Marinated and Grilled London Broil
on Jun 09, 2024, Updated Mar 24, 2025
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A truly tender and juicy (and inexpensive!) grilled steak. The best london broil marinade.
London Broil is an economical cut of steak that, when properly cooked, can be tender and flavorful without breaking the bank. The big tips for making London broil tender are tenderizing and marinating the steak, cooking it just to medium-rare, and letting it rest. This will result in a steak that rivals some of the more expensive cuts.
While London broil is typically “broiled” in the oven, this cut of meat does just as well on the grill! In this recipe, a simple marinade of balsamic, soy, home, lemon, and garlic creates a perfect amount of flavor.
London broil goes with everything all steaks go with — meaning you have a lot of choices! For a simple and restrained steak meal, you can serve it with a baked potato and some sautéed spinach. Or serve it with cheesy mashed potatoes, garlic bread, and broccoli casserole for a totally indulgent meal!
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- Balsamic vinegar and lemon juice – The acid in the marinade (in this case, lemon juice and balsamic vinegar) helps to break down the tough fibers and make the steak more tender. They also give the flavor a nice boost.
- Soy sauce or tamari – The soy sauce offers a savory, salty umami-ness. Tamari is gluten-free if that’s a concern.
- Honey – The small amount of honey provides a touch of sweetness and helps the steak caramelize on the grill.
- Olive oil
- Garlic – Finely mince your garlic so that it blends into the marinade and adds that beautiful fresh garlic flavor to the meat.
- London broil – Make sure your steaks are at least 1 inch thick, preferably 1 1/2 inches thick, so they stay pink in the middle while the outside browns.
How to Make Marinated and Grilled London Broil
- Make the marinade: In a container large enough to hold the steak, combine the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, honey, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Tenderize the meat: Tenderize the meat if possible (this is where I used this cool OXO gadget; if you want to pound it a bit with a meat mallet, score it with a knife, or use another method of tenderizing, please do).
- Marinate the meat: Place the meat in the container and turn to coat with the marinade. Cover and marinate the meat for 6 to 24 hours in the fridge.
- Grill the steak: Preheat a grill to high. Grill the steak for 4 to 5 minutes per side, basting it with the marinade left in the bowl or container.
- Let sit: Let it sit for at least 5 minutes to reabsorb the juices.
- Slice and serve: Slice on the diagonal and understand how London Broil can taste so good. Or ask my dog. Gary and Cooper had their little Lady and the Tramp moment. I know; this is ridiculous. Sometimes, we just need to be ridiculous.
FAQs
How you cook this cut of meat is key. You want to keep your London broil on the rare side for best results. Overcooking it will result in a tough steak. The temperature you’re looking for is 125 degrees F (make a small investment in a meat thermometer — you’ll be so glad you did!).
Let the steak sit for at least 5 minutes to reabsorb juices and finish “cooking” off the fire. This post-heat resting stage is important for all meat, especially ones that need help in the tenderness department. This will absolutely make the difference between a tough and a tender London broil.
Marinated and Grilled London Broil Cooking Tips
- Place the meat in a container with the marinade and marinate the meat for about 6 hours in the fridge. You can marinate it for up to a day.
- Go lightly on the salt because of the soy sauce. You can also sprinkle the cooked steak with a little salt, preferably kosher or flaky sea salt.
- A couple of things will help make London broil, an often tough cut of steak, more tender. You can use a traditional mallet-style meat tenderizer and give the steak a good pounding.
- Or you can try this funky little bladed meat tenderizer press (below) to get the meat ready for marinating, which makes hundreds of tiny cuts in the meat to soften the meat fibers and also allow the marinade to get right in there. So, not only does the process of tenderizing the meat do just that, but it also allows the marinade flavors to penetrate more deeply.
- Also, should you want to make this under the broiler, in a grill pan, or even in a panini press, it will work beautifully.
- Let the steaks sit for at least 5 minutes after removing them from the fire to allow the meat to reabsorb the juices.
- You almost always want to cut meat, particularly steaks, against the grain for maximum tenderness and juiciness. This is definitely true for London Broil.
What to Serve With London Broil
More Grilled Steak Recipes
- Grilled New York Strip Steaks
- Grilled Ribeye Steaks
- Grilled Sirloin Cap
- Balsamic-Marinated Skirt Steak
- Filet Mignon on the Grill
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Marinated and Grilled London Broil
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1 pound London broil (at least 1 inch thick, preferably 1 ½ inches thick)
Instructions
- In a container large enough to hold the steak, combine the balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, honey, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and pepper (go lightly on the salt because of the soy sauce).
- Tenderize the meat if possible (this is where I used the cool OXO gadget; if you want to pound it a bit, score it with a knife, or use another method of tenderizing please do).
- Add the meat to the container. with the marinade, and turn to coat. Cover, and marinate the meat for 6 to 24 hours in the fridge.
- Preheat a grill to high. Grill the steak for 4 to 5 minutes per side, basting it with the marinade left in the bowl or container.
- Let it sit for 5 minutes to reabsorb the juices.
- Slice on the diagonal and understand how London Broil can taste so good.
Notes
- Place the meat in a container with the marinade and marinate the meat for about 6 hours in the fridge. You can marinate it for up to a day.
- Go lightly on the salt because of the soy sauce. You can also sprinkle the cooked steak with a little salt, preferably kosher or flaky sea salt.
- A couple of things will help make London broil, an often tough cut of steak, more tender. You can use a traditional mallet-style meat tenderizer and give the steak a good pounding.
- Or you can try this funky little bladed meat tenderizer press (below) to get the meat ready for marinating, which makes hundreds of tiny cuts in the meat to soften the meat fibers and also allow the marinade to get right in there. So, not only does the process of tenderizing the meat do just that, but it also allows the marinade flavors to penetrate more deeply.
- Also, should you want to make this under the broiler, in a grill pan, or even in a panini press, it will work beautifully.
- Let the steaks sit for at least 5 minutes after removing them from the fire to allow the meat to reabsorb the juices.
- You almost always want to cut meat, particularly steaks, against the grain for maximum tenderness and juiciness. This is definitely true for London Broil.
I followed the recipe exactly and it worked like a charm. Delicious steak at home. Thank you.
I cooked this marinated London broil on my outdoor gas grill. It came out really flavourful and tender!
I’ve always struggled with London broil but this came out perfectly. Thanks for the great recipe!
The marinade on this really makes it special!! Take up my London broil game!!
Excellent. My grandsons were crazy over it.
I added brown sugar because i had to substitute red wine vinegar and sugar for balsamic vinegar. Tasted marinade and decided I wanted it sweeter (even with the honey) so I added brown sugar to taste. Marinating now. I will post how it turns out..
can’t wait to hear!