Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Spicy Steak Tacos


This is my variation of a recipe that my friend Kristy showed me, when she was staying with us back in September. It was awesome to take turns cooking dinners and learning a few new tricks from her. This isn't exactly how she does it, but pretty close. She cutes up actual pieces of steak and sautés them with the peppers, she likes her meat well done. I make an actual roast and use about half of the meat for these tacos, then the other half for another meal such as steak panini's or stir fry. 

Ingredients:
  • 2-3 pound roast ( I used a bottom round)
  • 2 medium green bell peppers, diced
  • 1 jalapeño, take seeds out for milder spice and dice
  • 1 large yellow onion
  • Goya pickled jalapeños and carrots ( this comes in a pop top can and I use about 5 jalapeños out of the can, dice them- and set aside some juice from the can)
  • corn tortillas ( soft, taco sized)
  • vegetable oil
  • olive oil
  • chopped cilantro
  • lime wedges
  • sour cream
First you want to roast the meat. First trim any fat off of the roast, this will help later on so you don't get a really tough piece in your taco. I seasoned it with salt, pepper, and adobo, and let it go at 325 for about an hour and half. This all depends on the size and how you want it cooked. Use a meat thermometer if you have one and take it out when it's at the desired doneness. I cook mine to a medium, so it doesn't get to tough when I reuse the meat for another meal later on. After the roast is done, let it rest for 15 minutes. Then cut up the amount of meat you want to use into bit sized pieces and set aside.


Now you want to make your pepper and onion mix. In a skillet on medium high heat add a little olive oil, the diced onions, bell peppers, jalapeño and pickled jalapeños. Let it cook down until all of the vegetables are softened 5-10 minutes. Then toss in your cut up meat and some reserved jalapeño juice let it cook just for a minute or two to warm the meat up with the vegetables.
Now to prepare the tortillas, (you can do this while you're doing the veggies so everything is done at the same time), add vegetable oil to a small skillet just enough to cover the bottom.
Let it heat up on medium high for 2 minutes until it starts to bubble. Add 1 tortilla and fry it for about a minute, minute and a half until the bottom starts to brown. Fold it in half and place on a paper towel lined plate to drain. Repeat this with the desired amount of taco shells you want to make, adding more vegetable oil if needed to the skillet. 


Assemble your tacos with the steak and peppers, sour cream, fresh cilantro and a squirt of fresh lime juice. That's all you need for a truly awesome and spicy steak taco.


Frying the tortillas like this is really an imperative part to the recipe. I never cared for corn tortillas but when Kristy showed me how to do it this way, I was amazed at how awesome it was. It's truly all of the elements of this taco though, that make it so tasty. The spiciness from the jalapeños, the creaminess of the sour cream, then you can just the right kick of the cilantro and the perfect amount of acidity from the lime juice. I can't rave about these tacos enough, you really need to make them! Cheers!



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