Julia Child Thought This Affordable Steak Cut Was Underrated

Recently, while thumbing through Julia Child's The French Chef Cookbook, I was delighted to find a little ode to one of my family’s all-time favorite proteins: flank steak. The culinary legend declares the cut has “excellent texture and a fine beefy flavor," and I have to agree. It's one of our favorite cuts because it’s relatively affordable compared to others, and it’s totally delicious when prepared correctly.

Inspired by Julia and in line with grilling season, I decided to chat with my favorite protein-centric chef, Meathead. A Barbecue Hall of Famer, cookbook author, founder of AmazingRibs.com, and all-around grill aficionado, Meathead shares my love (and Julia's, too) for flank. I had no doubt he'd be the best person to tell us how to cook the steak perfectly every time.

“Flank steak is one of my favorite cuts,” says Meathead. We both love flank because it doesn’t need any additional flavor elements, marination, or preparation. The meat speaks for itself, or as Julia says, its “fine beefy flavor” will shine.

That being said, you can absolutely dress up flank with spices or let it marinate if you'd like. Meathead’s favorite way to prep the meat for cooking is simply by salting the surface an hour or two before cooking to fully flavor the meat from the inside out.

The Trick for a Perfect Flank Steak

When it comes to the actual cooking, Meathead suggests grilling flank "hot and fast over direct heat” since it's a thinner cut. A charcoal or gas grill is ideal (although Meathead sometimes cooks his over an open flame). Regardless of the heat source, he says you’ll want to set up two temperature zones.

One side of your grill should have direct heat (flames), and the other should have indirect heat (no flames). The latter is the "safe zone"—a place where you can move the steak to finish cooking if it becomes to dark on the outside.

This two-zone method gives you better control of cooking of your steak so you don’t end up with overcooked flank, which Meathead warns can make it chewy.

More Flank Steak Cooking Tips

Another way you can avoid overcooked flank is by sectioning it off. “Because flank steak is usually wedge-shaped and one end is a lot thicker than the other... one side is either overcooked or undercooked," says Meathead. But he has a hack for this: If your steak is more than 1/4-inch thicker on one end, he suggests cutting it in half and starting with the thick half first. Boom! No more overcooked steak.

All in, a flank steak requires 10 to 15 minutes of cooking at high heat. For a perfect medium-rare, Meathead recommends pulling it off the heat source when its internal temperature reaches 130° to 135°F, as the temperature will increase a couple of degrees while it's resting.

In addition, Meathead says to always cut flank steak across the grain for the best eating experience, as the meat will be less chewy. If you have any leftovers whatsoever, make sure to tightly wrap them before refrigerating. Thinly sliced, the steak makes top-notch next-day sandwiches and quesadillas.