grilled steak caprese

summer summer summer summer!

Jun 05, 2022

Click here for the WTC recipe index and scroll to the bottom of this email/post for a printer-friendly version of today’s recipe.

School’s out for summer!

Mattis’ last day of school was on Friday, so summer has officially begun at our house. Last summer I put a lot of pressure on myself to have *summer fun* every single day, and, let me just say, it didn’t happen. AND it was unnecessarily stressful.

So this summer, I’m making a simple plan to do something fun and new and summery (go to a new ice cream shop! bring a dinner picnic and build sand castles at the beach!) once a week, and relieving all other self-imposed BS cool summer mom stress. Anyone want to share some easy summer activity wins in the comments section?!

president of the caprese fan club

I just scoured the WTC archives because I cannot believe that this is the first caprese salad to appear on What To Cook.

I *love* a caprese salad. I just counted, and I've made six in the past two weeks alone. I make them all summer long, on repeat, in different forms. This burrata caprese is insanely good, a peach caprese with perfect summer tomatoes and peaches is unexpected and fantastic, the traditional route with big slabs of heirloom tomato and fresh mozzarella can’t be beat, and today's rendition that brings grilled corn into the mix is pretty damn unstoppable.

inspo from 2006

The inspiration for today's salad comes from one of my best friend's mamas, Suzy. I went to boarding school in New Jersey and the Morris family lived locally — and they very much became my surrogate family. It feels weird to even call Suzy my friend's mom because she is really a second mother to me, and to many of her four daughters' other friends, too.

Suzy is the OG meal planner. She has four daughters who each had their own crazy sports and school schedules in high school, and she balanced it all with such grace. Now that I’m a mom, I recognize the insane amount of hard work and juggling that went into making it all look so easy.

Suzy had a rotating menu of recipes that she always came back to, including penne alla vodka (using store-bought sauce, go Suzy) and my personal favorite: grilled steak with caprese salad. Except when we were 15, we called it tomato mozzarella salad. Same same.

The combination of the grilled steak with the acidic tomatoes and creamy mozzarella truly makes for the perfect bite of food. We’re adding grilled corn to the mix because… I can’t not. When corn is in season, it’s all I can think about. Feel free to omit it and add a diced avocado instead (or in addition!).

The grilled bread is perfect for scooping up the salad and its juices — or even making little steak bite sandwiches. Choose your adventure! Be free! It’s summertime!

grilled steak caprese

~45 minutes

I wrote these two ingredient lists separately, as opposed to one big recipe, because I feel confident that you’ll want to re-make the salad as a side dish for various meals all summer long!

Grilled Flat Iron Steak

Serves 4 to 6

Tools:

Large plate
Clean towel/paper towels
Grill or grill pan or cast iron skillet
Meat thermometer

Ingredients:

Note: Have a favorite steak rub? Skip the rub below and just coat your steaks in that instead!
4 teaspoons kosher salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons onion powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 flat iron steaks
Olive oil or other neutral oil with a high smoke point

Corn and Tomato Caprese

Serves 4 to 6

Tools:

Ingredients:

1 pound tomatoes (cherry tomatoes are best right now; heirloom or beefsteak or early girls will be better later in the summer), halved (if using cherry) or sliced (if using a larger tomato)
1/4 medium red onion, thinly sliced
8 ounces mozzarella (you can either cube up a ball of fresh mozzarella or get a container of ciliegine — the little balls — and cut them in half)
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil, plus more for garnish
1 garlic clove, grated
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
Kosher salt and pepper
4 ears of corn (preferably white), husks removed
1 loaf good sourdough bread

On a large plate, combine 4 teaspoons kosher salt, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 2 teaspoons smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, 2 teaspoons onion powder, and 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Stir until well combined. Pat your steaks dry with a clean towel, then drag them through the rub and use your hands to really rub it in evenly. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes. If you have time, let it sit uncovered in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Leaving them uncovered will allow the steak to dry out (in a good way), which will help you achieve those great grill marks!

Preheat grill to medium on one burner and medium-high on the others.

While the grill is preheating, start making the caprese.

In a large bowl, toss together 1 pound tomatoes (halved/sliced), 1/4 of a medium red onion thinly sliced, 8 ounces mozzarella (cubed or halved), 1/2 cup thinly sliced basil, 1 grated garlic clove, 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Set aside while you grill.

