Carne Asada Part II - The Meat

After I re-reading the street taco post I found it was really geared toward people that lived only in my area. So, I thought I would also include how I make the meat for the tacos when I can't get to the carniceria. 

I almost always use skirt steak for Carne Asada or Fajitas. The meat is thin so it cooks fast and it has a good amount of fat so it stays moist. If you have a choice, go with the outside skirt. It is more tender than the inside skirt and has less to trim off. If you can get your hands on it, try using flap meat in place of the skirt. Flap meat comes from the sirloin and is very good for this recipe.

As with the meat in the original post, trim excess fat and tenderize with a meat mallet. Even though this is a thin cut a couple of whacks with a meat mallet makes all the difference.

Ingredients

3-5 lbs of Outside Skirt/Flap Meat
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1/3 cup lime juice
1 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cups water or 1 bottle Mexican Beer
2 tablespoons fresh garlic - crushed
1 tablespoon white pepper
1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon chile powder
1 tablespoon dried oregano (Mexican if you have it)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 of a large orange, sliced


Putting it together
Place the meat in a large bowl.

You have 2 marinade options here. One is to mix all ingredients in a large bowl until well combined. The other is put everything except the orange slices into a blender or food processor and blend until slightly chunky. Add the rinds from the limes that you squeezed plus the orange slices to the marinade and pour it over the meat. Make sure the beef is completely covered by the marinade. Use your hands to mix the beef around and get it all wet. Cover and let sit for at least 24 hours, about every 4 hours or so mix the meat around so that the marinade gets into all the nooks and crannys. Large ziplock bags work well also.

When ready to cook, remove the meat from the marinade and let it sit at room temperature while you get the fire ready. Finish the meal the same as the Carne Adasa Street Tacos.