The marinade in this Grilled Asian-style Soy Marinated Flank Steak takes an uninteresting piece of steak and turns it into a mouthwatering dish!

Soy Marinated Flank Steak

I grill flank steak, a lean primal cut with wonderful beefy flavor all summer long. Some of my favorites are Flank Steak with Tomatoes, Balsamic and Red Onion, Flank Steak with Chimichurri, and Flank Steak with Black Bean Corn Salsa.

I recently met Culinary Scientist Jessica Gavin at a dinner in Salt Lake City. We got to talking about food science and the conversation was fascinating understanding how ingredients function together. This recipe is from her cookbook Easy Culinary Science (affil link) which is filled with easy to follow recipes, helpful cooks notes and the recipe science for each.

I modified her recipe slightly to lower the sodium and fat, but keep in mind most of the marinade gets tossed which has been reflected in the nutritional analysis. I have also included her notes and science behind this recipe here:

Recipe Science

The marinade adds flavor to the surface and inside of the meat, while salt makes the meat juicier. Water-soluble flavor compounds come from the garlic, ginger and green onion. Soy sauce provides an unami flavor which penetrates the meat with flavor. The oil allows the fat-soluble flavors from the pepper flakes to infuse the oil and stick to the meats surface for tremendous flavor. The honey aids in providing quicker browning and caramelizing for an intense smoky charred flavor.

Notes

When marinating meat, the aromatic compounds in the marinade will never fully penetrate the center. 8 hours is plenty of time to marinate so you can do this in the morning, then cook it in the evening. Any longer than 12 hours won’t add much benefit.