This post has been sponsored by Italia Regina. All opinions expressed are my own.
Today’s recipe features a bed of arugula framed in roasted bell peppers, topped with pepper crusted strip steak, and dressed in a creamy balsamic vinaigrette. The end result is a steak salad that is a light yet satisfying meal unto itself, which can easily serve either as a light dinner or as the centerpiece of a summer dinner party.
Assembling the Salad – In Three Parts
1) First The Greens. Today’s salad begins with a bed of greens with roasted bell peppers, grilled fresh cherry tomatoes, and garlic. Now, while you can probably sub in any type of ‘large’ pepper in place of today’s bell peppers, particularly if you want a bit of heat, I’m going to make a few recommendations on the greens. I’m using arugula since I find the slightly bitter taste melds nicely with the pepper and garlic marinated steak, whereas greens with a ‘brighter’ flavor or ‘crisper’ in texture would risk clashing with the umami from the steak and the marinade.
2) Then The Meat. A variety of cuts work well for this salad, including ribeye, New York strip, and sirloin. What you want here is a steak that remains ‘substantial’ after being sliced thin, and tenderness is paramount. You also want a fair bit of marbling and ‘juice’ in order to give the salad a bit of beef broth texturing.
3) Finally The Vinaigrette. Today’s vinaigrette is thicker than what I usually put together, and this is by design since I wanted it to really coat the meat and the greens. The base of the vinaigrette is a creamy Italia Regina White Cream Balsamic Vinegar coupled with a high quality olive oil. More on those below. In terms of flavor, we’re combining honey, lemon, and white balsamic vinegar, the end result of which gives us a vinaigrette with just a hint of sweetness and citrus, and a thick body that thoroughly coats both the salad and the steak.
Notes On the Ingredients
1) The Olive Oil. There’s nothing worse than ruining an otherwise great recipe with low quality oil. Today we’re using 100% Italian Olive Oil, which is a quality oil that’s deeply aromatic and richly flavored, making it ideal for today’s vinaigrette and marinades.
2) Creamy Balsamic. Today’s vinaigrette simply doesn’t work without this key ingredient, as it would be far too watery with a standard vinegar. We’re using Casa Rindaldi Crema Biancomodena, which is a creamy white balsamic vinegar dressing. It’s absolutely delicious on its own over salads, and works great in vinaigrettes as shown here today.
3) The Pepper. Don’t roll your eyes, because I know what you’re thinking “What could she possibly have to say about this singularly ubiquitous item?” I just want to say that neither freshly ground pepper nor pre-ground pepper are a suitable substitute for whole crushed pepper corns. The difference comes down to texture and the distribution of flavor. Grinding pepper evenly distributes the flavor throughout the resulting ‘specks’ and gives you an even texture free of crunchy ‘grinds’ or ‘shards.’ Typically, that’s desirable. However, ‘crushing’ whole peppercorns distributes the flavor unevenly, leaving much of the peppery flavor ‘trapped’ in the shards and grinds. This is precisely what you want since you want the crushed pepper corns to give a nice ‘crunchy’ texture packed with bursts peppery flavor.
What to Serve Alongside The Steak Salad
Since a steak salad is still very much a ‘salad’ in my book, here are a few suggestions for what to serve alongside it.
1) Antipasto Board. For a charcuterie-based antipasto, check out my recipe here. For a more traditional ‘everything’ antipasto board, check out this recipe here.
2) Flat Breads. Today’s salad would go absolutely great wrapped in some homemade flatbreads. Also, if you’re looking for one of the easiest ways ever to impress your guests, these flatbreads are exactly what you’re looking for, since they’re deceptively simple to prepare.
Steak Salad
- Total Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
- 3 NY Strip Steaks about 1 inch thickness - boneless
For the steak marinade:
- 2 tbs. pepper corns - crushed with a rolling pin
- 1 tbs. sea salt
- 1 tbs. garlic powder
- 4 tbs. olive oil
For the Salad:
- 2 bell peppers - roasted
- 1 pint of cherry tomatoes
- 4 cloves of garlic - whole
- 1 red onion - sliced thin
- 3 - 4 cups of Arugula
- 5 - 6 fresh basil leaves
For the Vinaigrette:
- 1 cup of Casa Rinaldi Olive Oil
- 1/2 cup of Casa Rinaldi White Creamy Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 clove of garlic - grated
- 1 tbs. honey
- Juice of 1/4 lemon
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Crush the peppercorns with a rolling pin. You may place a piece of plastic wrap over the peppercorns as you crush them.
- Place the crushed peppercorns, sea salt and olive oil in a small bowl to form a paste.
- Rub each steak with this mixture and place a plastic bag.
- Place in the refrigerator for at least one hour or up to a day or two.
- Heat a large cast iron frying pan over a high heat. Place the steaks in the frying pan.
- Heat a large cast iron frying pan over a high heat for about 5 minutes.
- Place the steaks in the dry frying pan and cook 3 to 4 minutes to let a nice char form; do not move steaks while cooking.
- Turn the steaks over and cook 2 minutes more for rare steak, or 3 to 4 minutes more for medium-rare.
- The more firm the steak feels to the touch the more well done it is. Place on a cutting board and let the steak rest for about 5 minutes.
- Slice steaks against the grain.
For the Salad and Vinaigrette:
- Place all of the ingredients for the vinaigrette in a small bowl and whisk.
- Place the peppers over a flame to form a char. Place the peppers in a plate to let cool down.
- Scrap the char off of the peppers and slice.
