Grilled Hanger Steak With Tomato Salad
This Grilled Hanger Steak recipe features tender marinated steak topped with a bright and refreshing tomato salad. Sweet, savory, and tangy, this is the perfect summertime recipe for everything from weeknight meals to weekend cookouts with friends! 
This hanger steak recipe has quickly become a summertime staple for me and is a household favorite loved by the whole family! There’s just something about the sweet and savory marinade paired with the smokiness of grilled steak that keeps me coming back for more. Plus, the tomato salad adds an extra layer of flavor and texture along with nutrients for a well-rounded meal! This steak recipe does require a little bit of planning. However, once the meat is marinated, the entire dish comes together incredibly quickly, making it a great recipe for a crowd-pleasing dinner or your weekly meal prep! That said, it’s also fancy enough for a special occasion like Valentine’s Day or date nights, especially paired with a glass of red wine. One bite, and I know this will become one of your all-time favorite steak recipes!
What Is Hanger Steak
A unique cut of meat, hanger steak, also sometimes known as butcher’s steak or butcher’s cut steak, is a long, flat, flavorful, thin cut of steak similar to flank steak and skirt steak but is even more tender with incredible flavor. It’s a flat, v-shaped cut that comes from the belly of a cow or steer, hanging just below the animal’s diaphragm. Due to the fact that you can only get one hanger steak per animal, it is not widely found in grocery stores. Instead, look for hanger cut steak online or at your local butcher shop!
Can I Use A Different Cut Of Beef
No other cut of meat will give you quite the same flavor and tenderness as hanger steak. However, if needed, you can use skirt steak or flank steak instead. For the best results, look for outside skirt steaks, which come from the diaphragm of the cow and are more tender than inside skirt steaks. Or, choose flank steaks that are uniform in thickness and have even marbling throughout the cut. Whatever you choose your steak recipe will be delicious!
Why You Will Love This Grilled Hanger Steak
- A great choice for steak lovers, this recipe is full of meaty flavor, and when paired with the vibrant salad, is worthy of fancy restaurant menus yet comes together with simple ingredients.
- The steak marinates in a sweet and savory mixture, which eliminates the need for steak seasoning and infuses it with flavor, ensuring it turns out juicy and tender with ease. This is far from your average steak recipe!
- Once the steak is marinated, the entire meal comes together in about 20 minutes, and thanks to the grill cleanup is a breeze.
- You can easily serve this recipe on its own as a filling low carb meal. However, it also pairs well with a variety of side dishes, and you can easily add it to wraps, salads, and bowls!
- Leftovers store well. So, you can cook once, and enjoy nutritious and delicious meals in minutes for the next several days.
- This hanger steak recipe is gluten free, dairy free, and Paleo to suit a variety of dietary needs. You can easily make it nut free, too!
Ingredients You Need To Make This Grilled Hanger Steak With Tomato Salad
- Hanger Steaks: You’ll need at least 2 large beef hanger steaks for this recipe. Trim the membrane before you begin, but leave the steaks whole to allow for even cooking.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: I use extra virgin olive oil to form the base of the steak marinade, helping combine the ingredients, tenderize the steak, and add a rich, slightly peppery flavor. Then, I also include it in the tomato salad to help the seasonings stick to the veggies, enhance their great flavor, and allow for better absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins in the veggies.
- Garlic: I recommend using fresh garlic cloves for the best flavor, but pre-minced garlic will also work if you’re short on time.
- Balsamic: This adds a delicious tangy, sweet taste to both the steak and the salad. The acidity also helps contribute to the tenderness of the meat.
- Honey: I use honey to add a slightly sweet flavor to the marinade and balance out some of the tang.
- Tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes form the base of the salad, but grape tomatoes will also work.
- Roasted Red Peppers: These add lots of depth to the salad with a sweet, tangy, slightly smokey taste. Find them in the canned vegetable aisle of your local grocery store.
- Pine Nuts: add a rich, buttery taste and a satisfying crunch.
- Red Onion: Thinly sliced, these add extra tang and crunch to the salad.
- Fresh Basil: Used both in the salad and as a garnish, fresh basil adds a refreshing, mildly sweet taste that lightens everything up.
How To Make This Grilled Hanger Steak
- Start by trimming away the membrane from the surface of the steak. In a bowl, whisk the olive oil, garlic, balsamic, soy sauce, salt, pepper, and honey until smooth.
- Place the hanger steak in a zip loc bag or bowl, and pour the sauce over top. Transfer the steak to the fridge to marinate for at least 12 hours or ideally overnight.
- In a bowl, stir together all of the ingredients for the tomato salad.
- Heat a barbecue to medium high heat. Shake off any excess marinade, place the steak on the hot grill, and cook for 3 minutes per side or until it has a perfect char and a nice crust and the internal temperature reads 130° Fahrenheit on a meat thermometer.
- Remove the steak from the grill, tent it with foil, and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Cut the entire steak into ¼-inch thick pieces, and arrange it on a plate or cutting board. Spoon the tomato salad over top, and garnish with additional basil leaves as desired. Enjoy warm!
