Carne asada is a classic, authentic Mexican recipe made with skirt or flank steak. Grilled to perfection over high heat and served in many dishes.
Recipe Highlights
- Perfect carne asada flavor profile with tricks learned from restaurants.
- Easy to make marinade.
- Is great on the grill but you can make it in your home as well.
Ingredients for the recipe
- Skirt or flank steak
- Lime
- Chili powder
- Cumin powder
- Salt & black pepper
- Oil
- Soy sauce
Please avoid these mistakes, helpful tips
- Marinating is your best friend in this recipe. If you don’t have time for marinating the steak overnight it is fine to do it a few hours before. For the sake of flavor I strongly recommend you marinate the meat.
- Choosing your cuts wisely. What I mean is how thick or big the steak is. Seasonings like chili powder and cumin will start to burn after a certain amount of time over high heat. If you choose a super thick cut then you risk there being a burnt flavor and not a charred flavor. If this happens, you can always sear the steak over the grill then bring up to temp in your oven.
- If you do not have a grill such as charcoal or gas then a cast iron pan is perfect and will work just as well. Of course, there will be some flavors missing but the steak will still be great.
- Be sure to slice the meat against the grain. The grain are the lines you see in the meat. Don’t cut with them you want to go in the opposite direction to keep the meat as tender as possible.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What does carne asada mean?
Thankful to say that I speak Spanish, carne asada are two words and not so much a phrase. Carne is meat in Spanish while asada means grilled. So, it means “meat grilled” which can be any cut of meat and not just beef which is “res” in latin america.
What kind of meat is carne asada?
For this recipe, it’s steak. And to make things easier when you visit Mexican restaurants it’s also steak. But, not just any steak. You’ll never see a ribeye being used. The cuts will always be flank and on some occasions you may find skirt steak. However, skirt is my favorite so I highly recommend it.
Do I need a grill? Can I cook carne asada indoors?
A grill provides a distinctive flavor but truly all you need is high heat to cook a great carne asada recipe. I recommend a cast iron pan because that’s what’s common and why you see fajitas brought out steaming on cast iron.
How do I serve carne asada?
The most classic way are tacos or even inside a burrito. A little onion, cilantro and lime are all you need and particularly a corn tortilla.
Carne Asada
Ingredients
- 16 ounce steak (skirt steak or flank steak)
- 1 lime
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- In a bowl, rub steak down with soy sauce and a zested lime then cover for 4 hours or overnight. Remove steak from the refrigerator about an hour before cooking.
- Before grilling marinade of oil, cumin, chili powder and black pepper. Rub steaks down and set aside until grill comes up to temp.
- Bring grill to temperature of a minimum of 400°F. Anything over is fine.
- Before putting the steaks on the grill squeeze the juice from a lime. You will baste the steak with lime while grilling.
- Add the steak to the grill. The steak should take about 3 minutes to each side. Do not close the cover on the grill, leave it open.
- when you do the first flip brush/baste lime juice across the top of the steak.
- Remove steak from the grill after 6 minutes. The steak should be cooked through but if it isn't what you'd personally like place on a sheet pan in the oven at 400°F until the steak reaches and internal temp of your liking.
Nutrition
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.