Southwestern Steak Salad and Dressing

southwestern steak salad

Summer time = Big Ol’ Salad time!

And grilling season!

So why not indulge in a steak salad loaded with veggies and a perfectly grilled steak and a delicious homemade southwestern dressing!

The nice thing is you can add whatever veggies you like or want to throw on the grill. We usually grill mushrooms and red bell peppers and now corn is in season so go ahead and grill some of that too.  

We love salads around here.  Such a great way to get lots of protein and dietary fiber in one meal.  My faves are Salad Nicosia and Greek Salad.  Buffalo Chicken Salad rocks and so does the Fried Chicken Salad with Ranch Yogurt Dressing.

Whatever your heart desires. You can’t really go wrong with a steak salad.

Slad Prep for Steak Salad

Make a Simple Southwestern Vinaigrette

I like to make a really simple vinaigrette with pretty clean ingredients:

It goes so well with all the “Southwestern” types of veggies like avocado, corn, black beans, carrots… but if I’ve got some extra broccoli, asparagus or cabbage I’ll add that to it as well.  

You know, eat the rainbow + steak!

Just pile it high with all those nutritional goodies and sources of dietary fiber to feed our gut bacteria the good stuff.

And a lovely steak! You need a steak for a steak salad. We usually buy grass-fed sirloin but whatever you like will work.  

Since we live in an apartment and aren’t allowed to have a real grill, we usually grill the steaks indoors on a cast iron grill pan.  Set the oven to 400 degrees.  First you want to heat the grill pan on the stovetop so you can sear the steaks.  Then transfer to the oven to finish cooking.  

Or you can reverse sear your steaks.  Cook on low temp in the oven then finish off by searing on the stove.  

If you’ve got an outdoor grill, you know what to do! 🙂

Lime Pepper marinated beef fajitas

Want More Recipes Like Southwestern Steak Salad?

Southwestern Steak Salad | Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free

Summer time is perfect for grilling meat and veggies for a lovely, nutritious and delicious salad dressed with a homemade Southwestern vinaigrette.

Course Salad
Cuisine American
Keyword beef, homemade salad dressing, salad, southwestern steak salad
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 2
Author Deana Larkin Evans

Ingredients

Fajita Seasoning

  • 2 tsp chili powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • 1 tsp organic raw cane sugar
  • 1/2 tsp onion powder
  • 1/2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 tsp cumin

Southwestern Vinaigrette

  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 tbsp red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 + tsp fajita seasoning
  • 1/4 tsp light agave nectar

Southwestern Steak Salad

  • grass-fed sirloin steaks
  • red leaf lettuce
  • red bell pepper
  • mushrooms
  • cherry tomatoes
  • carrots
  • sweet corn
  • Persian cucumbers
  • green onions
  • cilantro
  • cooked black beans
  • avocado

Instructions

  1. Mix together the ingredients for the fajita seasoning and store in an air-tight spice jar or container.

  2. Mix together the red wine vinegar and olive oil. Start by adding 1/4 teaspoon fajita seasoning and 1/4 teaspoon light agave nectar. Whisk together and taste. Continue adding fajita seasoning and agave until you reach a preferred level of spice.

  3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

  4. Season the steak with a drizzle of olive oil (or ghee), salt and pepper. Heat a cast iron skillet or grill pan over medium high heat. Sear the steak for 2-3 minutes per side then place in the oven to finish cooking to desired doneness. Set aside and let rest before slicing.

  5. Wash and rinse the veggies before prepping. I like to roast the red bell pepper and mushrooms in the oven with a little olive oil, salt and pepper.

  6. Divide the lettuce, veggies and black beans in two large bowls. Pour the vinaigrette over the salads then add the beef. Enjoy your nutritious bowl of delicious!

Recipe Notes

Make sure your spices are gluten-free and preferably organic.

Deana Larkin Evans

You get one life - do your best to ENJOY IT! So hi, I'm Deana. This food blog is all about cooking wholesome real food and developing gluten-free recipes for some of our favorite comfort foods. I had to start eating gluten-free in 2010, then cut dairy and casein (except for the occasional Parmesan) in 2014. We learned A2 casein (goat, sheep and buffalo milk) is easier to digest than the predominate A1 form in cow milk. So we brought back goat milk dairy into our recipes in 2016. Thank goodness, right! So I'm kind of a science nerd, too. In the '90s, I earned an undergrad degree in biochemistry from The University of Texas at Austin. Hook 'em! Then followed up with a PhD in biochemistry and a law degree from the University of Houston. I recently earned a certificate in genomics/sequence analysis from Johns Hopkins University, where I also took a very cool food microbiology course. Currently, I'm learning about the microbiome and gut health. And trying to come up with healthy recipes to feed those gut bugs! #feedthegutbugs

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