Eat more skirt steak

While I love going out to a steak dinner as much as the next carnivore, sometimes you want the satisfaction from this experience at home. But you may be like me and want a casual version that still tastes fantastic. Enter, skirt steak.

This cut can be harder to find at some stores, but if you see some, grab it! Please note that skirt steak is vastly different from flank and hanger steak, though they look similar. It’s typically sold in one, long piece and is thin with great marbling.

Skirt steak is expensive enough that you feel excited for the treat, but approachable and low maintenance to cook. I also appreciate skirt steak because it lends itself to sauce.

Prepare the meat: Let your steak come to room temperature, pat it dry with paper towels and season generously with kosher salt and black pepper on both sides.

Make your sauce: Any kind of vibrant sauce will thrive on skirt steak, like chimichurri. But I personally am obsessed with this citrus-cilantro dressing instead and can’t seem to break away from it.

Cook the meat: Heat a cast iron skillet on medium high heat until it’s smoking. Place your seasoned skirt steak in the skillet and let it brown on one side. When it’s ready (3-4 minutes), flip it and brown the other side. Check the temp at this point and cook until it internally reaches 130 degrees Fahrenheit (medium rare). Remove it from the heat and let it rest for 5-10 minutes before slicing against the grain.

Sides: This dish/sauce combo pairs well with any roasted vegetable, like carrot fries, brussels, green beans or asparagus. And of course a simple salad or even smashed, roasted potatoes is a nice addition too. For any roasted vegetable, I trim/cut accordingly, then toss in olive oil, kosher salt and black pepper, roasting at 375 degrees Fahrenheit until cooked and crispy.