Coat the 4 flat iron steaks and 4 ears of corn with a light coating of oil.

Grill the corn over the medium burner, rotating it every few minutes as it browns. It should take 6 to 8 minutes total.

At the same time, grill the steaks over the medium-high burner, flipping after 5 minutes and cooking on the second side for another 4 to 5 minutes, until 130°F internally for medium-rare, 140°F for medium, or 150°F for medium-well.

Drizzle the sliced sourdough bread with oil. Grill over the medium burner until golden-brown grill marks appear. Just a couple minutes! Watch them closely — bread loves catching on fire when left unattended!

When the corn is cool enough to handle, cut the kernels off the cob (lay the corn down on the cutting board to do so without the kernels flying away!) and add them to the caprese bowl. Toss to combine, then taste and adjust salt, oil, and vinegar to taste.

Thinly slice the steaks and fan them out on a serving platter. Spoon the caprese over top. (Or keep them separate if you don’t plan on eating everything tonight — the leftovers will keep better separate.) Garnish with more thinly sliced basil. Plate the grilled sourdough alongside the steak caprese.

Enjoy! Best served with slices of watermelon or ice cream sandwiches for dessert.

Notes:

Remember to clean your grill and fill the propane tank!!! If this will be the first time you’ve grilled in a while, click here and read the intro. Note that you DON’T need to oil your grill grates since we’re coating the steaks and corn with a very light layer of oil.
Once it’s clean… Work some other grilled WTC meals into your meal plan for the coming weeks! Like… The Most Perfect Grilled Chicken, Marinated Grilled Veggies with Burrata, and Grilled Pickle-Brined Sandwiches.
I don’t have a grill: If you have a grill pan, that’d be my plan B. If not, use a cast iron skillet! In either case, cook the corn first over medium heat (make sure the skillet or pan is piping hot first!), then move onto the steak after you’ve cranked the heat up to medium-high. Finish with the bread. Cook times will be the same as the grill! Keep that meat thermometer nearby as you’re cooking and pull the steaks when they reach your desired doneness.
Vegetarian: Cauliflower steaks! Or portobello mushroom caps! Or ditch the “steak” theme altogether and add a can of drained and rinsed chickpeas to your caprese salad. Delish!
DF/GF: If you’re cutting dairy, try slices of firm tofu. It offers nearly the same consistency as mozzarella. Or, of course, you could just omit the cheese. To avoid gluten, swap sourdough out for your favorite gf bread.
Feeding kids: My kids get really frazzled when I try to feed them salad-y things where there are many ingredients all mixed together. So for this meal I serve them steak (cut into small bites), corn on the cob with butter, and mozzarella balls — all separate. I try to sneak some tomatoes onto their plates too but… what’s the point.
Leftovers are a great thing: This whole meal will keep well for a few days covered in the fridge! Like I said above, store the salad and steak separately. If you didn’t go the steak bite sandwich route the first go round (or even if you did!), it would make a truly delectable lunch.

Substitutions:

Kosher salt: Sea salt, but use less
Brown sugar: Omit if needed
Smoked paprika: Sweet paprika or chili powder
Garlic powder: Extra onion powder
Onion powder: Extra garlic powder
Black pepper: White pepper or roasted red pepper flakes
Flat iron steak: Skirt steak or flank steak are the best swaps if you can’t find flat iron. If you’re not into steak, shrimp or chicken would both be delish with this rub and salad! For shrimp, grill them on skewers. See “vegetarian” note above for plant-based options.
Olive oil: Another neutral oil with a high smoke point
Tomatoes: Any kind of ripe tomatoes work! You could also go a sweeter route with some sliced fresh melon or quartered figs.
Red onion: Red onion’s best for this! But another onion would be fine if needed — even thinly sliced green onion.
Mozzarella: Burrata or feta
Basil: Mint or parsley or another leafy herb that you love!
Garlic clove: A cube of frozen minced garlic, a teaspoon of pre-minced garlic, or 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Extra-virgin olive oil: Olive oil or another neutral oil
Red wine vinegar: White wine vinegar, apple cider vinegar, or another light-colored vinegar
Honey: Maple syrup or sugar
Corn: Frozen corn works — just cook it before you mix it in with the rest of the ingredients. Another option would be diced avocado! Or just omit the corn (but seriously… it’s so good).
Sourdough bread: Any loaf of bread