CARNE ASADA SEASON
ANITA L. ARAMBULA Confessions of a Foodie
Spice up your summer tacos with grilled meat that’s synonymous with outdoor cookouts.
GRILLING SEASON IS IN FULL SWING, which makes me happy. That’s not to say grilling season really ever ends in sunny San Diego, but at least now, the rest of the nation has caught up! So I thought I’d share this little twist on one of my favorite summer grillworthy foods: the carne asada taco.
■ There is nothing that reminds me more of those long-ago, carefree summers as a kid than the smell of steaks grilling. Images of my dad building his fire and prepping his meat are so deeply imprinted in my brain that I can scarcely think of summer without calling up those memories.
■ My dad’s carne asada kept all five of his daughters happy for summertime eats. It’s no surprise that carne asada quickly became one of my favorite dishes to grill and serve to friends and family.
More than just a taco filling
When people hear “carne asada,” they immediately think of a type of grilled meat. But it can mean so much more than that.
An invitation to a carne asada is the Mexican equivalent to an invitation to a cookout or barbecue: It’s a social gathering promising good times with friends and family and food — lots of food. Mostly, it’s grilled steaks, flavorful Mexican chorizo and zesty marinated and grilled chicken, plus a selection of fresh salsas and warm tortillas. Often included on the buffet-style tables are frijoles de la olla (big ol’ pot of beans), fluffy tomato-scented rice and platters overflowing with charred ears of salted corn on the cob doused with fresh-squeezed lime, sprinkled with cotija cheese and dotted with hot sauce.
It’s music and libations and usually a little something sweet to end the day. It’s a weekend party where the week’s worries are melted away with the smell of sizzling meat cooking over high heat.
And the star of these weekend carne asadas is, well, carne asada — delectable pieces of thin steaks that kiss screaming-hot grates, crisping up the edges that are then thinly sliced and stuffed into warm tortillas topped with salsas, bits of sharp white onion, cilantro and creamy guacamole.
What cut of meat should I use for carne asada?
Probably one of the most-asked questions about carne asada is what cut of meat to use. Honestly, for me, it’s whatever is on sale, because it doesn’t have to be an expensive cut, it just needs to be a thin and flavorful one. The most popular choice is skirt steak, but I also love to use flap, flank and, if I can find it, hanger steak. Besides choosing a thin cut so that it cooks quickly, probably the most important thing to know is that when you’re ready to serve, you must cut against the grain. Otherwise, you won’t have a pleasant experience, regardless of how wonderfully the meat was seasoned and grilled.
To marinate or not to marinate?
There is an ongoing debate about whether to marinate steaks for carne asada, and both camps are quite passionate about their position.
Some choose to simply use a dry rub on the meat before grilling. Others don’t do anything to the meat until after it hits the grill, then sprinkle it with a personal-to-each-cook mix of garlic and onion powders, salt and pepper. And then there are those who stand by their marinade.
I came from a family of cooks who love their marinades.
At its most basic, a carne asada marinade can be as simple as lime juice, minced garlic, chopped onion and coarse ground black pepper. Variations grow from there, which is where I’m going today with the addition of a spicy salsa verde and some chopped cilantro. Salt is generally not added to carne asada marinades. Instead, the salt is added during the cooking process. More on that in a bit.
Whichever way you choose, so long as carne asada is well seasoned and cooked over high heat, you really can’t go wrong.
Tips for grilling the meat
Carne asada means “roasted meat” and can refer to searing and cooking the meat in a cast-iron pan or broiling indoors. But when it’s grilled, it’s also referred to as al carbon, which means “over coals” — suggesting that the best way to pack the most authentic flavor into the meat is to cook it on a charcoal or wood grill. My dad starts his an hour or so before starting to cook to get it screaming hot, the coals turning into smoldering gray ash with flecks of red embers peeking through the center.
Using a charcoal grill is an art form that requires some patience and practice to perfect. For the besttasting results, I suggest not using lighter fluid to get your coals going; instead, use a chimney starter.
For those of us who gave up our charcoal grills for the convenience of gas, we can still enjoy that classic smoky char flavor of carne asada by adding to our gas grills a smoker box filled with soaked mesquite chips. The smoky flavor isn’t nearly as intense as cooking over smoldering coals or wood, but for those of us who have chosen the immediate satisfaction of gas, it’s a decent stand-in.
Once the grates are smoking hot, add the meat. It should sizzle and smoke immediately. If it doesn’t, the grill is not hot enough yet. When the meat’s juices start to release, season your meat with sea salt. Wait a minute or so for the salt to melt into the juice, then flip the meat over. After about a minute, season this second side, wait another minute, then remove to a heavy pot with a secure lid to keep the meat warm while you cook the rest. Generally, total cooking time over a hot grill should be between 5 and 7 minutes, depending on the thickness of the meat.
When ready to serve, thinly slice the meat against the grain with a very sharp knife. Most taquerias chop the meat into more bite-size pieces to make it even easier to eat in a taco, but we’ll leave that up to personal preference. Pile some meat into a warmed, slightly charredaround-the-edges corn tortilla, add some Mexican pickled red onions (cebollas en escabeche) and strips of fire-roasted poblano peppers (rajas), then top with some avocado crema. Finish with a squeeze of lime, a sprinkling of cotija cheese and a few cilantro leaves and you’ve got yourself one loaded bite of taco bliss.
If your backyard is large enough to entertain a friend or two while still being able to follow social distancing rules, lay out a table with bowls of toppings such as chopped white onions, tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, sliced jalapeños, queso fresco or cotija, some pico de gallo, various salsas and some avocado crema so your guests can make their own custom tacos. Don’t forget to set a bottle of hand sanitizer on the table so everyone can stay safe while handling serving utensils.
What about libations?
In my humble opinion, nothing goes better with carne asada tacos than ice-cold margaritas, but fruity and sweet sangria is a close second. If you’re a wine drinker, a fruity wine is best. I love a good grenache (garnacha).
I am not much of a beer drinker, but from my informal research, the consensus is a malt-forward Viennastyle lager (like Negra Modelo), which pairs well with the smoky char of the meat while also helping to tame spicy salsas.
Summer. Food. Family.
Friends. It is this bigger idea of carne asada that those priceless summertime memories of my dad tending his fire conjure up for me. I hope, even in this stay-home summer of 2020, carne asada can find its way into your summertime memories.
Arambula is the food section art director and designer. She blogs at www.confessionsofafoodie.me, where this article originally published. Follow her on Instagram: @afotogirl.