Chile Carne Asada Food

EASY CARNE ASADA STEAK WITH CITRUS MARINADE

Steps:

• In a medium bowl, combine marinade ingredients: soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, cumin, chili powder and pepper. Whisk well.
• Place steak in a large flat dish with side - I love using Pyrex glass baking dish with a lid.
• Pour marinade on top and toss steak gently to coat an all sides.
• Cover and refrigerate for 4 - 24 hours. I tried both and both times we had flavorful steak. Of course, longer marinating, more flavor. Don't exceed 24 hours.
• Preheat grill to 500 degrees F or medium-high heat.
• Grill covered for 5 minutes per side for medium rare, longer for more done. Play it by ear and grill like you would steak. Because skirt steak is quite thin, inserting meat thermometer in it while on the grill isn't the best method to check for level of doneness, I found. Instead I like to cut with a knife right on the grill or on the plate.
• To grill indoors, use well seasoned cast iron grill pan.
• Let meat rest covered with foil for 5 minutes to allow juices settle.
• Thinly slice and serve in carne asada tacos with avocado corn salad, Instant Pot rice and beans, or healthy mashed potatoes. Why not!? :)

CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• Place the skirt steak in a large glass bowl or resealable plastic bag.
• To make the marinade, add the cilantro, olive oil, orange juice, lime juice, honey, oregano, garlic and serrano chile to a blender. Season with a small pinch of salt and pepper. Blend for 35 to 40 seconds to combine.
• Pour the marinade all over the steak, moving it around to make sure everything is covered. Cover or seal and transfer to the refrigerator and allow to marinate for at least 1 hour, but no more than 6 (too long in the marinade will cause the steak to begin breaking down).
• Preheat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat.
• When ready, remove the steak from the marinade, letting the excess drip off. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper and grill about 4 minutes per side for medium.
• Remove to a cutting board and allow to rest for 5 to 7 minutes. Slice the steak against the grain and serve with the lime wedges.

NEW MEXICO CARNE ADOVADA

Steps:

• Cut pork loin roast into large bite sized pieces. Salt and pepper to taste.Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil. When oil is hot, add pork pieces and brown on two sides. Cook in batches as not to crowd the pork. The pork will brown better.
• Remove pork to a plate.
• Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add butter. Once butter bubbles and bubbles start to subside, add onions. Cook onions, stirring, until just starting to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until fragrant. About 1 minute.
• Add flour and cook, stirring constantly for two minutes. Add chile powder, chicken broth and cook stirring, until gravy starts to thicken. Add cumin, coriander and oregano. Cook for 1 minutes for flavors to blend.
• Remove from heat and add browned pork.
• Stir well, cover and place in refrigerator to marinade overnight. Or for at least 2 - 3 hours before cooking.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees.
• Cook 2 - 2 1/2 hours or until pork is tender.
• Remove pork from oven and stir in molasses and vinegar.
• Place the lid back on the pot and let it steep for about 15 minutes.
• Serve with lime wedges. Serve with rice, hominy or beans, flour tortillas or all. You can also top with a dollop of Sour Cream and some fresh diced sweet onions.

CARNE ADOVADA: NEW MEXICO RED CHILE PORK STEW

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 F.
• Cook the pork, undisturbed, until each piece is browned well on one side, about 3 minutes.

THE BEST CARNE ASADA RECIPE

Steps:

• When ready to cook, remove the extra salsa from the fridge to allow it to warm up a little. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and arrange the coals on one side of the charcoal grate. Set cooking grate in place, cover grill, and preheat for 5 minutes. Alternatively, set half the burners on a gas grill to the highest heat setting, cover, and preheat for 10 minutes. Clean and oil the grilling grate.

CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• Break up achiote rojo into a powder, or as best you can as it is a little moist.
• Mix remaining ingredients except meat into the achiote rojo. Mix well to break up any large pieces of the achiote.
• Place meat in a container or your choice to marinade in and pour the achiote rojo mixture on and work it into the meat.
• Cover and marinade for as long as possible. Time DOES NOT indicate marinade time.
• Get the grill going, pop a beer and get busy. Remember, the wood charcoal is very hot. I get it so my hand can stand the heat test for 2-3 seconds. Closer to 2 seconds, though.
• Put the meat on the grill. Let the meat get good and charred then turn over. Grill for a few minutes and the meat is almost done. At this point make a foil sack to put the meat in . Push the coals away from one side of the grill, put meat in foil sack so that all the meat is covered. Then just put the meat sack on the side where no coals are. They will finish cooking in their own juices.
• When done let the meat rest a few minutes. Cut on a bias and roll 'em up in tortillas and salsa of choice.

CARNE ASADA (JUICY SKIRT STEAK + MOJO MARINADE!)

