Juicy grilled steak, charred bread cubes, juicy tomatoes, and lots of fresh basil make for the perfect summery meal in this grilled steak panzanella salad.
First day back after a food-filled holiday weekend and a big summer salad is definitely the first order of business!
Not just any salad though. While I love a classic panzanella salad with all my heart and soul, this steak version is helping us hit our protein goals AND keeping things on the healthy side!
Mission accomplished. Just please be aware that you’re going to crave this goodness on a daily basis and that’s totally normal.
My favorite part about this salad is that it’s one of the best salads to use up summer produce on! It’s chock-full of tomatoes, sweet peppers, cucumber, and naturally, oodles of fresh basil.
And the fact that bread is apart of this wild salad party? That’s a meal everyone can get behind.
This Panzanella Salad features…
- Juicy grilled steak strips and crispy bread cubes
- Fresh tomatoes, sweet pepper, and cucumber
- Lots of fresh basil and a flavorful white wine vinaigrette
Making the Panzanella Salad
(scroll down to the bottom of the post for the full recipe)
Ingredients You Will Need
- White wine vinegar
- Dijon mustard
- Honey
- Dried basil
- Garlic powder
- Olive oil
- Tomatoes
- Sweet pepper
- Cucumber
- Red onion
- Basil
- Steak
- French baguette
Temperature Cooking Guide
Use this temperature chart to determine when to pull your steak off the heat for your desired level of doneness. Always use a kitchen thermometer to test the internal temperature.
- Medium-rare – 130-135F
- Medium – 140-145F
- Medium-well – 150-155F
- Well-done – 160-165F.
Tips for Perfect Panzanella Salad
- Prep dressing and salad ingredients before grilling – ideally you want to serve the salad while the steak and bread cubes are slightly warm, so it’s important to have the dressing made and all the other salad ingredients prepped before grilling so you can assemble everything fast afterwards.
- Rub steak with olive oil before grilling – rub the olive oil all over steak and season well with salt and pepper prior to grilling.
- Rest steak and thinly slice – allow the steak to rest 10 minutes before thinly slicing so all the juices stay locked inside.
- Use a rustic bread – I prefer using half of a French baguette for this recipe, but ciabatta or sourdough also work great.
- Grill bread – no need to toast the bread separately, it will crisp up in only minutes on the grill.
- Tear basil into bite-sized pieces – this is a very basil-heavy salad and you will want bigger pieces so you get a burst of basil in every bite.
- Assemble salad just before serving – for best results, do not assemble salad until just before serving. This will keep the bread crisp and all the ingredients fresh.
Recipe Variations
Try these ideas for a different twist on this salad.
- Add cheese – try mozzarella pearls, burrata, or shaved Parmesan.
- Try another meat – replace the steak with boneless chicken breasts. Be aware that cook time will vary depending on the protein you use.
- Use a bottled dressing – try a Greek dressing, Italian dressing, balsamic, or red wine vinaigrette. You will need about 1/2 cup.
Make Ahead Instructions
Follow these instructions for time-saving make ahead tips.
- Make the dressing – mix up the dressing and store in refrigerator up to 1 week.
- Prep the salad ingredients – chop the tomatoes, sweet pepper, cucumber, and red onion and store in refrigerator up to 4 days (wait until just before serving to tear basil).
- Assembly – when ready to assemble salad, grill the steak and bread per recipe instructions and toss salad.
For those days when you’re wanting to make an entire summer meal in one fell swoop, this panzanella salad is definitely the man for the job! Every bite is packed with pure summer goodness and the juicy steak strips make it so delightfully indulgent.
Summer salad goals right here, folks.
Save this recipe using the ‘save to recipe box’ button below. If you make it, please let us know! Leave a comment + star rating below, or take a photo and tag it on Instagram with #wholeandheavenlyoven.
More summer salads you’ve just gotta make next!
- Grilled Sweet Corn BBQ Chicken Chopped Salad
- Prosciutto Strawberry Burrata Salad
- Caprese Chickpea Salad
Grilled Steak Panzanella Salad
This recipe may included paid links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
Ingredients
White Wine Dressing
- 1/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey or agave nectar
- 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
Panzanella Salad
- 3 large tomatoes, cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 2 medium sweet peppers, cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
- 1 small seedless cucumber, cut into 1/4-inch slices
- 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup firmly-packed torn basil leaves
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
- 1 lb top sirloin steak, fat trimmed
- Kosher salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 French baguette, cut in half widthwise and then in half lengthwise
Instructions
White Wine Dressing
- In a small bowl, whisk vinegar, mustard, honey, basil, and garlic powder. Slowly whisk in olive oil until dressing is smooth and season with salt and pepper to taste. Store dressing in refrigerator until ready to use.
Panzanella Salad
- In a large bowl, combine tomatoes, sweet peppers, cucumber, red onion, and basil. Set aside for a moment.
- Rub 1 tablespoon olive oil evenly all over steak and season well with salt and pepper.
- Preheat grill to 400F (or lightly grease a cast iron grill pan to cook steak on stovetop). Place steak on preheated grill or in pan and grill 4-6 minutes on each side until internal temperature of steak reaches 130-135F for medium-rare (see blog post for additional cook preferences) Keep grill on.
- Place steak on a cutting board, lightly tent with foil, and allow to rest 10 minutes.
- Lightly brush the cut side of French bread with remaining olive oil. Place French bread cut side-down on grill and cook 2-3 minutes on each side until bread is slightly charred and crispy.
- Thinly slice steak against the grain. Place French bread on cutting board and cut into 1-inch cubes.
- Toss steak strips and bread cubes into salad and drizzle with white wine dressing. Toss salad to combine and season with additional salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Leave a Reply