This fresh Napa cabbage slaw is topped with chili and garlic marinated broiled flank steak. If you are a broiled steak newbie this post is for you. I’ll share my top expert tips to cook the flank steak under the broiler perfectly.

the steak on top of the slaw with chili sauce on top

Why We Love Broiled Flank Steak with Napa Slaw

When I went to the grocery store the other day in search of some inspiration, I ended up buying this beautiful Napa cabbage, fresh mint, and flank steak. Normally when I have Napa cabbage I make this Napa Cabbage Recipe. But I was really in the mood for a big salad with protein on top.

This resulting recipe for broiled flank steak and salad turned out so flavorful, and the steak is perfectly juicy and tender. So I knew I had to share it with you. I ended up adding chopped peanuts, carrots, mint, onion, and a deliciously zest lime-maple-sesame dressing to the Napa cabbage. It’s simply divine. I could in all honestly just eat it on its own.

What makes it work so well is the pairing of ingredients. The freshness of the Napa slaw tastes perfect with juicy broiled steak.

You may also like our Flank Steak Tacos or festive Holiday Slaw made with Napa Cabbage.

the slaw in a bowl with the dressing on hand and a bottle of sriracha

Ingredients For Cabbage Salad with Broiled Flank Steak

  • Flank Steak: One of our top choices for beef because it is leaner, very flavorful and easy to cook.
  • Chili Sauce: Such as sriracha or sambal olek
  • Tamari: Tamari is wheat free soy sauce and is used for the flank steak marinade. Use soy sauce if that’s what you have handy.
  • White vinegar: For the marinade. You can use rice vinegar or red wine vinegar instead.
  • Cloves of garlic: The flank steak marinade also has three cloves of chopped garlic added
  • Napa Cabbage: The base of the slaw is Napa cabbage. If you happen to have another type of cabbage, that will work fine- just chop it as thin as possible. Finely shredded Romaine lettuce also would work.
  • Carrots: to add more veggies to the slaw
  • Mint: This is the magic of this recipe! It adds so much freshness to a mid winter salad.
  • Peanuts: It’s best if you can use unsalted peanuts, chopped.
  • Red onion or scallions: For a hit of allium flavor in the slaw
  • Dressing: The dressing is a combo of fresh lime juice, extra-virgin olive oil, a little maple syrup, toasted sesame oil, salt and white pepper
pouring the dressing over the salad

How to Make Flank Steak and Cabbage Salad

Step 1: Make marinade

Combine the tamari, white vinegar, garlic, sambal olek in a large re-sealable bag. Add the steak, pressing extra air out, and sealing bag. Coat the steak in the marinade and refrigerate for 12 to 20 hours.

Step 2: Broil steak

Arrange an oven rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat the broiler. Coat a broiler pan with cooking spray. Drain steak, pat dry with paper towels and discard the marinade. Place the steak on the broiler pan and broil just below the heat for 3 minutes (watch oven carefully). Turn the pan 180 degrees and continue cooking until the meat starts to char in areas. Flip the meat over and cook under the heat, rotating once for an additional 4 to 6 minutes. Let the meat rest at least 5 minutes before slicing against the grain.

Step 3: Make Napa Cabbage Salad

Combine the cabbage, carrots, mint, peanuts and onion in a large bowl. Combine the lime juice, olive oil, maple syrup, sesame oil, salt and white pepper in a jar. Seal and shake the jar. Pour dressing over the slaw and toss to combine. Serve the slaw topped with the steak.

the steak resting on a black cookie sheet

Serving Suggestions

This steak and salad needs little accompaniment, though if you’re wanting some sort of carby side I would suggest Scallion Pancakes from Trader Joes warmed up. You can wrap the steak and slaw up in them or just cut them into wedges and serve with a little dipping sauce.

This entree salad would also be good with Cold Sesame Noodles (which are great made ahead) on the side or hot cooked jasmine rice.

the steak and salad

Variations To Try

  • Grilled Steak: You can also grill the flank steak, weather permitting. Preheat grill to medium-high heat. Remove steak from the marinade and discard any remaining marinade. Oil grill rack and add flank steak. Grill steak, 5 to 7 minutes per side for medium rare, 6 to 7 for medium and 8 minutes per side for medium-well. Let rest 10 minutes while preparing slaw.
  • Chicken Thighs: This marinade works with chicken thighs too. Use boneless skinless thighs for a quick-cooking white meat alternative to beef.
  • Cilantro: If you don’t love the mint in this cilantro is a great alternative
  • Don’t love spice? Use our Teriyaki marinade instead of the Garlic chili marinade in this recipe.

Make Ahead and Leftovers

  • This salad can be prepped up to three days ahead. Keep dressing separate in a jar and toss just before serving.
  • The marinade can be mixed three days ahead but the steak cannot marinate for longer than 20 hours or the outer layer will get tough and dry.
  • The salad does not keep well and will get wilted after it is tossed. Keep leftover steak in an airtight container up to three days. Enjoy the steak cold.
the steak sliced on a black cookie sheet

Expert Tips For Broiled Flank Steak

Why you should preheat the broiler:

I know some people say you don’t need to preheat a broiler, but I have found that this is untrue with trial and error. It doesn’t take long, only a minute or two but is important to give the oven time to warm up to get consistent and predictable results.

