With most of our weeknights this spring consumed with soccer practices, lacrosse practices, Girls on the Run practices, piano lessons and tennis clinics, the question of “What’s for dinner?” becomes all the more pressing. I won’t lie to you – we resort to the blue box mac-n-cheese and frozen pizza plenty of nights. I also make “pizza panini” on a regular basis – panini-maker grilled sandwiches with panella bread and grated mozzarella, cut into wedges and served with marinara sauce for dipping. (Hey – that would make a good blog post! Stay tuned.)

Another regular in our quick-dinner rotation is this red wine, garlic and soy-marinated flank steak. It’s best if you can marinate in the morning, or even the night before, but broiling the steak is quicker than cooking a DiGiorno’s rising crust pizza. The marinade (and resulting pan juices) makes the flank steak perfectly gourmet on its own, but as a sauce lover (vs. a meat lover), I like to make this quick chimichurri to go with it. Fresh from the herbs and tangy from the red wine vinegar, this sauce would be great with a fattier cut of meat (i.e., ribeye or leg of lamb) on the grill. It also makes a yummy marinade for grilled shrimp, and a drizzle for “leftovers rice bowls”. (This is how I get crafty with leftovers! The family thinks it’s a whole new dinner.)

Gotta run out for gas – soccer and lacrosse tonight!

Everyone’s on the run these days. (Though this is from a verrry cold tournament last November.) 

Marinated Flank Steak                                          Click Here for Flank Steak Recipe

1 flank steak serves about 4; marinade makes enough for 2 steaks

• 1 or 2 flank steaks (approx. 1 – 1.5 lbs each)
• 2/3 cup dry red wine
• 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce (or ¼ cup regular)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 4 large cloves garlic, pressed or minced
• 1 teaspoon sugar

Add all ingredients to a large plastic zip bag (you might need two if doing 2 steaks). Refrigerate for several hours or overnight. 

Line a baking sheet with foil. Remove steak(s) from bag and place on baking sheet. (Discard marinade.) Broil on top rack (or grill) for 4-5 minutes per side for medium-rare. (I go more like 6 minutes per side; the thin parts of the flank steak will be more done, the thick part more rare.)

Quick broiled flank steak. The crispy end bits are my favorite.

Remove from oven and let rest for 8-10 minutes for juiciest steak. Pull up the edges of the foil to make a little tent and collect juices. Slice thinly against the grain of the meat. Serve with chimichurri sauce, if desired. (Or – just drizzle with the collected pan juices.)

Slice thinly, across the grain.

Serving suggestion. (With oven-roasted zucchini –– another quick and easy winner.)

Another serving suggestion: with Subee’s Kitchen Black Bean and Corn Salad/Salsa

And yet another serving suggestion: hold all green! (Tater tots are a vegetable, right?)

Reserve leftovers for sandwiches, quesadillas or Chipotle-style rice bowls (below). Less than a minute in the microwave heats up the meat without cooking it further.

Leftovers? Slice and chop steak; add to rice, corn, fresh cilantro, etc. Drizzle with chimichurri sauce, if desired.

Chimichurri Sauce                                      Click Here for Chimichurri Sauce Recipe

Makes about 1 ½ cups

• 1 cup (packed) Italian parsley
• ½ cup (packed) cilantro
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (or to taste)

Add all ingredients to a large measuring cup or beaker and blend with an immersion blender. You could also use a food processor or blender, but the sauce will be more finely pureed. Or – you could chop the herbs finely and mix by hand for a chunkier sauce.

Another Subee’s Kitchen “green sauce”! Love that immersion blender.

Blended but not totally pureed. Flecks are good!

Store covered in the refrigerator for up to a week. Best if brought to room temperature before serving with hot items.