Thursday, January 15, 2009

These Are a Few of My Favorite Things: Steak Tacos


These definitely aren't as veggie friendly as my last taco recipe. In fact, they're pretty much loaded with meat, so if you're vegetarian, avert your eyes!

This is one of those meals that sort of randomly came together based on what I had lurking in my fridge and pantry. Since I basically made it up as I went along my recipe is not very specific, but the end result was completely delicious! So think of this as more of a set of guidelines than a recipe...and have fun with the leftovers in your fridge! Besides, how can you go wrong with tacos in any shape or form?

I made chicken ones for the boys too, since they're not as picky as me, but the steak still won hands down. I got the shells at La Mesa Tortilla Factory, so they were golden and tasty, and crunched ever so satisfyingly ever time I took a bite. The steak was maybe a little too well done...I got a little distracted, but it was garlicky and limey, and when topped with a little cheese, a little lettuce, and a little salsa, was pretty much sublime.

Now that you're hopefully droolingly ready to make these for yourselves, here are the aforementioned guidelines:


Steak (or chicken) Tacos
about 1 lb meat, sliced into about 1 inch strips
1 lime
1-2 tablespoons salad dressing or oil
1 small onion, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

10-12 corn taco shells (or small flour tortillas-I used those for the leftovers and it was equally fantastic!)
about 2 cups of shredded jack or cheddar
about 1 cup of salsa
about 1-2 cups of lettuce, roughly chopped


The night before you plan to make these, get a large ziploc bag, and throw in the meat, the lime (juice it into the bag, then just chuck the rest in), the onion, the garlic, and the oil or dressing. I used vegetable oil for the steak, and balsamic vinaigrette for the chicken. Make sure the bag is securely closed and then pound the meat for a minute or two, making sure that all of it gets coated and the garlic and onion are pretty evenly dispersed.

The next day bust out your handy dandy George Foreman grill (or a grill pan or even a large skillet) and cook the meat for about four minutes on each side, or until cooked to your satisfaction. I discarded the lime pieces and the biggest chunks of garlic so that the garlic breath issue wouldn't be too scary.

While the meat is cooking toast the taco shells in a 300 degree oven until warm. Shred the cheese, chop the lettuce, prep the salsa, open your container of sour cream...etc. Once the meat is done let it rest for a minute or two so that you don't boil your fingertips off, then quickly shred/cut it into bite-size pieces. Place a layer of meat in the bottom of each taco shell, then top it with the toppings that your heart desires. Mmm....tacos.....

Oh and p.s. you will probably have some leftovers, which I can testify will probably taste even better the next day!

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