Teriyaki Flank Steak, Camp Version
Steak marinates in the cooler on the drive in, then hits a hot pan with canned pineapple.
- calories
- 520
- weight
- 9 oz
- cal / oz
- 58
- protein
- 42 g
- serves
- 4, scales
- prep
- 10 min
- cook
- 10 min
- total time
- 20 min
- water
- none
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Dutch oven
- Grill grate
- Campfire coals
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Dairy free
- Nut free
- One pot
- Pre-mix at home
- Needs a cooler
- Basic
Ingredients
| Flank steak | 4 portions, about 2 lb total | cut across the grain after cooking, not before |
|---|---|---|
| Soy sauce | 1/2 cup | |
| Sugar | 1/4 cup | brown or white, either dissolves |
| Sherry | 2 tbsp | optional; skip it and nothing breaks |
| Ground ginger | 1 tsp | dried, not fresh, so it rides in the spice kit |
| Garlic | 1 clove, crushed | or 1/2 tsp granulated |
| Neutral oil | 1 tbsp | |
| Canned pineapple rings | 4 rings | drained; the can replaces fresh fruit |
| Instant rice | 2 cups dry |
Method
- At home or at the trailhead, shake the soy sauce, sugar, sherry, ginger, garlic, and oil together until the sugar dissolves.
- Pour it over the steak in a sealed container. Hold it in the cooler at least 90 minutes. Overnight on the drive is better.
- Build coals for frying heat, roughly 375-400F in a 12-inch dutch oven, or set a skillet on the grill grate.
- Lift the steak out and let the marinade drip off. Lay it in the hot oven and cook 2 minutes.
- Brush with marinade, flip, and give it another 2 minutes.
- Add the pineapple rings, brush everything once more, and cover. Cook 3 minutes, longer if you want it past medium.
- Rest the steak while you pour boiling water over the instant rice. Slice thin across the grain and serve over the rice.
This is a cooler recipe, not a pack recipe. Flank steak is lean and tough, and the soy-and-sugar marinade is doing two jobs: salt works into the muscle so it stays juicy over high heat, and the sugar caramelizes fast in a hot dutch oven. Ninety minutes is the floor. The drive to the campground usually covers it.
Two changes from a kitchen version. Fresh ginger and fresh pineapple are out, because a jar of ground ginger and a can of rings survive a weekend in a hot car and taste close enough. The pineapple goes in at the end and stays covered, so the acid and the steam finish the meat instead of drying it. Slice across the grain or the whole thing turns to rope.
Packing
Mix the marinade at home in a screw-top bottle so camp prep is one pour. Steak and marinade go in one leakproof container in the cooler bottom. Pineapple can and rice ride in the dry box.
Variations
- No dutch oven: a cast iron skillet on a grill grate does the same job at the same times.
- Swap the flank for chicken thighs and add three or four minutes covered.
- Boil the leftover marinade hard for a full minute and spoon it over the rice as a sauce.
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/content/recipe/fast_teriyaki_flank_steak-1296.asp