This is a quick and easy wet rub that’s great on steaks. I’ve already shared my love of flank steak, (read all about it here) so that’s what I generally use this on, but it’s also great on other cuts of meat. Some of our favorites are tenderloin, NY strip, and tri-tip. Wet rubs are great because you can whip it up last minute. Intense flavor infuses the meat quickly, so if you forgot to make a marinade, this is your answer. This is kind of my steak version of Kate’s Taco chicken, and you can use it in a lot of similar ways. We love it with black beans and lime-cilantro rice, or sliced thin in soft tacos or on salad.
Can’t go wrong with this line-up:
Lime-Chili Steak Rub
1 t chili powder
1 t granulated garlic
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t coriander
1/2 t oregano
1/8- 1/4 t cayenne pepper*
3/4 t salt
1/4 t black pepper
*If you have chipotle chili powder, you can substitute it for the cayenne or just add a little in addition
1 lime (about 2 T lime juice)
1 T extra virgin olive oil
1-2 lbs flank steak, or other good grilling cut (tenderloin, NY strip, and tri-tip all work well)
Juice the lime into a small bowl. Add oil and spices and stir to combine.
Place the steak in a shallow dish and pour the spice mixture on top. Now is the time to make friends with that hunk of beef. Use your hands to massage it in there. Trust me- your hands work a lot better than smooshing it around in a ziplock bag. Don’t be afraid!
Let it sit for 15 minutes. During that time you can preheat your grill, make some side dishes, set the table, paint your nails, sneak some dessert, whatever.
{{Hey, doesn’t that picture look like a goldfish?? I just noticed it and it’s making me laugh every time I look at it, haha.}}
Place meat on hot grill (bbq is best, but an indoor grill pan or broiler will work just fine too). If you’re using flank steak it should take about 5-7 minutes on each side. Here’s a great tip for testing meat doneness in other cuts.
When steak is finished, remove from grill and let sit for 5 minutes before cutting into it. Otherwise all of the juices will run out and you’ll be stuck with dry steak. And who wants to eat dry steak? Slice in strips against the grain. (Again, find flank steak info here)
mmm…now that’s a juicy steak
This is great with a side of Black Beans and a quick salad, or with rice or in soft tacos or salad.
Related Post: Chili-Lime Steak Salad
Homemade Flour Tortillas
Chipotle Chicken Salad
Lime-Cilantro Rice
Sweet and Savory Flank Steak
Steak and Mango Salad
Thank you! Officially on the menu!
Looking for an appetizer for a Margarita Party and this looks great for grilling, skewering, and serving with the cilantro-lime dressing as a dip. Have you had leftovers of this before? How does it taste the next day? It would be much easier for me to grill, slice, and skewer the day before and then serve at room temp… Input?
I’ve had the steak cold in salads before and it’s good. Just don’t overcook it. If you’re going to eat it the next day you’ll want it nice and pink!
YUMMMM!!! WE love steak in our house however the sameold way of cooking it was boring! I saw this and ran to the store to bust out like $20 in spices (like I said I have always cooked boring!) and then fired up the grill (again first time grilling steak also!) and it was sooooooo good! I’m also a big sauce dipper and this need almost no A-1 steak sauce! Will be making this one again soon and this time will print it out to keep in the family recipe book!
I didn’t have time to read all the comments, so not sure if anyone else has suggested this, but I tried this rub on salmon last night and it was AMAZING! I served your black bean mango salsa over the salmon and my husband and I loved it. It’s my new favorite meal! So yummy and fresh tasting! Thanks!
Does this freeze well? If so, at what point would you freeze it; before or after cooking? What would be best to preserve the quality?
Kerri, steak freezes well if it’s packaged well. You’ll want to freeze it before cooking. I’ve never frozen it with the rub on, but I suppose you could!
Made this tonight for dinner, what a yummy steak… the whole family loved it! It will totally be in our regular rotation!
My house smells so good right now! I can’t wait to dive into this steak. What did I do before I came across this blog? You provide me with about 3 meal ideas a week! Another winner!
YUMMO!! i just happened to have set out some NY strips tonite. I will be treating them with this recipe tomorrow for sure!! love your recipes they are a sure thing.
Found this in the cookbook and made it last night. My husband could not stop raving about it. Easy and delicious!
I made this tonight for my husband, it was amazing. Will definately make this again as with all of your recipes I've tried so far. Great blog…
I made this the other night, along with your 'quick and easy black beans' and your 'cilantro pineapple rice'. Each dish was absolutely delicious and my husband (he is very picky) LOVED it, and so did I. You gals have the BEST recipes ever! You have helped make my life easier in a BIG way – thank you!!!
A wonderful rub for steaks! My husband and I both loved it.
This is SO good. We had this spice rub tonight on flat iron steak and made fajitas. Everyone raved about it.
Delicious! I made it for dinner tonight – the husband loved it and so did the 2 year old. Thanks!
mmmm.. really this is looking great. I love meat very much. Thanks for the recipe.
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We had this for dinner, and it was great! Thanks!
Kara M.
All of those spice rubs look fantastic! I bet it was a tasty steak.
Looks like a great way to make a steak a lot more interesting!
Oh, that looks really good! I need some steak – but that would require a trip to the grocery store and I still have so much food at home to use up!
Just today I was thinking of barbecuing some flank steak, good timing Sara. I bought EM and myself a BBQ for Valentines Day (romantic huh) and just put it together last week.
There is nothing better than homemade rubs!! What a great combination!
I gasped with excitement to see how the rub had worked it’s way through the cracks. I need to try more dry rubs, they just add so much.
the spice plate looks so good!
Laura, granulated garlic is generally better in rubs because of the coarser texture, but if you have garlic powder you can totally substitute it, it won’t make a huge difference overall.
I really want to try this! Is garlic powder a suitable substitute for granulated garlic?
That looks good!!!
This is great! Love the flank!!
Also, that is an awesome pic of the spices my dear 😉
We love meat at our house, I will be testing this out this week. As an Idaho girl I will probably be paring it with the Texas fries, and maybe a green salad for a little balance. Thanks!
You are right, you can’t go wrong with this steak! Lookin good and tastin wonderful!
I am a meat eater and that is making my mouth water!!