Is Marinated Carne Asada Really The Best Option?

People seem to struggle with this question. Should I marinate my carne asada? The answer is yes! Always marinate. There are two reasons why you want to do this.

1. Marinating meat is a natural way of tenderizing the meat. Skirt steak is often used for carne asada. Skirt steak has a tendency to be chewy and it can get tough very easily if overcooked. Tenderizing allows the meat to soften up by breaking up some of the tough connective tissue making the meat more tender.
2. The second benefit to marinating is more obvious. It’s all about flavor! Skirt steak is rather bland so anything you can do to add flavor before or after it is cooked goes a long way.

Be sure to check out the marinated carne asada recipe below and just for kicks try grilling your carne asada with just salt and pepper and let us know which turns out better?

The original recipe from This Mama Cooks also has a method for cooking this carne asada in a slow cooker. Be sure to check out the original recipe by clicking the link at the bottom of the page.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup olive oil

• 1 cup malt vinegar (any vinegar is fine in a pinch!)

• 1/3 cup lime juice or lemon juice

• 1/3 cup orange juice

• 1 cup water

• 2 tablespoons peeled fresh garlic, minced

• 1 tablespoon ground white pepper

• 1 1/2 tablespoons salt

• 1 tablespoon ground cumin

• 1 tablespoon chili powder

• 1 tablespoon Mexican oregano

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

• 1 orange, sliced

• 1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped

• 5-6 pounds skirt steak

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to combine.

2. Place meat in gallon sized freezer bag, in the bottom of a shallow baking dish, or a non-reactive (plastic or glass) storage container with a lid.

3. Pour carne asada marinade on top of meat, cover dish or close bag, and marinate overnight up to 48 hours in the refrigerator.

Grilling the marinated carne asada:

1. Take meat out of container and grill until just cooked through. (Rare to medium rare.)

2. Cut cooked meat into strips.

3. Place meat and favorite toppings (salsa, cheese, guacamole, avocado slices, tomatoes, shredded cabbage, grilled sweet peppers, etc.) in a tortilla to make into tacos or burritos. You can also serve meat over rice for a carne asada bowl.

Recipe source: This Mama Cooks

Photo source: Closet Cooking