This Black and Blue Steak Salad is a satisfying and delicious meal that comes together in under 30 minutes. This salad pairs the richness of a tender steak with fresh, juicy tomatoes, crunchy romaine lettuce and tangy pickled onions. To top it all off, the creamy blue cheese dressing brings everything together for a savory mouth-watering meal that’s so impressive.
A great steak salad recipe is just too delicious. It’s something that’s easy to whip up on a weeknight or perfect to serve at a dinner party to wow your guests. A Black and Blue Steak Salad can even be the perfect way to use up leftover steak—the options are endless!
When it comes to building a steak and blue cheese salad, we’re immediately inspired by a delicious steakhouse salad, with fresh romaine on the bottom, cherry tomatoes, and a tangy and creamy blue cheese dressing, of course!
With just 30 minutes and a handful of ingredients you can have this flavorful dinner salad recipe on the table in no time. We are giving you all of our top steak tips so you are set for success in your kitchen.
Table of Contents
Why this Recipe Works
- 30 minute meal. It’s easy to prepare, anyone in the family can help! Cook everything fresh or use leftovers to make a simple meal.
- Perfect to customize with different flavors. We added pickled red onions to our salad, but add whatever you like! Croutons, fresh herbs, olives, the options are endless.
- Use your favorite steak. We love using really any cut here, our favorites include ribeye, NY strip, top sirloin, and skirt. Look for the cut of meat that’s on sale too, a bonus tip for this recipe! For more info, read our steak guide.
- Add seasonal produce. Whatever the season, add your favorite roasted seasonal veggies like squash and Brussels sprouts in the fall, and asparagus and radishes in the spring.
Lauren’s Tip
Feel free to use your favorite cut of steak here. We love a ribeye, NY Strip, or skirt. Just be sure to slice the meat against the grain before serving for the most tender bite.
Ingredients
For the Steak:
There is no single best cut of steak to use for this salad—the best cut is one you like and can find. Below are a few cuts we recommend along with guides on how to cook time
- Top Sirloin (here are how to cook top sirloin). This cut is beautifully marbled and flavorful.
- Skirt or Flank (check out how to cook skirt steak). Flank is also quick-cooking, affordable and has a great beefy flavor.
- Ribeye (we have all the tips for how to cook a ribeye perfectly). An expensive and decadent cut with pockets of fat.
- NY Strip (the perfect cut for reverse searing). A very tender and flavorful cut. Middle-of-the-road on price.
To Make the Blue Cheese Dressing:
- Greek yogurt: for the best flavor and creaminess, use whole milk Greek yogurt.
- Blue cheese: buy a chunk of your favorite blue cheese and crumble it into the dressing. Opt for a firmer, drier blue cheese as opposed to a creamy, soft one. The drier the cheese, the smaller the crumbles will be.
- Buttermilk: this adds the characteristic tang that you love about blue cheese dressing!
- Vinegar: keep it simple here—just use white vinegar. There are so many bold flavors in this dressing that the vinegar is simply there for tang.
- Worcestershire sauce: just a dash is needed to enhance the savoriness of the dressing.
To Assemble the Salad:
- Lettuce: I prefer hearts of romaine for this salad. It’s sturdy and crisp, perfect for holding up to a creamy dressing and hearty steak. You can also use chopped iceberg lettuce.
- Cherry tomatoes: sweet cherry tomatoes add texture and brightness to the salad. Feel free to use whatever tomatoes you have on hard.
- Pickled red onions: a classic addition to a steakhouse salad! They’re easy to make and can be stored in the fridge for a few weeks.
- Blue cheese: in addition to the blue cheese dressing, add some large crumbles of blue cheese to the salad for even more flavor.
- Chives: you can also use scallions, but I like the soft flavor of chives here.
How to Make Black and Blue Salad
All of these guidelines are for a 1-inch thick steak. Anything thicker will require a longer cook time and anything thinner will require a shorter cook time. Be sure to use an instant-read thermometer to achieve desired doneness.
For the Grilled Steak:
Grilling the beef is one of the most popular methods for it’s quickness and ease.
- Start by preheating the grill, with all burners on, for about 10 minutes.
- Then turn all but the main burner off and cook the steak over the main burner for about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare, or 5 minutes per side for medium.
- Allow the steak to rest before slicing and assembling the salad.
For the Blue Cheese Dressing:
- While the steak rests, prepare the dressing by combining Greek yogurt, blue cheese, buttermilk, vinegar and Worcestershire in a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
To Assemble the Salad:
- In a large serving bowl or on a platter, combine the lettuce, tomatoes, pickled onions, blue cheese crumbles and chives.
- Slice steak against grain and arrange over salad. Drizzle the blue cheese dressing over top and serve.
Pro Tips and variations
- Swap the dressing. We love the blue cheese dressing with this salad but if you prefer a vinaigrette, then try out classic vinaigrette recipe. Add extra blue cheese crumbles on top of the salad.
