This Unassuming Beef Cut Will Elevate Your Date Night Dinner

When planning an upscale, at-home steak dinner, most people immediately think of cuts like New York strips, ribeyes, or filets—the fancy, expensive options. These well-marbled cuts are known for their richness and melt-in-your-mouth texture. But here’s the secret: you don’t need the priciest steak to create an unforgettable, gourmet experience. Enter the humble, yet flavorful, skirt steak.

There’s a lot to love about cooking skirt steak: it’s affordable, hard to mess up, and it takes wonderfully to a simple marinade full of bold flavors. But let’s slow down and start with the basics—what exactly is skirt steak? This lean, thin, long cut of beef comes from the cow’s diaphragm muscles. Unlike fattier cuts like ribeyes or filets, skirt steak has a more fibrous texture and contains some tough connective tissue.

Preparing Skirt Steak

Since skirt steak can be a bit tougher, it’s best to marinate it before cooking. This will tenderize the meat and infuse it with your chosen flavors. Before marinating, make sure to trim off any extra fat or silver skin (or have your butcher do it for you). Marinate for at least 30 minutes, but no longer than 24 hours. That way, if you want to prep the night before your special dinner, it’s one less thing to worry about.

When creating your marinade, let your creativity run wild. I love using a food processor or blender—it’s quick and easy, and no chopping required. Start with fresh herbs (such as parsley, cilantro, basil, dill, or chives), something acidic (like lemon or lime juice, apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar), and alliums (such as garlic, shallot, or scallions). A bit of neutral oil is also key. I like to add a touch of sweetness—honey, brown sugar, or maple syrup—to balance the acidity. For a little kick, throw in some jalapeños or serranos if you like a little heat.

Feel free to get adventurous with your marinade ingredients. For example, mix up rice wine vinegar, toasted sesame oil, sriracha, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic for a bold, umami-rich flavor profile. There are no wrong choices! Before adding the steak, taste your marinade. It should be bursting with flavor. If it lacks zing, add more acid. You want the marinade to pack a punch because a dull marinade will lead to a lackluster steak—and nobody wants a disappointing date night!

I prefer to wait until right before cooking to add salt and pepper to the steak, but you can season the marinade if you wish. Once your marinade is ready, coat the steak thoroughly, then store it in a sealed zip-top bag or covered baking dish, letting it soak in the flavorful liquid. If you'd like, you can save half the marinade to use as a sauce when serving. Flip the steak halfway through the marination time to ensure it marinates evenly. Don’t forget to remove the steak from the fridge two hours before cooking, so it can come to room temperature.

How to Perfectly Cook Skirt Steak

Now comes the exciting part: cooking the steak. It can be a little daunting (how do I know when it's cooked just right?), but because skirt steak is thin, it cooks quickly and is quite forgiving. You have a wide window to get it from medium-rare to medium. The best way to cook it is with high, direct heat. Preheat your grill, grill pan, or cast-iron skillet on high. No need to add oil to the pan since your marinade has already done the job—plus, this will help keep your smoke detector quiet!

Take the steak out of the marinade and allow any excess to drip off. Season generously with salt and pepper on both sides, then place the steak in the hot pan. Let it cook undisturbed until you get a nice golden-brown sear. Flip the steak and repeat on the other side. For medium-rare, the steak should feel soft and a little springy when poked at the thickest part. In total, you're looking at about 2-4 minutes per side for the perfect cook.

Skirt Steak Recipes You Need to Try:

• ChefJohn's Grilled Mojo Beef
• Argentinian Skirt Steaks
• Tuscan Skirt Steak with Salsa Verde
• Grilled Coffee and Cola Skirt Steak
• Tender Juicy Skirt Steak (Churrasco)
• Explore our entire collection of Skirt Steak Recipes for more inspiration.

Once cooked, transfer the steak to a baking sheet set with a cooling rack and let it rest for half the time it was cooked. For instance, if the steak cooked for 8 minutes, allow it to rest for at least 4 minutes. After resting, place the steak on a cutting board and slice it against the grain. To do this, look for the muscle fibers running through the meat and cut perpendicular to those lines.

The thinner parts of the steak will likely be a rich brown color, while the thicker sections should retain a beautiful pink. That’s the perfect medium-rare skirt steak; it's sure to impress. Pair it with any reserved marinade, and perhaps some roasted potatoes and veggies on the side.

One of skirt steak’s greatest qualities is how fantastic it is as leftovers. A few slices of skirt steak make the perfect base for a steak and eggs breakfast, so be sure to have some corn tortillas, eggs, avocado, and hot sauce ready for the morning after...

Sure, date night matters, but don't forget to think about what’s for breakfast tomorrow!