Do you have to leave the oven door slightly open?

Many modern ovens do not require you to leave the door ajar because they have fans and venting that prevent the build-up of too much steam or heat. Definitely check your user manual to see if that is necessary! If you have a fume hood use it while broiling since it will make a lot of smoke.

Why is it important to pat meat dry before cooking:

Get rid of extra moisture on the meat before you broil so that it doesn’t steam and you can get good browning of the meat. You can get rid of the moisture by draining the meat well then patting dry with paper towels.

How long do you have to rest broiled meat?

Make sure to rest the meat for 10 minutes or longer. If you cut into the meat right after cooking, all the juices will flow out. Letting it sit for a little allows the juices to redistribute evenly and lets the meat fibers relax.

How to tell if the meat is done:

Broiling cooks the steak a lot faster than you may think. Furthermore, you may not get as much browning as you are expecting, so don’t rely on the look of the meat. Use an instant-read thermometer to check for doneness, or if you are an experienced cook you can always do the poke test. For medium-rare flank steak, pull the steak out of the oven when the internal temperature is 135 degrees F. As it rests it will continue to cook.

Why should you use a broiler pan?

Use a two level broiler pan to keep the meat out of the juice and avoid overcooking. This will encourage browning as opposed to stewing. These pans often come with the oven. To make clean up easier, layer foil in the bottom layer then place the upper layer with holes in it on top. Coat that with cooking spray or brush with a fine layer of oil so the meat will not stick.

Where should you position the oven rack?

First, position the oven rack according to what you’re cooking. For melting cheese, position the rack in the upper third, but not in the top position. For browning meat, move the rack so that the meat is just below the heat. Make sure to account for the height of the broiler pan.

Other cooking tips:

If your broiler has one central element, you will need to rotate the food so it will cook evenly. That means taking the pan and turning it around in the oven. Think of this sort of like a quarter turn on the grill. If your pan won’t fit both ways, just rotate the steak with tongs. You will also need to flip the meat over. Again this will ensure even cooking.

More Healthy Steak Recipes To Try

The steak on top of the Napa salad

Additional Cabbage Recipes To Try

At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie

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the steak on top of the Napa slaw

Broiled Flank Steak with Fresh Slaw


5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 2 reviews

  • Author: Katie Webster
  • Total Time: 12 hours 40 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x

Description

This fresh Napa cabbage slaw is topped with chili and garlic marinated broiled flank steak. IF you are a broiled steak newbie this post is for you. I’ll share my top expert tips to cook the flank steak under the broiler perfectly.


Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 1/2 cup tamari
  • 2 tablespoons white vinegar
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon sriracha or Sambal Olek
  • 1 grass-fed flank steak trimmed of fat (1.5 or 1.75 pounds)
  • 1 head Napa Cabbage, finely sliced (10 to 12 cups)
  • 1/2 cup shredded carrots
  • 1/2 cup chopped mint
  • 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
  • 1/4 cup chopped red onion or scallions
  • 3 tablespoons lime juice
  • 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, dark or amber
  • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Instructions

  1. Combine tamari, white vinegar, garlic, sambal olek in a large re-sealable bag. Add steak, press extra air out, and seal bag. Coat steak in the marinade and refrigerate for 12 to 20 hours.
  2. Arrange oven rack in upper third of the oven. Preheat broiler. Coat a broiler pan with cooking spray.
  3. Drain steak, pat dry with paper towels and discard marinade. Place steak on the broiler pan and broil just below the heat for 3 minutes. Turn pan 180 degrees and continue cooking until the meat starts to char in areas. Flip meat over and cook under the heat, rotating once for an additional 4 to 6 minutes. Let meat rest at least 5 minutes before slicing against the grain.
  4. Combine cabbage, carrots, mint, peanuts and onion in a large bowl. Combine lime juice, olive oil, maple syrup, sesame oil, salt and white pepper in a jar. Seal and shake jar. Pour over the slaw and toss to combine.
  5. Serve the slaw topped with the steak.

Notes

Cooking Tip:

Get rid of extra moisture on the meat before you broil so that it doesn’t steam and you can get good browning of the meat. Read more about moisture and browning here. You can get rid of the moisture by draining the meat well then patting dry with paper towels.

  • Prep Time: 40 minutes
  • Cook Time: 7 minutes
  • Category: Entree
  • Method: Broiling
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 4 ounces steak 1 1/2 cup slaw
  • Calories: 434
  • Sugar: 7 g
  • Sodium: 741 mg
  • Fat: 19 g
  • Saturated Fat: 4 g
  • Carbohydrates: 13 g
  • Fiber: 2 g
  • Protein: 40 g