Carne Asada Fries
on Apr 30, 2024, Updated Jun 05, 2024
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These Carne Asada Fries feature an array of flavor-packed ingredients! The perfectly seasoned steak, gooey cheese, and delicious toppings come together to create the perfect appetizer or entree.
Our easy-to-make carne asada fries make the perfect addition to taco Tuesday! We like to set out a variety of toppings with this dish so that everyone can customize their own fries. The carne asada is the highlight of this dish. It is marinated in a blend of lime juice, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and red pepper flakes before being grilled.
The marinate helps lock in the moisture of the beef and fills it with flavor that soaks into your fries. One of the best parts about this recipe is how easy it is to customize. Add your own personal twist to this recipe by using your favorite kind of fries, cut of steak, taco seasoning, or toppings!
Table of Contents
Recipe Ingredients
- Steak—We like to use a thinner cut like skirt steak, but any cut will work great!
- Lime Juice—Gives your steak a sweet, zesty flavor that is complimented nicely by the spice blend.
- Olive Oil—Helps lock in the moisture of the steak so it doesn’t dry out as it cooks.
- Spice Blend—A flavorful combination of red pepper flakes, onion powder, garlic powder, and salt.
- French Fries—Any cut of fry will work great.
- Cheddar Cheese—Freshly grated cheese will melt best. Feel free to use your favorite kind of cheese!
- Optional Toppings—We like to top our carne asada fries with sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo to add a little extra flavor.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to Make Carne Asada Fries
Step #1. Make the marinade. Then add your steak and marinade to a large Ziploc bag. Shake the bag to evenly coat the steak and place it in the fridge to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Step #2. Cook your steak in a pan over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes, or until it is fully cooked. While the steak is cooking, cook your fries in the air fryer according to the package directions.
Step #3. Slice the steak into thin strips. Transfer your fries to a large skillet and top them with your carne asada and cheese. Broil the skillet on high for 3-5 minutes, or until the cheese is fully melted.
Step #4. Top your carne asada fries with sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo, or any other toppings you’d like. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe FAQs
Ideally you want to use a thinner cut of meat when making carne asada, but it is really up to you. Thinner cuts of steak will absorb more flavor and cook more evenly than a thick piece of steak. As a result, we like to use skirt or flank steak for this dish. With that being said, feel free to experiment with your favorite cut of steak and see what you like best!
It depends on how you like your carne asada. We always recommend cooking your steak until it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F. For a more well-done piece of meat you can add a few minutes to the cook time. For a rarer carne asada you can remove a few minutes.
How to Store Your Leftover Carne Asada Fries
If you have any leftover carne asada fries then transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can reheat your fries in the oven for 10 minutes at 350° F. Alternatively, you can reheat them in the air fryer for 7-10 minutes at 350°F. Both of these methods help crisp up the fries again without drying out the carne asada.
Popular Substitutes and Variations
Customizing this dish couldn’t be easier! From the cheese to the seasoning blend, there are countless ways to modify your carne asada fries. Here are some of our favorite changes to give you some ideas:
- Cheese—Try switching out your cheese for pepper jack, monterey jack, or colby jack cheese.
- Spice Blend—Switch out the custom spice blend of a premade taco seasoning mix. You can also make your steak spicier by adding chipotle chili powder or tabasco sauce to the marinate.
- French Fries—Switch up what kind of fries you use. You can never go wrong with crinkle or waffle cut!
Expert Tips
- Cooking your fries in the air fryer helps make them crispier and cuts down on the prep time for this dish. If you don’t have an air fryer then the oven will be great.
- You can use traditional french fries as well as shoestring, steak, crinkle, or waffle cut fries in this recipe. You can also use sweet potato fries, but they won’t get as crispy.
- The longer your steak sits in the marinade, the more flavor the meat will absorb. We recommend letting your steak sit for a minimum of 30 minutes. When you have extra time, let your steak sit for 2 hours to soak up as much flavor as possible.
- Other toppings you can use include guacamole, chipotle sauce, Tabasco sauce, freshly chopped cilantro, chopped black olives, pico de gallo, etc.
- If you want to add a little extra spice to your dish then try using pepper jack cheese. Other cheeses you can use include Colby jack and white cheddar.
More Beef Recipes To Consider
Beef Recipes
Reverse Sear Steak
From Scratch Recipes
Beef Noodle Soup
1 Hour or Longer Recipes
Beef Bourguignon
Crock Pot Recipes
Mississippi Pot Roast
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Carne Asada Fries
Ingredients
- 2 pounds skirt steak
- ½ cup lime juice
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound French fries
- ¾ cup shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ cup guacamole
- ½ cup pico de gallo
Instructions
- Add your steak, lime juice, olive oil, red pepper flakes, onion powder, and garlic powder to a large Ziploc bag. Give the bag a quick shake to evenly coat the steak and place it in the fridge to marinate for 30 minutes.
- After marinating the steak, cook it in a pan over medium-high heat for about 8 minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 160°F.
- While the carne asada is cooking, cook your fries in the air fryer according to the package directions.
- Once the carne asada is done cooking, slice it into thin strips. Place your fries in a large skillet and top them with the carne asada and cheese. Broil the skillet on high for 3-5 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly.
- Top your fries with sour cream, guacamole, and pico de gallo.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- We like to cook our French fries in the air fryer to get more of a crisp and cut down on the prep time for this dish. However, you can cook your fries in the oven as well.
- You can use French, steak, crinkle, or waffle cut fries in this recipe. You can also use sweet potato fries if you’d like.
- The longer you let your steak sit in the marinade, the more flavorful it will be. We recommend letting your steak sit for a minimum of 30 minutes. When you have extra time, let your steak sit for 2 hours to soak up as much flavor as possible.
- Other toppings you can use include chipotle sauce, Tabasco sauce, freshly chopped cilantro, chopped black olives, etc.
- For a little extra spice you can use pepper jack cheese.