Steps:

• Start by choosing your cut of beef. See notes for more details. If you can find outside skirt steak (call a real butcher!) then definitely use that! Make sure whatever cut of meat you choose is well marbled with fat. Fat=flavor.
• Make the marinade. In a blender, add 1 tablespoon orange zest, 3/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice, 3 tablespoons lime juice, 1/4 cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons Maggi seasoning (or soy sauce), 5 cloves garlic, 1 small bunch cilantro leaves, 2 tablespoons oregano, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 2 teaspoons cumin, 1 and 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper.
• Place 2 ounces dried ancho chiles (usually about 4-5 chiles) on a plate and microwave for about 30 seconds. Use scissors to snip off the stem at the top, and dump out all the seeds. Tear the chiles into a few strips. Microwave again for another 20 seconds or so to make them nice and pliable. Add the chiles to the blender and blend well until everything is combined. It's okay if it's a little chunky, the pieces of chili that don't get blended will become soft and pliable as they sit in the marinade.
• Reserve 1/2 cup of the marinade and store in the fridge.
• Unroll your outside skirt steak. Use a sharp knife to chop the meat into 6 inch long steaks, slicing WITH the grain. (You can skip this step if you like. I find it's easier to grill smaller steaks but if you want to try to fit a 2 foot long behemoth on your grill, be my guest. I also like chopping into smaller steaks because some sections are thinner or thicker than others, and we want everything to cook evenly. You can take a super thin section of steak off the grill way earlier than a thick section. Individual steaks also make it way easier to slice against the grain later.)
• Place the steaks in a large casserole dish or in a ziplock. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon kosher salt on top of the steaks, flip each one over, then sprinkle the other teaspoon of kosher salt on the other side. Make sure you are using kosher salt. (if using table salt, use less.) Salt makes the meat even more tender in addition to enhancing the flavor.
• Add the marinade on top of the steaks and stir and flip around to coat. Seal the bag or cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours.
• Before grilling, prep all your garnishes: Make the Pico de Gallo. Prepare the salsa. Make the guacamole. Slice the radishes. Chop the cilantro. Slice the limes into wedges. Use a fork to break up the queso fresco and add to a bowl. Set out the sour cream and extra mojo marinade. This steak cooks quickly, we want to be ready!
• Preheat your grill to high heat, abut 450 to 500 degrees. Let it preheat for at least 20 minutes.
• Remove the steaks from the marinade. You can either toss the marinade, or you can transfer it to a small pot and bring to a boil for about 3-5 minutes then serve with the tacos. It's so good, I don't like to waste it.
• Use paper towels to pat each steak dry. It won't be perfect, but the drier they are when they hit the grill, the more browning effect we will get. Let the steaks sit at room temperature for 20-30 minutes while your grill preheats.
• Just before you are ready to put the steak on the grill, oil the grates. I like to add a little olive oil to a bowl, use tongs to dip a paper towel in it lightly (don't soak it) and rub the grill grates where the steak is going to go.
• Brush each steak lightly with a neutral oil so they don't stick.
• Place your steak on the grill and shut the lid (if using a charcoal grill, you can leave the lid off). Set a timer for 1 minute, then check each steak. If there is significant browning, it is ready to flip. If not, let cook 1 more minute. Flip each steak (thin steaks first) and shut the lid and set another timer for 1-2 minutes depending on the thickness of the steak. As a general rule for outside skirt steak, once the meat is browned on both sides, you can safely assume that the steak is cooked to about medium rare in the center. If you are nervous, use a meat thermometer and take it off the heat when it registers about 115 degrees F. (It will continue cooking while it rests.)
• Remove the meat from the grill and place on a cutting board. Tent with foil and let rest about 10 minutes.
• Char the tortillas. Brush each tortilla with a little bit of oil. (I actually stirred together about 1 teaspoon of the mojo marinade with 1/4 cup of oil and brushed the tortillas with that. It's optional.) Char the tortillas on the grill for about 30 seconds per side. If you see the tortillas start to bubble, that's when it's ready to flip it/take it off heat. Line a plate with a tea towel and wrap each tortilla with the towel as it comes off the grill.
• Slice the carne asada into very thin strips. See photos. Make sure you are slicing AGAINST the grain. You should see a pattern of little squares and rectangles on a cross section of the meat if you are slicing it correctly. Use a sharp knife to slice the steak into very thin strips, on the bias against the grain. "On a bias" means you should be cutting at a 45 degree angle, not straight up and down like you would slice bread. (This increases the surface area of each bite, and shortens the muscle fibers, enhancing tenderness.) "Against the grain" means that your knife should be cutting the meat perpendicular to the lines of muscle ("grain") that you can see on the steak. See photo.
• Assemble the tacos. Layer two charred tortillas on a plate. Top with strips of carne asada, Pico de gallo, salsa, guacamole, radishes, cilantro, lime wedges, queso fresco, sour cream, and extra (cooked) mojo marinade, if desired.

