Tex-Mex Tuesday: Tacos de Arrachera

carrie — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 11:30:34 +0000

Last week at the farmer’s market I picked up a “butcher’s steak” from Deep Roots Meat. A few weeks before I noticed their ground beef in a case by the produce section at my local grocery store. It was the BEST ground beef I’ve ever had. I’ve cooked grass-fed ground beef before and found it good, however, this meat was spectacular. It needed no seasoning at all. It was sweet, beefy, amazing.

Anyhow, when I saw them at the farmer’s market I decided to get a cut that I hadn’t seen at the store. Originally I wanted a skirt steak to make some fajitas, however, they were out so Mr. Platt offered me a butcher’s steak instead. After some internet searching and this helpful wikipedia article I learned several things:

butcher’s steak = hanger steak = onglet (French) = arrachera (Mexican)
well, actually arrachera is skirt steak that has been specially prepared by a Mexican butcher to be extra tender
the piece of meet I had needed to be cooked quickly to medium rare else it would be tough

After my searching I was left with a dilemma: continue on my plan of fajitas OR cook the steak in the traditional french manner with shallots. Ultimately I wanted Mexican so I decided to cook the meat in the traditional French manner (i.e. broil it to medium rare) then cut it into slices to make tacos. Good decision! These were the best Mexican tacos I’ve made yet.

Tacos de Arrachera

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 35 mins

Serves: 4

Though this recipe seems complex it goes together easily. Marinate the meat ahead then while the tomatoes & jalapeños are roasting you can make corn tortillas (if desired) and chop the onions & cilantro.

Ingredients:

Marinade:
1 butcher’s steak (approximately 1 lb)
1/2 – 1 bottle light beer
Juice of 1 lemon
2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
4 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon red chili powder
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
Tomato-chile salsa:
2 tomatoes, chopped in large pieces
2 jalapeños, chopped in large pieces
1 small onion, quartered
4 cloves garlic
1 Tablespoon olive oil
4 chiles de arbol
Onions & cilantro:
1 onion, diced
3/4 cup cilantro, minced
Juice of 1 lemon
16 corn tortillas

Directions:

Marinate the meat: Combine all marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add meat and marinate in refrigerator for 4 hours to overnight.
Make the tomato-chile salsa: Soak the chiles de arbol in boiling water for 20-30 minutes. Combine tomatoes, jalapeños, onion, and whole garlic cloves on a baking sheet. Toss with 1 Tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast in a 425°F oven for 20 minutes. Purée everything in a blender and salt to taste.
Roasting the tomato-chile salsa
Make the onions & cilantro: Combine onions, cilantro and lemon in a bowl. Set aside.
Cook the meat: Preheat broiler. Place marinated steak (sans marinade) on a baking sheet (use aluminum foil) or a large cast iron skillet. Broil for 4 minutes per side for medium rare; 5 minutes per side for medium. Take meat out of the oven and cover. Let sit for 5 minutes. Cut into thin slices and place in a bowl to serve.
Make corn tortillas or heat store bought.
Serve 3-4 tortillas on each plate with a few slices of meat, a little onion & cilantro mixture, and tomato-chile salsa to your taste. Serve with lemon or lime wedges.

Notes:

Epicurious.com has nice instructions for reheating corn tortillas.

You’ll find chiles de arbol at Mexican groceries. If you cannot find them you can leave them out and substitute a little cayenne. With the chiles this sauce has a medium-level kick.

Get ready to make tacos: Meat, sauces & fresh tortillas.

Picadillo

carrie — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:35:33 +0000

I bought some grass-fed beef the other day and decided to make one of my favorite beef dishes with it – picadillo. I love the slightly sweet and tart taste of the tomatoes and raisins contrasted against the savoriness of the onion & garlic. This recipe is very easy and makes a huge amount. I froze half of it so I would have picadillo on hand. It is such a versatile dish: you can serve it over rice (with or without black beans) or use it as the filling for empanadas, tacos or burritos.

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
2 red or yellow bell peppers, finely diced
8 cloves garlic, minced
6 bay leaves
2 lb. ground beef
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
3/4 cup raisins
3/4 cup sliced green olives
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
4 teaspoons cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

Heat olive oil over medium heat in a heavy skillet. Add onions, peppers, garlic & bay leaves and sauté until vegetables are tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add the ground beef and cook until mostly browned, about 5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes to let the flavors merge together.

cooksimple.com » beef

Tex-Mex Tuesday: Tacos de Arrachera

Picadillo

Ingredients

Directions