- Cook the steak to the right temperature. This is the most important thing when cooking beef, for medium rare use a meat thermometer and cook until 125ºF.
- Swap the steak for a different protein. In keeping with the black and blue theme, swap the grilled steak out for Blackened Salmon or Blackened Fish.
- Add some crunch. If you love a crunchy crouton, consider adding some homemade croutons to the mix.
More Methods for Cooking Steak
Grilled is definitely our go-to cooking method for this recipe but we also wanted to give you a guide for other ways to cook the steak too!
- Pan-Seared: This method can be smoky, so make sure you have your vent fan on or windows open. Preheat a cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes. Add a splash of vegetable oil and cook the meat over medium-high heat for about 6 minutes total (3 minutes per side) for the perfect medium-rare, or 8 minutes total for medium.
- Broiled: Broiling steak is a great indoor alternative to grilling. A gas broiler achieves the best results, but an electric one will also work. Broil the meat on a baking sheet set as close to the heating element as possible. Broil for 2–5 minutes per side until desired doneness is reached. (All broilers are different, so use an instant-read thermometer to determine doneness.)
- Reverse Seared: Reverse Searing steak is one of the most effective methods for achieving a perfectly-cooked steak. The method starts by slow-cooking the meat in the oven before searing the sides until golden and crisp.
- Air-Fried: This method is so easy and results in an evenly cooked steak with a nice crisp crust. Preheat your air fryer to 400ºF. Cook the meat for 8 to 12 minutes or until desired doneness is reached.
Storage Instructions
The best way to store any leftovers for this steak salad are to keep all of the components separate in different containers. This keeps the flavors fresh and prevents the lettuce from becoming soggy.
Confused on the best way to reheat steak? Well you’re in luck! We have the pro guide to how to warm leftovers through without overcooking.
FAQs
Thinly slice any leftovers and pile them into a sandwich! Use our Italian Tri-Tip Sandwich as a guide. You can also dice up the meat and reheat it gently in some butter. Serve the steak bites with mashed potatoes.
We love this Chive Butter recipe as well as this Garlic Rosemary Butter recipe.
The best salad is with a crunchy fresh lettuce base topped with your favorite vegetables of the season. Use a tangy or creamy dressing and each bite will be so delicious.
More Steak Recipes to Try
Steak and Blue Cheese Salad
Description
Ingredients
Steak
- 1 (1-inch thick) ribeye, NY strip or top sirloin steak
- Kosher salt and black pepper
Blue Cheese Dressing
- 1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
- ½ cup (2 ounces) crumbled blue cheese
- ⅓ cup buttermilk
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salad
- 5 cups chopped hearts of romaine
- 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes
- ½ cup pickled red onions
- ½ cup blue cheese crumbles
- ¼ cup chopped chives
Instructions
Steak (Airfryer)
- Preheat airfryer to 400ºF.
- Pat steak dry with paper towels then season with 1 teaspoon salt.
- Place steak in air fryer basket and cook until browned and an instant read thermometer inserted in the center registers 120–125ºF for medium-rare or 130–135ºF for medium, 8–12 minutes.
- Transfer steak to a plate and tent with foil; let rest 5 minutes.
Steak (Pan Sear)
- Preheat a large cast-iron skillet over high for 5 minutes.
- Pat steak dry with paper towels, then season with 1 teaspoon salt.
- Reduce heat to medium-high. Add a splash of vegetable oil and swirl to coat the pan. Place steak in skillet. Cook until charred and beads of moisture begin to form around edges of steak, about 3 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center registers 125ºF for medium-rare, about 3 more minutes. For medium cook to an internal temperature is 135ºF, about 4 minutes per side.
- Transfer steak to a clean plate, tent loosely with foil or parchment paper and let rest 10 minutes.
Steak (Grill)
- Turn all burners to high, cover, and let grill preheat for about 15 minutes. Brush grill grate clean.
- Pat steak dry with paper towels, then season with 1 teaspoon salt and ½ teaspoon pepper.
- When ready to cook, keep primary burner on high and turn other burners off.
- Place steak over hot part of grill and cook until beginning to char and beads of moisture appear on edges of steak, 5–6 minutes. Flip steak and continue to cook until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center registers 125ºF for medium-rare, about 5 minutes.
- Transfer steak to a clean plate, tent loosely with foil or parchment paper and let rest 10 minutes.
Dressing
- Whisk together yogurt, blue cheese, buttermilk, vinegar, Worcestershire, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper until thoroughly combined; set aside.
Salad
- Combine romaine, tomatoes, pickled onions, blue cheese crumbles, and chives in a large serving bowl.
- Slice steak against grain and arrange over salad.
- Drizzle dressing over top and serve.
- Season salad with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
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Video
Notes
Nutrition
This post is written and created in partnership with the Iowa Beef Council. As always the thoughts, opinions, recipe, photos and content are all my own.
