all of my top tips on what you need to know:

What People Are Saying:
"⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ simple, delicious and my 15 year old declared its the best salad ever." - kit7846

"Excellent dinner salad. Will definitely make again. Made exactly as written and turned out fab!" - Borngrace

How To Make A Grilled Steak Salad

INGREDIENTS

• The Dressing: This garlicky balsamic is not your average bottled version and is very worth making at home. Cooking your smashed garlic just a bit and blending it takes off its raw edge, and gives the dressing a sweet roasted garlic flavor and creamy texture.
• Red Onion: Sharp and bold red onion goes particularly well with our steak, but you can also swap for shallots.
• Steak: Boneless ribeye is a great choice for a salad like this because it’s full of flavor and slices beautifully, but if you have a specific cut you love, go for it!
• Greens: Slightly peppery arugula and baby spinach are my favorite greens here. Use one or the other, or a combination of both!
• Avocado: Whatever you go with, don’t skip the big slices of creamy avocado—they round out this salad and make it feel like a complete meal.
• Cherry Tomatoes: Bright cherry tomatoes add a bit of sweetness, and also provide an eye-popping color when presented.
• Blue Cheese: Again, we’re looking for bold flavors here, and that’s exactly what blue cheese is. That being said, you can also swap it out for goat cheese or feta.
• Basil: Fresh herbs are always welcome, and some freshly torn basil adds even more flavor to the final bite, and makes the final presentation wow-worthy. If you don’t have any, you can leave it out, but I’d highly recommend using it.

STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS

First, we’ll start on our dressing by cooking garlic in extra-virgin olive oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook—while stirring occasionally—until the garlic is fragrant and softened. Then, take it off the heat and let it cool slightly.

Once cooled, transfer the garlic and the oil to a blender. Then, add the vinegar, sugar, salt, and pepper, and blend until very smooth. Give it a taste, and add more salt and pepper as needed. Once it is to your liking, pour into a jar and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.

Now, we can move onto our salad. Prepare a grill for medium-high heat by heating it for 5 minutes and cleaning the grates well. Then, drizzle the onion with oil, and season well with salt. Season the steak generously with salt and pepper on both sides.

Add the onions and steak to the grill. Grill the onions, turning once, until char marks appear. Grill the steak, turning occasionally, until an instant-read thermometer registers 130° for medium-rare, inserted into the thickest part of the steak.

Transfer the cooked onions and steak to a cutting board, and let them both cool slightly. Then, once cooled, thinly slice the steak against the grain.

Now, it’s time to assemble! A large platter works best here so everything is spread out. Arrange the greens, then top with the sliced steak, onions, avocado, tomatoes, crumbled blue cheese, and freshly torn basil. Drizzle with the dressing right before serving, and enjoy!

The full list of ingredients and instructions can be found in the recipe below.

Recipe Tips

• No blender? No problem! Feel free to chop the garlic and shake everything together in a jar.
• How to serve the salad. For a really beautiful look, use a big platter or a really shallow large bowl to plate your salad. Spread out the greens, top with all the elements, and fan out the sliced steak. Wait until the very end to drizzle the dressing over top so nothing gets soggy.
  

What To Serve With A Grilled Steak Sald

This salad is a full dish all on its own, main and side in one. That being said, if you’re looking to round out a dinner party spread, I suggest serving some roasted potatoes or focaccia alongside it.