Blackened Steak Cobb Salad

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Blackened Steak Cobb Salad has a bit of spice and heat on top of crisp greens with onions, tomatoes, avocados, cheese, and hard-boiled eggs. It’s a hearty dinner salad that is quick and easy to make.

 

When it’s super-hot like it has been, I cannot stand to be in the kitchen very long. Of course, it’s not fun standing outside grilling, either, but it’s better than heating up the kitchen. You can leave all the hot outside when you bring the steaks inside. So, for me, a steak salad or a flatbread like this steak and mango salsa flatbread is a win win.

 

I’m not trying to brag, but we started blackening things well before there was a pre-made Cajun or blackened spices readily available in this area. With Dad’s travel, he went to New Orleans quite a few times and obtained a recipe for the ever-popular spice mix. I’ve resurrected that recipe since we cannot find our favorite brand. And, to be honest, the copycat recipes are quite similar to our family recipe.

 

 

There’s one slight difference that I think is a game changer, but I’m not going to tell you what it is just yet. It’s one of those ingredients that make you say, “Hmm! I never would have thought of that.” Because it’s something that people don’t commonly use in a recipe. They use it for something else.

 

I know. I’m just teasing you with something you cannot have. At least not yet. But that doesn’t mean you cannot use your own blackened or Cajun spices to rub on the steaks. Just make sure it has some chili powder and a little cayenne on there. Blackened spices are supposed to have a little kick to them.

 

 

For those of you who were wondering, blackening as a technique arrived on the culinary scene in the 80’s. About the time Dad was going to New Orleans at least once a year. Paul Prudhomme invented the technique which involves dredging fish (or other meats) into melted butter and then a spice mix. In my case, we usually use what is now called a Cajun seasoning blend, but is originally blackened seasoning.

 

During many of Dad’s trips he befriended a man who gave him a recipe for the delicious spice blend. Dad brought it home and we tried it. I thought it was a spicy, because I was a picky eater back then. So, he altered it and backed off the cayenne for a bit. That’s how we started blackening well before most outside of Louisiana knew what it was.

 

 

Heck, we even travelled on vacation with this spice blend! Our summer vacations usually involved a kitchenette or full kitchen so we could eat local without breaking the back. We would go out once or twice for lunch and usually only once for a special dinner. The rest of the time we cooked in.

 

And since they were usually beach trips, they involved some kind of fishing. Or purchase of some fish or shrimp for dinner. There’s this one time Dad bought live shrimp. With the heads on. I about freaked out! I couldn’t deal with those live things swimming around the cooler. And then there was the time my sister caught a sheepshead fish. That picture is hilarious. But it was the blackened blue fish that I remember the most.

 

 

We didn’t stop at just blackened fish. We blackened chicken, steak, shrimp. If it could be coated with the seasoning, we tried to blacken it. However, my favorite is blackened steak! That spicy and crisp coating and the tender meat is a perfect pair in my book.

 

And it’s a perfect pair for a steak salad.

 

I don’t know about you, but we make a lot of summer steak salad recipes. And my favorite is a steak salad with ranch. That cool buttermilk ranch and the spicy blackened steak are the best flavor pairing in a salad. At least in my book they are. That’s why I created a kicked-up fiesta ranch dressing to serve with this blackened steak salad.

 

 

You can easily make this Cajun ribeye steak recipe a regular dinner entrée and not on a salad. It’s perfect with some fried okra or green tomatoes, maybe a baked potato or even some maque choux made with some summer fresh corn.

 

This salad has some great summer produce in it from the farmer’s market. Vine ripe tomatoes, creamy cool avocados, and crispy onions sitting on top of some romaine, red leaf, or even iceberg lettuce. Garnish with some sharp cheddar and hard-boiled eggs.

 

 

I know grilled steak salad recipes aren’t usually Cobb salad recipes, but I think they’re a great way to get tons of flavor on your plate and not overloading it with one ingredient. Apart from lettuce, of course. Lettuce is almost a no calorie food so eat as much of that as you want!

 

Seriously. Just look at that plate of goodness! Yes, in this one there are no eggs. This was lunch the next day and I didn’t have extras made. But it was perfectly delicious just the same. And the dressing is one that I plan on keeping in the fridge as a regular ranch. I know I’ve talked about how delicious the fiesta ranch dip is as a dressing and I’m sticking to that opinion whole heartedly!

 

 

This steak salad was totally inspired by the FarmBox Direct I signed up for. Since I’m too keen on being at my current farmer’s market with all that’s going on, I decided to have the market shipped to me! Farmbox Direct ships free from now until November, just so ya know. I like that there’s the open to swap out items I don’t want, like asparagus! Y’all know how I feel about that.

 

This is one steak salad recipe we will be making repeatedly. It’s quick, delicious, and so filling for a dinner salad. You can buy two small steaks or share a large one with your family. That’s another bonus for salads like this; you can splurge on a good steak because you’re sharing the love with this salad.

Wednesday’s Farmers Market Week Recipes

• Bacon-Wrapped Cheese-Stuffed Baby Bell Peppers by Books n’ Cooks
• Cheesy Tomato and Squash Casserole by Blogghetti
• Corn and Bacon Casserole by Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Farmer’s Market Tortellini by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Garlic Scape Pesto by Cheese Curd In Paradise
• Mexican Street Corn Pizza by Palatable Pastime
• Mushroom Ceviche by The Freshman Cook
• Blackened Steak Cobb Salad by A Kitchen Hoor’s Adventures
• Pesto Chicken Lasagna by The Spiffy Cookie