Pittsburgh Steak Salad

After.  The "before" is below.

What differentiates a PITTSBURGH Steak Salad from any other ordinary steak salad?  Your eyes aren't deceiving you, it's the fries on top of those healthy greens!  If you've ever lived in or visited Pittsburgh, that's how we like our salads...with some substance to them.  You may have heard about this little restaurant we have here called Primanti's - it's become pretty famous all over for its MAN food!  I have to state clearly that we women like the place...and the food, too.  


What makes Primanti's so popular, so unforgettable, so...so....amazing?  Fries on salads is just the beginning, their really famous dish is the Primanti's sandwich that is built on thick sliced, crusty Italian bread, piled super high with your choice of meat(s), cheese, maybe a fried egg, whatever your heart desires, but the crowning glory that made Primanti's famous?  Coleslaw and fries.  Big deal, you say...but the coleslaw and fries are piled high ON the sandwich!  Yeah.  Sweet.

So the salad above was tonight's dinner.  We made London Broil (recipe follows) out on the deck on Saturday and had plenty left to make not only salads for tonight, but there's still plenty to make some beef sandwiches later in the week.  I think we'll do them on a nice crusty roll, a little horseradish mayo, a crisp slice or two of bacon, some good sharp cheddar and bake them until the cheese starts to ooze.  Then we'll pile on some thinly sliced crisp onion and a couple red, ripe tomato slices...how does that sound?  Mmmmhmmmm.  A couple of chips on the side will make it an easy mid-week dinner.


The only thing we did wrong was in doing the grilling on Saturday.  In the snow.  Here's the "before" pic:

This is "before" - 6 3/8" of snow!

We should have done the grilling today when the temperature was 57 degrees!  And tomorrow it will be in the 30's again.  Sigh.  Love Pittsburgh winter weather....but love the food a whole lot more!

London Broil

 (Use leftovers for salads and sandwiches!)  

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 BIG lemon, juiced
• 6 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
• 2 1/2 pounds top round steak, 1 1/2 " thick, lightly scored in a diamond pattern

Mix marinade ingredients in a ziplock bag and put round steak in.  Squeeze all air from bag and marinate for a few hours or overnight, turning occasionally.
Cook on pre-heated grill until medium rare.  Slice diagonlly into paper thin slices and serve au jus.

Pittsburgh Steak Salads

• leftover London Broil slices - warmed or cold
• French fries, prepared - hot and crispy
• spring greens
• red, ripe tomatoes
• onion - red or Vidalia, sliced paper thin
• cucumbers - sliced paper thin
• shredded cheddar or mozzarella - even feta
• salad dressing of your choice

Mound the greens on a plate and arrange the veggies over top.  Top the greens and veggies with the fries, layer on the cheese - love it when it melts on the hot fries - and finally top with sliced steak.  Drizzle with the dressing of your choice.  Ranch, of course, is always good, I think I like balsamic vinaigrette the best.  

A word of caution....you just may start to require your salads with fries.  It is addictive.  And delicious. 

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