i’ve got another simple dinner recipe for you to add to your weekly rotation! this skirt steak with a lemony couscous and cucumber salad is easy enough to make on a weeknight for your kids, but special enough to enjoy on the weekend too. this is not my original recipe, but i modified it a bit and i loved it so much i thought you needed it in your life too!

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i love that skirt steak is usually less expensive than most steak (i mean is anything inexpensive these days though?) but the marinade gives it so much flavor. the original recipe calls for grilling the steak– but if you aren’t grilling, i cooked my steak on a cast iron pan and it was still so delicious!

i would definitely make this again on the grill, it’d be such a great summery dinner to eat outside. i would say it’s easy enough to make on a weeknight too (as long as you can take the time to marinate before it’s go time!)

i’ve actually been getting more into marinating recipes for weeknights because i love that i can prep it before picking arlo up from school and then have it ready to cook when i get home with him (which always takes muuuch longer than i anticipate).

another modification of the original recipe is i didn’t personally care for the couscous salad as much when it was cold, i thought it tasted way better when i made it at warm or at room temperature, so i want you to know that you can (and i guess technically are supposed to) refrigerate the salad, so if you want cold couscous you do you. but me?! i like it warmmmm 🙂

skirt steak with lemon herby couscous salad

you can grill or pan sear your steak, but this is such an easy way to make your skirt steak so flavorful!

recipe adapted from the wandering chickpea

(and her photos are so much lovelier than mine!)

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Ingredients

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, plus more for serving
1 tbsp honey
4 garlic cloves minced
1 1/2 tsp dijon mustard
1 tsp dried oregano
1 3/4 tsp kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 lbs skirt steak
flaky sea salt

Lemon herby couscous salad

1 cup dry israeli couscous (pearled)
1 cucumber chopped
2 scallions chopped
1/4 cup fresh dill finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh parsley finely chopped
1/8 cup fresh mint finely chopped
1/4 cup crumbled feta (optional)

Instructions

whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, honey, garlic, dijon mustard, oregano, salt and black pepper. place the skirt steak in a shallow dish and pour over half the marinade, turning the pieces so they are fully coated. cover with plastic wrap and marinate for 30-45 minutes at room temperature or up to 2 hours in the fridge. allow the steak to come to room temperature before cooking.
while the steak marinates, cook the couscous according to the package instructions. drain the couscous into a colander, rinse under cold water to cool, let drain, and pat dry. toss with the remaining marinade, cucumber, scallions, dill, parsley, mint, (and feta if using). season with salt and pepper to taste.
preheat the grill to medium-high heat (about 450°-500° F) or get your cast iron pan nice and hot on high heat. cook the steak for 3-4 minutes per side or until cooked to your liking. let rest for 10 minutes before slicing against the grain. sprinkle with flaky sea salt and serve with a generous squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Notes

we aren’t much of a cheese family, so i didn’t use feta! but feta or a non-dairy alternative would be great here if you’re into that kind of thing.

the original recipe calls for refrigerating the couscous salad but i really preferred it at room temp! totally up to you.

next time i will make it herbier, i love an herby minty salad with mediterranean food, so i’ll definitely make it more like hers in the pictures haha – but i loved it and i hope you love it too!