No kidding. This is the best beef marinade you will ever eat. Ever. You can marinate flank steak or any other steak in a whole piece or slice a steak, marinate the slices and thread them on skewers. It doesn’t matter what you marinate because this marinade scales new heights. You won’t even believe it. Now you can look at this recipe and ask yourself what the heck basamic vinegar and soy sauce are doing in a Mexican/South American dish but the answer doesn’t matter. It may not make much sense but trust me, it will make sense to your tastebuds.
This marinade also makes the meat incredibly tender because it’s a whole two day process. Marinate meat in a vinegar-based sauce and there is no way it won’t be tender. Well wait. You still have to use beef. I can’t vouch for anything else getting that tender. And while you might be tempted to use this marinade on chicken, it is a dark color and you may not like chicken that looks like beef. It will taste great but it may not be very pretty.
These tacos are great for a picnic, Memorial Day or Fourth of July for example. You can prep all of the toppings in advance, marinate the steak and grill the onions two days before and just crisp up the tortillas and grill the steak when you are ready to eat.
You can make your own salsa if you want, use my wonderful tomatillo salsa which is always a treat (but adds more prep time) or, because we are talking holidays here and wanting to spend time with your family and friends, you can cheat and buy this high quality Black Bean Salsa from Stonewall Kitchens. Everything they make is just first rate and this is no exception. One warning–it is pretty spicy. But I am a spice wimp so you will have to see for yourself. The salsa is a bit spicy, a bit sweet but just full of flavor. It really adds a punch to the tacos, especially when topped with the tangy sour cream (reminder–Breakstone absolutely makes the best sour cream in the land).
Everyone has their own go-to tortillas and any sturdy corn tortilla will work here. If you want more of a burrito style dish, use flour tortillas which you can warm in the oven. I prefer a crispier shell which is easy to make by just draping the torillas over the grates of the oven rack so they hang out and get warm and crispy. No oil so nice and healthy. I am a big fan of La Tortilla Factory white or yellow corn tortillas because they are just thick enough to remain crisp and intact even when all the juicy steak and fillings are piled on. Give these a try and you will really be impressed with the taste of the tortillas which are so much more than just a wrap for the meat.
If you don’t want to make tacos, feel free to marinate a steak or two and just serve it on buns with the grilled onions. No matter how you slice it, this is a great grilling recipe (yes, this is meant to be a pun).
Finally, a word about MEtirement. It has really grown on me. I never thought my days/life/schedule would be so full. Full of challenges, full of intellectual pursuits (I study the science of blogging and Instagram and analytics and I am thrilled to be learning just what I want to learn). My job is a million miles behind me but I don’t exactly know how far because I never look back.
I am grateful every day that I worked so very hard for so very long because now I can enjoy and appreciate what it means to just breathe. And relax. And do what I want and I wish that for everyone I know. It make take five, ten, twenty, or in my case forty years to get to MEtirement but it was worth it. Easy for me to say now. Happy to be able to say it. Find joy in your work because when it is over, it will definitely be over and you will never regret having worked long and hard to get to where you finally want to be. Interested in everything and at peace.
Carne Asada Tacos
The sweet and savory marinade enhanced with balsamic vinegar, cumin, oregano and chili powder really takes these steak tacos to a whole new level
Ingredients
- 1 package La Tortilla Factory corn tortillas
For the Carne Asada Marinade:
- 4 tablespoons minced garlic
- cilantro stems from one bunch of cilantro , chopped (reserve the cilantro leaves to chop for garnish)
- 1 tablespoon Ancho chili powder
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon dried oregano , rubbed between your fingers to release the flavor
- 2/3 cup olive oil
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 ½ pounds flank steak
For the toppings:
- 2 large sweet onions , sliced into 1” slices
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 avocados , sliced into medium thick slices
- 4 ounces cotija cheese , coarsely grated
- 4 ounces grated red cabbage
- 1 jar Stonewall Kitchens black bean salsa or any other salsa with corn and black beans
- 8 ounces Breakstone Sour Cream (full or reduced fat)
- finely chopped cilantro
- 2 limes , quartered
Instructions
For the Carne Asada:
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In a large plastic Ziploc bag, mix all of the marinade ingredients. Add the flank steak and mix well. Marinate for two days in the refrigerator.
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Preheat gas or charcoal grill to a high heat.
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees and place the tortillas over the rungs of the baking racks so that they form a half moon shape. Cook for 7 minutes or until they are still pliable but have formed a taco shell. Remove from oven and set aside.
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Prepare all of the topping ingredients and set aside while you grill the onions and the steak.
For the grilled onions and Carne Asada:
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Combine onion slices and olive oil. Spread the onions on a large sheet of aluminum foil and grill until they are just brown but not burned, turning often.
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When the onions are done, grill the steak until it is done to your liking. For medium rare, grill 6 minutes over high heat on one side and 5-6 minutes on the other. Set aside and allow the steak to rest for at least 15 minutes. Slice thinly on the diagonal.
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Remove onions from the grill and keep warm.
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Assemble the tacos:
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Into each taco shell, spoon in some grilled onions and layer the steak into each taco. Layer all of the other ingredients into the taco shells, top with sour cream and garnish with the chopped cilantro.
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Serve with limes on the side.