Have you ever tried grilled flap steak (or flap meat)? It’s what’s for dinner tonight in my house. Lean and thinly sliced flap meat is widely sold here in California. Sometimes it is used for carne asada. If you’re wondering, it comes from the same belly area of the cow as the flank steak.
Why do I like it?
Because they are cut thinly, it’s ideal for quick grilling. There is nothing better than having dinner ready in a matter of minutes. And you can’t beat the reasonable price of $4.99/lb. either!
One of the best ways to add delicious flavor to the steak is to marinate it. So here I prepared a mixture of spices like garlic, cumin, chili powder, worchestershire sauce, etc. When it comes to grilling, use medium/high heat to get grill marks while it cooks quickly. Another trick is to grill the meat in an angle for prettier grill marks. Magic just happens when heat touches the meat.
Some people would probably be in the mood for grilling other side vegetables like corn, chopped zucchini, quartered tomatoes, or whole spring onions. All of these are easily usable in this recipe. In fact, you can substitute thinly cut skinless chicken breast or thighs for the flap steak. Just remember that chicken thighs will cook longer though.
Grilled Flap Steak with Asparagus
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs flap meat or flap steak
- 2 Tbsp worcestershire sauce
- 1 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 minced garlic cloves
- 2 Tbsp olive oil plus 1 for vegetables
- 1 lb asparagus trimmed
- 1 bell pepper seeded and cut (red, orange or yellow) 1/4 inch strips
- 1 medium onion sliced 1/4 inch thick
- 1 Tbsp vegetable oil or canola oil for brushing grill
- 8 sprigs of fresh cilantro for garnish
Instructions
- Make the marinade: In a bowl, mix the worcestershire sauce, cumin, chili powder, garlic, olive oil, 1 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper. Add flap steak, making sure all the meat is coated with marinade. Let sit for at least 15 minutes. Meanwhile, wash and chop the vegetables.
- Prepare a stove top cast iron grill (or outdoor grill) and let it get hot to medium/high heat. Brush grill with a bit of canola oil. Transfer onion, asparagus and bell pepper into a shallow bowl and drizzle it with 1 Tbsp olive, 1/2 salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Toss vegetables.
- If grilling on stove top, grill flap steak in the hot cast iron grill first, then the vegetables. Grill steaks and vegetables for 3-4 mins. each side until they have grill marks. (If grilling outdoors, grill vegetables separately using a grilling basket or tray with holes. Let it cook for 3-4 mins. each side) Use tongs to turn it over. Transfer meat and vegetables onto a platter and garnish with cilantro on top. Serve by slicing meat across the grain.