Make Carne Asada
Carne asada is a type of thin steak frequently cut into small strips an served in tortilla shells, but it can also be prepared as an entrée. It is usually prepared by marinating and grilling it, but you can also sauté the steak or make it in the slow cooker. Keep reading to learn more about how to prepare this entrée at home.
Contents
Ingredients
Makes 4 to 6 servings
- 2 lbs (900 g) flank steak or skirt steak
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and minced
- 1 tsp (5 ml) ground cumin seed
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) chopped fresh cilantro
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) lime juice
- 2 Tbsp (30 ml) white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) sugar
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) olive oil
Steps
Marinating the Steak
- Combine the marinade ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk together all ingredients except for the steak.
- Make sure to use a bowl or baking dish made from a non-reactive material, like glass. The acid in the vinegar and lime juice can react with metals like aluminum, making them a poor choice.
- If you are unable to find fresh jalapeno peppers, you could also use a serrano chile, which is just about as hot as a jalapeno is. You could also use a canned jalapeno, which has slightly less kick, or 1 tsp (5 ml) of ground red pepper.
- If you do not have fresh minced garlic, you could also use 1/2 tsp (2.5 ml) garlic powder.
- If you only have dried cilantro, use about 8 tsp (40 ml) instead of the 1/2 cup (125 ml) called for with fresh cilantro.
- Coat the steak. Add the steak to the marinade and turn the steak several times to coat all sides thoroughly.
- Flank steak is the most traditional option for carne asada, but other varieties of thin-sliced steak, like skirt steak, can also be used.
- Marinate for 1 to 4 hours. Cover the bowl or baking dish with plastic wrap and let it sit in the refrigerator.
- Generally, the longer you let the steak sit in the marinade, the more tender and more flavorful it will become. Letting it sit in the marinade too long can actually cause it to become tough, though.
- Four hours is the longest recommended time. After that, there will be relatively no difference in the flavor of the steak. You can, however, let it sit up to 24 hours before it starts becoming unpleasant.
- Do not marinate your steak on the kitchen counter. Doing so invites bacteria to grow in the meat. Only marinate the steak in the refrigerator.
Preparing the Grill
- Scrub the grill grate. Use a wire brush to scrub the grill grate, removing any traces of burnt on food from previous grilling sessions.
- Even if you cleaned your grill after using it, it is still a wise idea to clean it again, especially if it has not been used for a while. Scrubbing the grill grate also helps to remove other debris that could have gathered on it in between uses.
- Coat the grill grate with canola oil. Pour a small amount of canola oil onto a clean paper towel and rub the paper towel over the grate.
- The oil creates a non-stick coating that will limit the amount of steak getting stuck to the grill as it cooks.
- In the absence of oil, you could also use aluminum foil. Cover the grill grate in aluminum and poke holes throughout the foil with the tines of a grilling fork. You must poke the holes in the foil so that enough heat can travel through.
- Preheat a charcoal grill. You should begin 20 minutes before cooking, and you need to prepare two areas of high heat and one cooler area.
- Set the grill grate aside temporarily.
- Use a chimney starter to ignite a moderate pile of charcoal briquettes. Let them burn until they are covered in white ash.
- Dump the hot coals into the bottom of the grill. Use tongs with a long handle to carefully spread the coals. You should have two or three layers in one-third of the fire bed, and one or two layers in another third. The remaining third should have no coals.
- Return the grill grate to the grill
- Alternatively, preheat a gas grill. As with the charcoal grill, begin 20 minutes before you plan on cooking. Turn all heat elements on as high as they will go.
- Check the grill before beginning. The grill must be very hot before you can add the steak.
- To check a charcoal grill, hold your hand roughly 4 inches (10 cm) above the tallest flames. You should only be able to count to 1 before needing to pull your hand away. If you can tolerate the heat longer, the grill is not hot enough yet.
- For a gas grill, the temperature gauge needs to reach 500 degrees Fahrenheit (260 degrees Celsius) before it is ready.
Grilling the Steak
- Place the steak on the grill. Use tongs to remove the steak from the marinade and place it on the hottest portion of the grill.
- Hold the steak above the bowl of marinade so that excess marinade drips off. Discard the marinade.
- You can cover the grill after placing the steak on it, but it is not necessary.
- Cook for 8 minutes, turning at least once. After 4 minutes pass and the underside has browned, use tongs to turn the steak over onto the other side. Cook for another 4 minutes for a medium-rare steak.
- The moisture from the marinade should be enough to prevent a crust from forming on the bottom of the steak as it cooks.
- If you want cross-hatching on your steak, rotate the meat 90 degrees after cooking it for 2 minutes. To get cross-hatching on the other side, rotate it 90 degrees after 2 minutes pass on that side.
- You will need to cook the steak for several more minutes per side if you want it to be more well done.
- Check for doneness. Insert an instant-read meat thermometer into the thickest part of the steak. The thermometer should read a minimum of 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius).
- You could also cut into the center of the steak and check the color. At medium-rare, it should be deep pink. At medium, it should start turning brown. At medium-well, it should be mostly brown with a little hint of pink, and at well, it should be completely brown.
Serving the Steak
- Let the steak rest. Transfer the grilled steak to a carving board and let it rest for 3 to 5 minutes.
- By allowing the steak to rest, you give the juices a chance to redistribute themselves in the meat. You will end up with a more thoroughly juicy steak as a result.
- Carve the steak into 1/4-inch (6-mm) thick slices. Hold the steak steady with a meat fork and use your other hand to slice the meat with a carving knife.
- Use a carving knife with a thin blade.
- Turn the steak so that the long end faces you. The muscle fibers, or "grain," should run horizontally.
- Hold the knife at a 45 degree angle and cut the steak across the grain. Do not cut the steak alongside the grain, since doing so will result in tough, chewy meat.
- Serve immediately. Carne asada is best served hot.
Alternate Cooking Methods
- Cook the carne asada in a skillet. sauté the steak in the skillet for about 8 minutes, flipping once in the middle of the cooking process.
- Pour 1 to 2 Tbsp (15 to 30 ml) canola oil in the bottom of the skillet and heat over medium-high heat. Let the oil heat for 1 or 2 minutes so that it becomes sufficiently hot.
- Add the steak to the pan. Cook it for 4 minutes on one side before flipping it over to the other side using tongs. Cook for an additional 4 minutes.
- This will produce a medium-rare steak. Add 1 or 2 minutes onto the cooking time for each additional degree of doneness desired.
- Slow-cook the steak. Cook the steak in a slow cooker for 10 to 12 hours on low.
- Add both the marinated steak and leftover marinade to the slow cooker.
- When cooked this way, the steak will be tender enough to shred with a fork.
Tips
- If desired, you could also serve the steak with warm tortillas and pico de gallo. You could also create a carne asada bowl by serving it over Spanish rice.
Things You'll Need
- Large non-reactive bowl
- Whisk
- Wire grill brush
- Paper towels
- Grill
- Refrigerator
- Stove
- Large skillet pan
- Slow cooker
- Long-handled tongs
- Thin-bladed carving knife
- Carving board
- Instant-read meat thermometer
- Serving plates
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