19 Grilled Steak Recipes You’ll Want to Make All Summer Long

Raising the steaks.

By
Rabi Abonour
Rabi Abonour is a contributing writer at Serious Eats.
Rabi Abonour
Rabi Abonour is a planner specializing in transportation, but has also been a photojournalist, writer, and editor for several online and print publications.
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Published June 28, 2025
Grilled skirt steak with mojo marinade served on a plate with lime wedges

Serious Eats / Julia Hartbeck

Whenever I catch a whiff of smoke on the Fourth of July, I'm sprinting to the grill with steaks in hand. In the past, I've stuck with a classic preparation: I season ribeye steaks with salt and pepper, then sear them over the grill to a perfect medium-rare. Though that's plenty delicious, there are many other wonderful ways to cook steak—and the grilled steak recipes below have me rethinking my holiday cookouts. Below, you'll find 19 of our favorite juicy, flavor-packed steaks to complete your Independence Day cookout, including Korean shortribs and grilled meats dipped in fragrant and fiery chile sauces. Have leftovers? We've got recipes that will help you transform yesterday's steak into something even better.

August 2019

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  • The Food Lab's Perfect Grilled Steaks

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    This is the only technique you need for exceptional grilled steaks. Start with a thick slab of beef—preferably the ribeye, which is surrounded by a swath of fat and a cap that makes it the juiciest, most flavorful piece of meat you'll find on any steak. Salt your steak, let it sit for at least 40 minutes, then cook it over a two-zone fire. Don't forget to let the meat rest for at least five minutes before cutting into it, which helps the steak retain its juices.

  • The Best Carne Asada

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    The best carne asada combines dried chiles, citrus, spices, and skirt steak, which is then grilled over ripping-hot heat. Our version is buttery, rich, and juicy, with a nice charred, smoky flavor from the grill.

  • Grilled Strip Steak With Creamy Yogurt Sauce and Tomato-Cucumber Salad

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    The problem with cutting steaks that are thick enough to grill properly is that each one often ends up too big for one person. Rather than cutting your steaks thinner, we recommend simply buying a thick steak and cutting it across the grain. Here, we grill strip steak using our basic two-zone fire technique, and serve it with a herbed yogurt sauce and a simple tomato-and-cucumber salad.

  • Steakhouse Kebabs

    Overhead view of Steakhouse Kebabs

    Serious Eats / Melati Citrawireja

    These kebabs give you a steakhouse on a stick by flavoring beef sirloin tips with a robust marinade of Worcestershire, soy sauce, lemon juice, mustard, and garlic, then skewering it with mushrooms and onions. We like sirloin for kebabs for the way the cut balances flavor, tenderness, and value.

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  • Grilled Skirt Steak Fajitas

    components of grilled skirt steak fajitas

    Melissa Hom

    Speaking of Tex-Mex, if you're grilling for more than a handful of people, it's hard to go wrong with fajitas—in this case, grilled skirt steak marinated with soy sauce, lime juice, canola oil, brown sugar, cumin, black pepper, chili powder, and garlic. Skirt steak is a thin cut, so you'll need to get the grill as hot as possible to char the outside before the meat overcooks. Serve with homemade guacamole and pico de gallo.

  • Mole-Crusted Fajitas

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    Joshua Bousel

    These fajitas pair mole-marinated skirt steak with an earthy ancho-raisin sauce. While it's a rewarding endeavor, making mole poblano from scratch typically takes an entire day and many ingredients, so no one will blame you for using a canned version here. We love skirt steak for fajitas, as its loose texture soaks up marinades wonderfully, but flap, flank, or hanger steak would also work here.

  • Skirt Steak With Warm Spicy Corn-and-Peach Salsa

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    Yasmin Fahr

    This recipe combines corn with peaches—another of my favorite grilling-season ingredients—to create a summery salsa that pairs perfectly with grilled skirt steak. The meat is flavored with a simple spice rub made with cumin, oregano, and cayenne. Like the steak taco recipe above, this one can also be made entirely indoors if you don't want to fire up the grill.

  • Grilled Garlic- and Herb-Marinated Hanger Steak

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Skirt steak is an excellent choice for grilling, but don't sleep on hanger steak—it has a similarly loose texture and a super-beefy flavor, with a mineral note that will please eaters who prefer their beef a little more assertive. Here, we marinate it with peppercorns, garlic cloves, parsley, and shallots before cooking it on a hot grill. Hanger steak gets inedibly rubbery past the medium stage, so be sure not to overcook it.

