Name: Flank Steak with Red Wine Vinegar and Greens
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil; 1 pound flank steak, cut into 2 equal pieces; kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; 1 clove garlic, minced; 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar; 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried; 1 tablespoon unsalted butter; 5 ounces (½ bag) Italian salad blend

Why it works: Garlic and oregano are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,756 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Flank Steak with Red Wine Vinegar and Greens

Timeabout 6 minutes per side

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 pound flank steak, cut into 2 equal pieces
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
5 ounces (½ bag) Italian salad blend

Directions

Sear the steak

Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
Season both sides of the steaks with salt and pepper to taste.
When the oil is hot and shimmering, add the steaks and cook, turning each once, until seared and rich mahogany, about 6 minutes per side.
Transfer the steaks to a plate.
Add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until aromatic, about 1 minute.

Make the pan sauce

Pull the skillet from the heat.
Add the vinegar to the skillet.
Scrape up any browned bits that cling to the pan with a wooden spoon.
Stir in the oregano, butter, and any juices from the steak until the butter melts.

Wilt the greens and serve

Add the greens to the skillet.
Season the greens with salt and pepper.
Toss the greens just until they begin to wilt, about 30 seconds.
Slice the meat against the grain into thin slices.
Divide the sliced meat between two plates.
Top the meat with the greens and the pan juices.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

489Calories

27 gProtein

40 gFat

4 gCarbs

Counts 8 of 9 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 8 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Beef	100g cooked	250
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Oregano	1 tsp dried (1.8g)	5
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Salad	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

Garlic + oreganotop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,756 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together25,665 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Clove + oreganotop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together556 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together17,451 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Olive + oreganotop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,443 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Flank steak: Lean, fibrous meat that browns well and becomes tender when sliced thinly against the grain.
Garlic: Releases aromatic compounds in the hot oil, adding savory depth to the pan.
Red wine vinegar: Adds acidity that lifts the flavor and loosens the browned bits into the sauce.
Butter: Adds fat and richness, emulsifying with the pan juices into a glossy sauce.
Oregano: Contributes herbal, aromatic flavor to the pan sauce.
Italian salad blend: Wilts briefly in the warm pan, adding fresh, slightly bitter greens to the plate.

The step that matters

Searing the steak over medium heat. The steak needs a hot, dry surface to brown through the Maillard reaction, which builds deep flavor. Adding meat to shimmering oil and leaving it undisturbed between turns gives a crust; moving it early or crowding the pan causes steaming and grey, flat meat.

Swap the oregano

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, pepper, clove, garlic, red wine, vinegar, butter):

Thymefits better
Rosemaryfits better
Parsleyfits about as well
Oreganothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, pepper, clove, garlic, red wine, vinegar, butter. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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Flank Steak with Red Wine Vinegar and Greens