You can find full step by step instructions in the recipe card below
How Long Should I Let The Beef Marinate
Make sure to allow for at least 2 hours for your beef to marinate. Otherwise, the liquid won’t soak in, and your steak is more likely to come out bland and tough. For the best results, I highly recommend letting your steak marinate for 12 hours or overnight. This ensures it has plenty of time to fully absorb the marinade and gives you the boldest, most delicious flavor! That said, you do not want to marinate beef longer than 24 hours, or it will break down too far, becoming soft and mushy.
How Long To Cook The Hanger Steak
Hanger steaks are relatively thin when compared to other cuts of beef. As a result, they tend to cook fairly quickly. Furthermore, hanger steaks are best when served medium-rare, meaning their cooking time is reduced even further. For this recipe, I recommend cooking just until the internal temperature reaches 130° Fahrenheit when measured with an instant-read thermometer. I find that this typically takes about 3 minutes per side, but this will vary depending on your grill, the size, and the thickness of your steak. So, keep a close eye on the meat, and adjust the grilling time as needed!
Can I Cook This Hanger Steak On The Stove Top
Yes, if you don’t have a grill or the weather does not permit cooking outside, this recipe works just as well with a cast iron skillet or a grill pan on the stove. Heat the pan over medium heat. Then, add a bit of oil or cooking spray. Arrange the steaks in a single layer, working in batches as needed, and cook for about 3 minutes per side or until they reach an internal temperature of 130° Fahrenheit. Then, let them rest before you slice and serve, and your hanger steak recipe will be just as delicious as the version on the grill!
Tips For Making This Hanger Steak
This recipe is virtually failproof as is, but I’ve got a few top tips and tricks to ensure you have amazing results every single time you cook!
- Pat the beef dry with a paper towel before you begin to help the marinade cling and create maximum flavor.
- Shake the steak around in the zip loc bag, ensuring it’s completely covered before placing it in the fridge to marinate.
- Unlike thicker steaks like T-bone steaks or a New York strip steak, hanger steak is a thinner steak best suited to being cooked at high temperatures for a short period of time. So, the best way to cook it is on a grill!
- For the perfect sear and a nice brown crust, allow plenty of time for your grill to heat. Then, keep a close eye on it as it cooks, and remove the steak from the heat as soon as the meat thermometer registers that it is cooked through.
- Let your perfectly cooked steak come to room temperature before placing it on the grill. This helps it cook more evenly so you’re not left with places that are undercooked and other bites that are overcooked and dry.
- Once cooked, let your steak rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving. This allows the natural juices to redistribute throughout the meat, ensuring each bite is tender, juicy, and full of flavor!
- When slicing, cut against the grain, or perpendicular to the muscle fibers to maximize tenderness and ensure a juicy steak.
What To Serve With This Hanger Steak
I love to serve this dish with some of my favorite sides like grilled vegetables, sauteed corn & zucchini, sauteed greens, or charred asparagus. To make it even more filling, I also add carb sources like rice, quinoa, or cooked pasta. However, it’s also great with cauliflower rice if you want to keep the recipe low carb. You can even add the steak and tomatoes to a bed of greens for a filling salad, or use it to make steak tacos or classic Philly cheesesteaks!
What About Leftovers
For the best results, I recommend storing the steak and salad separately. Leftover steak will stay fresh in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Or, you can freeze it for 3-4 months! The tomato salad will stay fresh in a separate airtight container for 1-2 days.
When you’re ready to eat, thaw frozen steak in the fridge overnight. Then, enjoy the steak and tomato salad together or on their own in salads, wraps, sandwiches, or rice bowls. They’re great cold. However, if you prefer your steak warm, you can heat it in a hot skillet with a little oil for a few minutes. Or, warm it in the microwave. Just keep in mind that it may become a little tough if heated for too long!
Here are a few more beef recipes that you might enjoy:
- Leftover Steak & Tomato Salad
- Garlic Herb Steak Bites with Mushrooms
- Chimichurri Steak Salad
- Black Pepper Beef & Onions
- Thai Beef Salad
- Crispy Chili Beef
If you make this Grilled Hanger Steak with Tomatoes let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think, or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Grilled Hanger Steak with Tomato Salad
Ingredients
Grilled Hanger Steak
- 2 hanger steaks (or flank or skirt steak)
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 2 tbsp coconut aminos (or soy sauce or tamari)
- ½ tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- ¼ cup honey
Tomato Salad
- 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- ⅔ cup jarred roasted red peppers cut into long strips ½ inch wide
- 2 tbsp pine nuts
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- ⅓ cup fresh basil cut into strips
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 clove garlic minced
Instructions
- Starting by trimming away the membrane from the surface of the steak. In a bowl whisk together the olive oil, minced garlic, balsamic, soy sauce, salt, pepper and honey. Place the hanger steak in a zip loc bag or bowl and pour the sauce overtop. Transfer to the fridge to marinate for a minimum of 12 hours but ideally overnight.
- In a bowl stir together all of the ingredients for the tomato salad and set aside while you cook the steak
- Heat a barbecue to medium high heat. When it is hot add the steak and cook for 3 minutes per side or until the internal temperature reads 130 degrees fahrenheit.
- Remove the hanger steak from the grill, tent with tin foil and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
- Cut the hanger steak into ¼ inch thick pieces and arrange them on a plate or cutting board. Spoon the tomato salad overtop and garnish with additional basil leaves as desired.
This post was published on July 16, 2024.
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