- Heat a large cast iron frying pan and place the tomatoes, onions and garlic in the pan and sprinkle with sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil. Let the vegetables achieve a nice char and remove from the pan to cool.
- Place the arugula on a platter and arrange the steak slices over the leaves.
- Top the steak with the ripped fresh basil leaves.
- Arrange the peppers, tomatoes, onions and garlic around the edges and drizzle with the vinaigrette.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4-6
Did you make this recipe?
If so, let me know in the comments down below, or post a picture to Instagram, or to Pinterest, and I’ll give you a shoutout on Instagram, or post your pin to one of my Pinterest boards!
Enjoy with Love!
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Cyndi Buchanan says
Oh my goodness! Now that is a delicious looking salad!
Caroline says
That looks seriously delicious! We were lucky enough to go balsamic vinegar tasting in Italy last year and the white balsamic had such a great flavor so I can see it being great here.
Shashi at SavorySpin says
Dear Catherine, this looks like such a flavor packed salad - I haven got to look for Casa Rinaldi White Creamy Balsamic Vinegar now!
Krissy Allori says
I just love this recipe! So good!
Noelle says
I love this! Made this for dinner tonight and everyone enjoyed it, thank you!
GUNJAN C Dudani says
This recipe sounds delicious. I am forwarding it to my brother who is a steak lover. I am sure he will enjoy it.
Michelle says
This is a salad I can get behind, it looks absolutely delicious and I love that it's much more than just lettuce
angiesrecipes says
That's a SALAD after my heart! LOVE LOVE those perfectly prepared steaks.
Yeah Lifestyle says
Your your 3-part preparation to this recipe. We eat lots of steak but not had it this way, so looking forward to trying out tour recipe
kumamonjeng says
The recipe looks great and I love having steak and can't wait to try out this. Going to get some Casa Rinaldi White Creamy Balsamic Vinegar to have it with the salad. It's mouth watering.
April says
The combo that is absolutely worth the time in the kitchen. It is nutritious, healthy and looks stunning. The size of the dish is perfect, too!
Sam says
What a robust recipe! It sounds like it would pair really well with flatbread as you mentioned.
Mahy says
If you ask me, I think that creamy balsamic vinaigrette is the perfect sauce for this type of salad. It contrasts well with all the ingredients and works miracles on the flavor side!
Alexandra Cook says
My kids would absolutely love these. This would disappear in no time at our house! This is my kind of weekend treat.
Marysa says
My husband would really like this salad. We have done more of a classic Caesar salad with steak, but I like the combination of flavors and ingredients you used.
Cheese Curd In Paradise says
This salad looks amazing! I love steak salads, and I am loving the sound of the white balsamic and honey dressing! I can't wait to try this!
Terri Beavers says
This is seriously a beautiful and delicious looking salad. I think it's one that the whole family would enjoy. I'll have to jot down the ingredients for my next shopping trip.
Elaine Benoit says
This salad looks so delicious that I actually drooled! The steak looks perfectly cooked and it all looks fresh, inviting and comforting all at once! I can't wait to try your recipe. And I agree, you've got to use good olive oil!
Kara says
That is looks so tasty, never thought to chop steak up and add to the salad, I normally keep them seperate
Heather says
This looks like the kind of meal my husband would LOVE! He loves steak. I'll have to make something like this for him.
SHANIKA says
I love the idea of Steak Salad! Who needs chicken when you have a more flavorful option? Haha!
DAVID J MYERS says
Catherine, A good steak salad is hard to beat and yours is very attractive! It's been awhile since we've made a salad like this for dinner. Thanks for triggering my memory! Take Care, Big Daddy Dave
Sondra Barker says
Goodness! My mouth is watering. Love pairing steak with yummy bell peppers! I need to try this recipe soon- Sondra Barker @cuisineandtravel
Magaly Tompkins says
I need to make this! My mouth is literally watering. Thank you for the recipe.
Lisa says
A steak salad is the perfect summer dish! I’ll be making this for the family.
Michelle says
This salad looks amazing! I'm loving that creamy vinaigrette and all your tips are excellent!
Didi Marie says
What a perfectly balanced meal. My husband owns a steak restaurant, and their steak salad is one of their best sellers for that reason! (I must tell him about your recommendations on the pepper...)
Danielle says
Meat and veggies - now that's the combo! One compliments another so nicely. And that vinagirette is just perefect for this set of ingredients - just the way I like it.
Maureen says
What a beautiful and healthy salad. I love steak on my salad. And it's a nice and easy recipe for the summer.
Jacquelyn Hastert says
I love how light this salad is, but that it would also work for a main course dinner option. I think that you have cooked the steak to perfection!
Carole from Carole's Chatter says
Fabulous salad! Delightful beef dish! Please come over and share this with the Food on Friday crowd over at Carole's Chatter. Cheers
Cathleen @ A Taste of Madness says
For some reason, it is very hard for me to eat steak. It runs in my family, so unfortunately I won't be enjoying this any time soon even though it looks SO GOOD!!
Kathryn says
I always love a good steak salad! And now I've got to go out and see if I can find this white balsamic vinegar!!
Veronika's Kitchen says
This steak salad looks delicious! it's healthy, but at the same time very filling. Want to try it for a house party next weekend!
Kushigalu says
This salad looks amazingly delicious. Love the flavors here.
Amanda Mason says
I'm loving the arugula and fresh basil in this salad! I haven't had a steak salad in years but this is the perfect one for my liking! Cant wait to try it!