The waiter recited that morning’s menu specials and the last entrée he described was accompanied by gratin dauphinois. I should mention that said waiter was especially handsome and especially charming and he pronounced gratin dauphinois with a perfect French accent. Without missing a beat, one of my friends, Muffy, leaned over to him, pointed to a spot on her neck just under her left ear and whispered in a husky voice, “can you say that again….right here?”
It was a classically funny moment and expressed perfectly what the rest of us were thinking.
These days, it’s fantasies of Javier Bardem whispering “carne asada” against a sweet spot in that lovely Spanish accent. But what makes it sexy is that it’s cheap, quick and easy. The carne asada. Not Javier.
When you need a cheap, easy dinner party idea that will feed a ton of people and won’t require lots of last minute prep it’s time to break out the secret weapon: Café Pasqual’s Carne Asada recipe. On a recent weekend, Kathy and I both coincidentally made a batch for respective dinner parties.
Last Halloween, I pre-prepared most of this meal for Juan’s boys night dinner at the house while the girls and I went out carousing. All Juan had to do was slap the meat on the grill and slice it up.
After dinner, our friend Carlos, who we suspect knows a thing or two about great Mexican food, told Juan it was the best carne asada he’d ever had. Of course it could have been the red wine talking but we’ll take a compliment when we can get it.
Seriously it’s a fantasy come true—5 minutes of prep and happy dinner guests.
This is our go-to meal for company. It’s dirt cheap and super simple. And all you need to do when it’s time to eat is grill the skirt steak for 5 minutes and heat up some tortillas.
It’s also one of the reasons we love Costco. They always have 3-4 pound packages of skirt steak (otherwise known as Loin Flap) for about $5.60 a pound. The cut is great for quick grilling and has enough fat for meaty flavor.
We recommend brushing corn tortillas with olive oil and grilling them quickly on the Weber. Serve the tacos with whole pinto beans and a green salad. The tacos themselves are best accompanied with a fresh tomatillo and avocado salsa or any other taco toppings you like.
Carne Asada
Adapted From Café Pasqual’s Cookbook
The chile powders called for in this recipe can be procured at the Santa Fe Farmers Market or through mail order sources such as The Chile Shop in Santa Fe 505-983-6080 or the Santa Fe School of Cooking (santafeschoolofcooking.com). If you cannot locate, you can substitute other pure chile powders such as Ancho, Pasilla or a pure New Mexico Chile Powder. Don’t use the grocery store concoction labeled simply chile powder as it is actually a blend of different spices.
Serves 6-8
1 ¼ c olive oil
2 T plus 2 tsp jalapeno chile powder
2 T Chimayo chile powder
3 T chopped garlic
1 T kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp red pepper flakes
2 T fresh lime juice
3 red onions, cut into quarters and separated into pieces (optional)
3 pounds beef Loin Flap (skirt steak) cut into large sections (. Flank steak can be substituted but the results won’t be quite as good
A dozen or so corn tortillas
Guacamole or homemade salsa as an accompaniment
In a glass bowl stir together first 8 ingredients. Place meat and onions if using in zip lock bags and pour marinade over dividing between bags as necessary. Seal bags and massage the meat so it’s evenly covered with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
When ready to cook, remove meat from refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature. Prepare a fire in a charcoal grill and when coals are ready, grill meat and onions over direct heat. The meat will only take a couple of minutes per side for medium rare. The onions may take a bit longer so remove the meat and tent with foil while the onions finish cooking.
Warm the tortillas on the grill or in a hot cast iron pan. Slice the meat thinly across the grain at a slight diagonal. Chop the onions slightly.
To serve allow guests to make tacos with meat, onions, guacamole and salsa.
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