CARNE ASADA 101: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW

Steps:

• Heat a skillet with 2 tablespoons of oil over medium high heat. Add garlic and ancho chili to the skillet. Cook, stirring often, until fragrant and garlic is lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes.
• In the bowl of a food processor, combine oil mixture, cumin, 1/2 cup cilantro, lime, oregano, salt, and agave in a blender. Process until smooth, about 30 seconds.
• Place skirt steak in a resealable plastic bag and pour marinade over skirt steak. Seal bag and shake until evenly coated. Chill 2 hours.
• Heat grill to high heat, between 450°F - 500°F. Grill the steaks for 3-4 minutes on each side. The steaks will cook to medium-rare. Cut into slices against the grain and serve.

CHILE CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• Rehydrate the dried chiles which will take about 30 minutes and puree.
• Whisk the chile puree, the lime juice and cumin together.
• Rub the mixture on the meat, cover and let it marinate for at least 2 hours, or overnight if you can.
• Bring to room temperature and cook on a medium hot grill to desired doneness.

CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• If you have a blender (or food processor): Combine all the ingredients except the skirt steak (the orange juice, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, chili powder, ancho chili powder, cumin, coriander, and salt) in the blender jar. Blend for about 30 seconds on high speed, to puree the ingredients.
• To make the marinade without a machine: You will combine all the ingredients except the skirt steak as well, but you will need to chop everything by hand. Mince the garlic and jalapeno as finely as you can, and finely chop the cilantro. I recommend only using the leaves in this case.
• Prep the skirt steak: When you buy skirt steak from the butcher, it will likely come in long pieces over a foot long. I recommend cutting these into smaller pieces now, about 6" in length. Cut with the grain (see blog photo).
• Marinate: Place the skirt steak in a plastic ziptop bag and add all of the marinade. Toss well to combine and make sure the steak is completely coated on all sides. Refrigerate for ideally 18-24 hours. I would say the bare minimum is 8 hours, but a day ahead is noticeably better.
• Cook: Preheat at least two burners of the grill on high for 10 minutes, to get the temperature up to a minimum of 600F. In the meantime, remove the carne asada from the marinade and place on paper towels to absorb excess liquid. There shouldn't be a ton of excess marinade anyway, but I recommend discarding it. I have tried cooking it to serve along with the beef, but in my opinion it's completely unnecessary and does not add anything to the dish.
• Once the grill is preheated, add all of the skirt steak and promptly close the lid. There should be no need to oil the grill or the meat here, so long as the grill has well-seasoned cast iron grates and is at least 600F. I personally don't have issues with sticking, and like to avoid oiling the meat to prevent flareups.
• Let the skirt steak cook with the lid closed for 90 seconds, then open the lid, and turn each piece of steak 90 degrees. Close the lid and let cook for another 90 seconds.
• Flip each piece of meat over and again close the lid for 90 seconds. Turn each pieces 90 degrees, and cook for another minute.
• Begin checking the temperature of the steaks. Because skirt steak is chewy by nature, I like to serve it rare and pull it off the grill at 120F. The thinner pieces will likely be done, but if you have thicker pieces, they may need further cooking. Flip again, close the lid, and keep cooking in 90 second intervals, rechecking the internal temperature as needed.
• Remove the skirt steak to a plate or rack, and let rest for 5 minutes. Then slice and serve promptly. Enjoy!

CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• Lay the skirt steak in a large nonreactive bowl or baking dish.
• Combine the oil, soy sauce, garlic, lime juice, cilantro, jalapeno, red wine vinegar, cumin, sugar and 1 tablespoon each salt and pepper. Pour the marinade over the steak, making it's well coated. Cover and refrigerate for 4 to 6 hours, or overnight.
• Preheat a grill or cast-iron skillet to high heat. Remove the steak from the marinade, sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper, and place it on the grill. (If cooking indoors, remove excess marinade, as the garlic may burn and smoke).
• Grill the steak for just a few minutes per side, depending on thickness, until it is cooked to your preference. You may need to work in batches.
• Transfer the steak to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice the steak thinly against the grain on a diagonal and serve.

ANCHO AND COCOA CARNE ASADA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Stir together ancho powder, cocoa, and cinnamon.
• Pat steak dry and season with 3/4 teaspoon salt, then coat with spice mixture. Heat oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then cook steak, turning once, 8 to 9 minutes for medium-rare.
• While steak cooks, wrap tortillas in foil and warm in oven.
• Let steak rest 5 minutes on a cutting board, then thinly slice across the grain at an angle.
• Serve steak with warm tortillas and coleslaw mix.