Carne Asada is a marinated masterpiece that is bursting with Mexican flavor. This recipe uses thinly sliced flank or skirt steak and is grilled to absolute perfection.
In Spanish, carne asada is translated simply to mean grilled meat. Pretty straightforward right?! It is usually used in tacos, burritos, fajitas or salads and is a family favorite of ours.
Carne Asada Tacos
Recipe Ingredients
- Marinade ingredients: I make my carne asada marinade out of olive oil, soy sauce, lime juice, orange juice, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, cumin, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. All of these things hang out together and make the more flavorful meat!
- 2 pounds flank steak (or skirt steak): these is the base of the recipe, sometimes I have a hard time finding one or the other cut and so you can use either
- Extras needed for serving such as: tortillas, cheese, salsa, guacamole, lettuce, etc. - you have a lot of flexibility here! The meat is great in tacos, burritos, tostadas, in salad, or in rice bowls.
How To Make The Marinade
The marinade for this carne asada will arouse your senses. It is made up of soy sauce, orange juice, garlic, cilantro and lime juice. It is fragrant to whisk up and the taste is bold but excellent. I like to let the meat sit in the marinade for at least a few hours or overnight if you have the time.
Once your carne asada meat has marinated sufficiently it’s time to fire up the grill. Grilling goes quickly because the meat is cut thin. Each side only needs to grill for about 5-7 minutes. If you want a perfect medium-rare meat than watch for the thermometer to read 135 degrees.
I know it is tempting to start chowing down as soon as the meat is grilled but always let your meat rest before eating. If you let grilled meat rest for just a few minutes before cutting it then it tends to be juicier.
Step By Step Instructions
You are going to love how easy this is!
- Mix up your marinade.
- Add your meat and let it rest.
- Grill up your meat and let it rest.
- Cut up the steak into small pieces and enjoy!
Best Asada Taco Toppings:
- I love making a simple mixture of fresh jalapeno, onion, and cilantro mixed with lime juice and salt. That's my favorite carne asada taco toppings for sure.
- Cheese
- Fresh guacamole
- Pico de Galo
- Cilantro Lime Ranch
Frequently Asked Questions
Carne asada makes for amazing tacos. I have also served it in burritos, fajitas, salads, atop fries or just by itself served with traditional Mexican sides like Easy Spanish Rice. It tastes great alongside homemade guacamole, pico de gallo or rice.
When slicing carne asada you want to look for the grain of the meat and then cut perpendicular to it. Doing this will break up the muscle fibers and cause the meat to be more tender. You want your slices to be wide and thin.
Carne asada is traditionally made with skirt or flank steak. These two meats are very similar and can be used interchangeably.
You can store your leftover carne asada in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 5-7 days. It also freezes really well. Just ensure that you have the meat in an airtight bag or container.
More recipes:
If you’ve tried my authentic carne asada recipe or any other recipe on Bless this Mess, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some pictures of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories.
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Carne Asada Recipe
- Total Time: 5 hours
- Yield: Serves 4
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
The best Carne Asada Tacos are marinated until juicy and flavorful and then grilled to perfection. Served with fresh toppings, this recipe will quickly become a summer-time family favorite.
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil (or other light oil)
- ¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- juice of 1 lime
- juice of 1 orange
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic (about 4 cloves)
- ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro
- 1 jalapeno, finely chopped (remove seeds to reduce heat)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 pounds flank steak (or skirt steak)
- Extras needed for serving such as: tortillas, cheese, salsa, guacamole, lettuce, etc.
Instructions
- In a large zipper top gallon-sized baggie or a shallow dish with a lid, add the olive oil, soy sauce, juice of the lime, juice of the orange, garlic, cilantro, jalapeno, cumin, salt, pepper, and paprika.
- Use a fork to combine.
- Add the flank steak to the dish or bag and use the fork to move the steak around in the marinade to coat it well (or close up the bag and massage the marinade into the steak a bit).
- Cover or close the bag and place the steak in the fridge to marinade for 4 hours or up to 24 hours. Turn the bag or move the steak around in the dish a few times if you remember to make sure it stays evenly covered in the marinate (you don't have to mix it around, just if you can).
- When you are ready to prepare the carne asada, preheat your grill to medium high heat.
- Clean and oil the grates (I do this with a cleaning brush and then I dip a paper towel in oil and rub it on the grates; this helps everything to not stick).
- Place the steak pieces on the grill and cook for 6 minutes per side, flipping once for medium cooked steak.
- Remove from the grill and allow the meat to rest for 5 minutes.
- After the meat has rested, slice it thinly against the grain and serve it however you like best.
- The meat is great in tacos, on salad, in a burrito, in a Tex-Mex style rice bowl, the possibilities are endless.
Notes
- I tend to cook my steak medium well for this recipe, my kids don't like it too pink in the middle, adjust the cooking time to reflect your steak doneness preferences.
- This recipes doubles really well, I normally double this amount for my family of 7 and we eat every last bit.
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 20 min
- Category: main dish
- Method: grilling
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: carne asada, carne asada marinade, how to make carne asada, carne asada recipe
Carne Asada is a breeze to make. Just marinate the meat, grill it, slice the meat and enjoy. Bring a restaurant favorite to your home today!
Martha M
What could be substituted for the soy sauce? Worcestershire maybe?
Melissa
I think that would work great!