Beef flank steak: my slow-cooked and ultra-tender recipe

Beef flank steak is a cut I adore because it has this rustic and incredibly comforting quality: a bit of fat, collagen, and real character. When prepared properly, it yields melt-in-your-mouth meat and a naturally rich sauce.

The first time I cooked this piece of meat like this, it was one evening when I wanted a dish “like at home” but without spending the afternoon on it: a quick sear, deglazing with red wine, then a short and intense simmer.

In this traditional version, I stick to the French basics: onion, garlic, bouquet garni, red wine, and a little tomato to round things out. And to keep up with the season (even if it doesn't really matter when you're craving something slow-cooked), I add carrots and leeks to the flanchet recipe: they bring sweetness, aroma, and make a side dish that's delicious on its own.

What I find so great about flank steak is that it's so nutritious: good protein, and that feeling of fullness thanks to the gentle cooking that transforms collagen into gelatin. The flank steak sauce practically makes itself if you take the time to scrape up all the flavorful bits from the bottom of the pot.

You can easily adjust the dish to your liking: more sauce? Add a splash of water or stock. Want it more robust? Let it reduce a little longer.

And if you like it shiny, a tiny knob of butter at the end, off the heat, is the simple gesture that changes everything!

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Beef flank steak

Recipe by Nathalie Laplace

5.0 based on 1 vote(s)

Type of dish: main courseKitchen: FrenchDifficulty: average

Portions

4

people

Preparation

17

minutes

Cooking

38

minutes

Calories

539

kcal

Total time

55

minutes

A recipe for flank steak, seared and then quickly simmered in red wine, with tender carrots and leeks. A light, glossy sauce, and meat that falls apart at the touch of a spoon.

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Ingredients

• 900g of beef flank steak (in large pieces)

• 2 carrots (approx. 110g each)

• 1 leek (approx. 180g each)

• 1 yellow onion (approx. 120g each)

• 2 garlic cloves

• 2 tablespoons of neutral oil (approx. 10g per tablespoon)

• 25g of butter

• 2 tablespoons of tomato paste (approx. 15g per tablespoon)

• 35 cl of red wine

• 25 cl of beef (or vegetable) stock

• 1 bouquet garni (thyme, bay leaf, parsley)

• 1 tablespoon of flour (approx. 10g per tablespoon)

• 1 teaspoon of fine salt (adjust as needed)

• Freshly ground black pepper

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Preparation steps

• Peel the carrots and cut them into 1 cm diagonal slices. Wash the leek and slice it thinly (white part + a little of the tender green). Slice the onion. Mince the garlic.
• Pat the flank dry with paper towels. Season lightly with salt and pepper.
• Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat with the oil. Sear the flank steak pieces for 2 to 3 minutes per side, without overcrowding them, until nicely browned. Transfer the meat to a plate.
• Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onion to the pot and sauté for 3 minutes. Add the garlic, then the flour. Stir for 45 seconds: you're just trying to cook the flour, not make a dark roux.
• Add the tomato paste, stir for 30 seconds, then deglaze with red wine, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spoon.
• Pour in the broth, add the bouquet garni, then return the meat and its juices to the casserole dish.
• Add the carrots and leek. Partially cover and simmer gently for 28 to 32 minutes. Turn the meat over halfway through cooking.
• Check that the flank steak is cooked through: it should be very tender. If the sauce seems too thin, remove the lid and let it reduce for 3 to 6 minutes at a slightly higher simmer.
• Remove from heat, add the cold butter in small pieces, and stir to thicken the sauce. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Serve piping hot, with the vegetables coated in the sauce.

📊 Nutritional Information

1 serving (approx. 430g)

* RDA = Recommended Daily Allowance

📝 Notes

If you are using a very tannic red wine, add 1 small pinch of sugar (really just a pinch) when deglazing: this will round out the sauce of the dish, without making it sweet.

💡 Chef's Tips

To make the sauce for the flank steak smoother, you can remove the meat and vegetables at the end of cooking and quickly blend the sauce, then put everything back.

And to ensure a truly effective sear, avoid stirring the beef from the start: let it stick and caramelize before turning it over.

🔄 Variations

• Beef flank with mushrooms: add 200g of sliced ​​button mushrooms, pan-fried separately for 5 minutes, then incorporated into the recipe at the end of simmering.
• Beef flank steak with mustard: off the heat, add 1 tablespoon of wholegrain mustard with the butter for a sauce that will make the meat more tangy and rustic.

Nathalie Laplace

Food writer for the Simple & Bon website. Passionate about healthy cooking and especially salads, slow-cooked or oven-baked recipes.