Skirt steak with chimichurri sauce

Cook skirt steak perfectly every time with this easy skirt steak recipe. Top with delicious, homemade chimichurri sauce and enjoy! Happy cooking!

Total carbs 2g, net carbs 1g

I love skirt steak! Skirt steak is full of flavor and matches well with fresh chimichurri sauce. When making skirt steak, follow these great tips for best results.

👩🏻‍🍳 Table of contents

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

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• Total carbs 2g, net carbs 1g
• 👩🏻‍🍳 Table of contents
• Ingredients
• Optional ingredients for the steak
• Skirt steak vs flank steak
• Substitutions
• Equipment
• Top tip
• Serving suggestions
• How to cook skirt steak
• Storing skirt steak
• Storing chimichurri sauce
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Skirt Steak with Chimichurri Sauce Recipe Card

Ingredients

skirt steaks

Inspect the steaks to make sure that they are trimmed of silver skin. The silver skin is a thin silvery membrane that surrounds skirt steak. This membrane is impossible to eat. Not every butcher will do a good job of removing this membrane. If you see any membrane, cut it off by slipping a sharp knife just beneath and pull back on the membrane.

salt and black pepper

Use coarse salt like kosher salt or sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Chimichurri sauce ingredients

parsley

Chop clean, dry parsley tops by hand. Do not use a blender. Blender chimichurri sauce requires extra liquid and can end up tasting vinegary and looking like mush.

garlic, shallot, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper

These spices can be adjusted more or less to your personal taste. I recommend finely mincing the garlic and shallot first, to bring out the full flavor. You need salt in the sauce to tone down and balance the pungency of the vinegar.

red wine vinegar and olive oil

Use a 3:1 ratio of good quality olive oil to red wine vinegar for a balanced sauce.

oregano

Add oregano if you like.

Optional ingredients for the steak

• Soy sauce
• Onion powder
• Chili powder
• Garlic powder
• Olive oil
• Marinade

Skirt steak vs flank steak

Both skirt steak and flank steak are long, flat, lean cuts of beef. They are both tasty cuts of meat with tough muscle fibers.

What is skirt steak?

Skirt steak is a flavorful cut that's best when salted or marinated and seared over high heat. It is cut from the short plate, a cut of beef from beneath the rib. It is thinner and fattier than flank steak. Skirt steak is divided into the inside and outside skirt. You can find inside skirt steak in the meat section. The outside skirt is often sold to restaurants.

What is flank steak?

Flank steak is a plate of meat cut from beneath the loin. It is thicker and leaner than skirt steak.

Substitutions

You can use flank steak or hangar steak in place of skirt steak. Since these steaks are a bit thicker, cook them for a minute longer on each side.

Equipment

• cutting board
• knife
• bowl
• grill or cast iron skillet

Top tip

The trick to getting a crispy char on skirt steak is to sear it over high heat. You can cook it indoors in a hot cast iron skillet. Be sure to open your windows and turn on your kitchen vent as it will get smoky. You can also cook the steak outside over a hot grill.

Serving suggestions

For tender steak, don't overcook skirt steak. Skirt steak is best cooked medium-rare. To serve, slice this tough cut of meat into thin slices against the visible grain. Thin cuts against the tough muscle fibers make the skirt steak tender and easy to eat.

Let the steak rest for just a few minutes before slicing. This gives the meat juices a chance to redistribute instead of dripping out and letting your skirt steak dry out.

Fresh chimichurri sauce is a delicious compliment to skirt steak. Made of parsley, red chili pepper flakes, savory garlic, a bit of salt, olive oil and a splash of pungent red wine vinegar, chimichurri sauce is easy to whip up while the steak cooks.

You can also make fajitas, skirt steak tacos and steak salad with the leftovers.

How to cook skirt steak

You can grill skirt steak or sear it in a cast iron skillet. Cooked correctly, pan seared skirt steak develops a delicious char.

First pat steak with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Season both sides with coarse salt and black pepper. Cook over high heat. Let steak rest before slicing.

To grill skirt steak:

Place skirt steak on the grill, over high heat, for 3 minutes on each side. Skirt steak takes just a few minutes to cook. Once grilled, let rest before slicing.

To sear skirt steak:

Place steak in a hot cast iron skillet over high heat for 3 minutes on each side to get a good sear.

Storing skirt steak

If you even have any leftover steak, save cooked skirt steak in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Thin slices of leftover skirt steak are amazing over salad, as a snack or on a thin slice of crusty bread.

Storing chimichurri sauce

Chimichurri sauce is great on just about anything. Store separately in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3 days. If you don't think you can finish the chimichurri sauce in 3 days, transfer it to the freezer. You can freeze chimichurri sauce for 3 months.

Frequently Asked Questions

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