After indulging on carbs the day before, I wanted to make something leaner and lighter the next. We got some great red leaf lettuce and I knew I wanted to make a salad with some of the fresh strawberries. Honestly, I would have been fine to enjoy the meal sans-meat, but I also have my husband to think about and he had been working up a healthy appetite after a long day of work. Traditionally, I had seen chicken pair with strawberry salads, but I had sirloin tips, with great marbling that needed to be cooked and thought why not steak and strawberries? The acidity and sweetness of the strawberries would help cut through the "fattiness" and richness of the steak.

I had my husband get the charcoal Weber started, while I through the steak tips in a quick balsamic vinegar and grape seed oil marinade. Id never marinaded anything with balsamic, but knowing it would be the base of the dressing, I thought it would compliment it well. Being a shorter marinade time, I knew it wouldn't impart too much flavor, but the acid would help break down and tenderize the meat.
I pre-washed the lettuce the day prior, so mixing up the quick honey-balsamic vinaigrette, and prepping the base of the salad was very easy. All I needed to do was dice up some of the strawberries.
Kitchen Tip: Don't throw away your strawberry tops
Somewhere on Pinterest I saw, what I now think, was a life altering epiphany about strawberry tops. Rather than throwing them away (or composting them). Save them to make infused water! I added a couple slices of lemon to mine. A nice, healthy and refreshing accompaniment to dinner.

I took control of the grill, and got the perfect sear on the steak and then moved the tips to indirect heat to finish cooking to a medium rare. While the meat rested I portioned out the salads, topped with some crumbled goat cheese and almond slivers (two great pairings with strawberries). Before serving, I sliced the sirloin, against the grain, into thin bites and placed on top of the salad.
Ingredients
- 1 lbs sirloin steak tips
- 4 cups red leaf lettuce
- 1 cup of strawberries, sliced
- 2 tbs slivered almonds
- 1-2 oz goat cheese (based on preference)
Dressing
- 2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbs balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp honey
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Marinade steak tips in mixture of equal parts balsamic vinegar and grape seed oil, salt and pepper (optional). Pre heat grill.
- While waiting for grill to heat up, mix 2 tbs olive oil, 1 tbs balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper in bowl. Mix with whisk to emulsify. Add salt and pepper to taste.
- Sear steak tips on hottest part of grill for 1 minute. Flip and grill another minute. Move steak tips to indirect heat on grill and let cook for another 4 minutes or so. Use a thermometer to check for doneness based on preference. I cooked mine to be medium rare to medium. When done, pull off grill and let rest at least 2 minutes before slicing.
- For salad, toss red leaf lettuce, sliced strawberries, goat cheese and almonds in with vinaigrette. Before serving, thinly slice steak and place on top of salad.