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  • Dijon-Marinated Grilled Skirt Steak

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    Vicky Wasik

    For this recipe, we turn to a French-inspired marinade made with spicy Dijon mustard, tart Champagne vinegar, and aromatic rosemary. The mustard and vinegar are both acidic enough to tenderize the steak nicely. Need a side dish to round out your steak dinner? Try serving this with a kale salad made with oven-dried grapes, walnuts, and creamy, salty-sweet blue cheese.

  • Santa Maria–Style Barbecue Tri-Tip

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Despite the name, Santa Maria–style barbecue is essentially a form of grilling. No low-and-slow cooking here. For the most traditional flavor, season the tri-tip with a garlicky rub and serve it with a tomato- and celery-based salsa. Tri-tip has a tapered shape that makes it challenging to cook evenly, so if you prefer your steak medium-rare, consider inviting over some friends who prefer theirs medium or well-done.

  • Isan-Style Sliced-Steak Salad

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    In the US, we typically think of salads as being made with greens, but in Thailand, a salad can be so much more than that. This northeastern Thai–inspired salad pairs sliced grilled steak with onions and tomatoes, then tosses it all in a fiery dressing made with pounded garlic and chilies, lime juice, and fish sauce. Making the dressing with a mortar and pestle might seem like too much work, but it is the absolute best way to get as much flavor from the aromatics as possible.

  • Grilled Skirt Steak With Mojo Marinade

    Grilled skirt steak with mojo marinade served on a plate with lime wedges

    Serious Eats / Julia Hartbeck

    The garlic and herbs in the last recipe might have sparked thoughts of mojo, and the citrusy, cilantro-scented Cuban sauce is, in fact, a great steak marinade. After removing the meat from the mojo, we reduce the marinade into a sauce on the stovetop, so nothing goes to waste.

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  • Thai-Style Marinated Flank Steak and Herb Salad

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    J. Kenji López-Alt

    Another Thai-style steak salad, this time flavored with a mixture of palm sugar (or brown sugar, if that's all you have), dried Thai chile flakes, fish sauce, garlic, and lime juice. We use the mix as both a marinade and a sauce for maximum flavor. Aside from the meat, the salad features mung bean sprouts, shallots, and an abundance of fresh herbs, including mint, cilantro, basil, and chives.

  • Grilled Jalapeño-Marinated Steak Sandwiches With Charred Onions and Cotija Mayo

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    Joshua Bousel

    If you're going to make a sandwich out of grilled steak, why not grill the rest of the ingredients while you're at it? Here, we use the fire not just to cook the beef, but to char the sweet onions and toast the baguette. Raw cilantro adds a touch of freshness, and a spicy, elotes-inspired Cotija mayo adds a creamy kick.

  • Grilled Steak, Avocado, and Spicy Crema Sandwiches

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    María del Mar Cuadra

    This comforting sandwich pairs grilled steak with creamy avocado (mashed with cilantro, lime juice and zest, scallions, and garlic) and hot sauce–spiked crema. The steak is seasoned with nothing more than salt and pepper before it's charred on a hot grill, and it takes just about eight minutes to cook the meat.

  • Tender Grilled Short Ribs

    close up of grilled short ribs cut into slices

    Melissa Hom

    Short ribs are most often found braised on American menus, but ask anyone from Argentina or Korea, and they'll tell you that this cut is best suited for the grill. Because of their high fat content, short ribs are fairly forgiving to cook, but you should aim for medium-rare—that will get the fat hot enough to start melting, but not so hot that it melts out of the meat and into the fire.

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  • Argentinean-Style Grilled Short Ribs With Chimichurri

    The Meat Goes On
    Photograph: Joshua Bousel

    To take your grilled short ribs in an Argentine direction, serve them with chimichurri, a bright sauce made with parsley, garlic, and olive oil. For this recipe, you want "flanken-style" short ribs, which are cut across the bone so that each piece contains about four or five bone segments.

  • Muffuletta-Style Grilled Stuffed Flank Steak

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    Serious Eats / J. Kenji Lopez-Alt

    If grilling is your art form, this impressive rolled flank steak will have your guests awe-inspired. Here, flank steak is butterflied and stuffed with Italian cold cuts, gooey cheeses, and zippy condiments, then rolled into a tight pinwheel for speedy grilling and maximum juiciness.

  • Crying Tiger (Thai-Style Grilled Steak With Dry Chili Dipping Sauce)

    Crying Tiger (Thai-style grilled steak) on a green ceramic plate, with a small ceramic bowl holding the dry chile dipping sauce). On the periphery is a small bowl of white rice.

    Serious Eats / Julia Hartbeck

    Thai restaurants stateside often reinterpret this dish as a grilled beef salad tossed in dressing. But traditionally, the steak is served on its own, accompanied by a dried chile dipping sauce meant to accent— not overpower—its deep, smoky aroma from the grill.

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