Chipotle Skirt Steak Tacos

If there is one thing we don't lack here at the lake are Mexican restaurants and grocery stores.  I haven't ventured out there yet, I'm still casing the joint. 

As I've mentioned before, nothing gets thrown out in my kitchen, and in my mind, whenever I cook something, particularly on the grill, there is always a plan for leftovers.

Skirt is one of my favorite cuts of meat.  I love to grill it the first night and serve it Argentinian style with chimichurri sauce, french fries and creamed spinach.  The leftovers, are usually destined for Mexican tortillas or tacos the next night...that is, if the dogs don't get to it first.  I am a sucker for a cute face, especially Lucy's and chances are that if its grilled, its gone.  Most of the time, I will leave a piece uncooked for the next night, especially if there is a marinade involved.

This recipe is from my friend Jaden at Steamy Kitchen.  She is one of the best food bloggers around and certainly one of the most hardworking.

Chipotle peppers are red jalapeños which are ripened, dried and smoked. On the richter scale of chili heat, they are considered medium. Canned with an adobo sauce, which is a mixture of spices, vinegar, garlic, tomato sauce and other chilies, the concoction becomes mighty marinade for steak tacos. If you’ve never used chipotle con adobo before, make the marinade with a single pepper first, taste and then add additional if you like more heat. The canned product can be found at any grocer in the Latin foods section.



Serves 4

Ingredients

2 lbs skirt steak

1/4 onion

2 cloves of garlic

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coriander

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

canned Chili en Adobo: 1-3 chipotle peppers + 2 tsp of adobo sauce (use more peppers if you like the heat)

1 Tbl chopped cilantro

accompaniments: corn tortillas, shredded cheese, avocado, sour cream, lettuce, lime wedges, salsa,


Directions

Puree a single chipotle pepper (not the whole can) + 2 tsp of the adobo sauce with the onion, garlic, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Taste and add more chipotle if needed. Stir in the cilantro. Throw it all in a zip lock bag with the skirt steak for at least 2 hours. Grill medium-rare. Cut the skirt steak into thin strips across the grain. Serve with taco accompaniments.

Note: I throw the corn tortillas directly on the grill 30 seconds, flip, add cheese, grill 30 seconds, remove. This melts the cheese oh-so-perfectly and chars the tortilla edges just a tiny bit for that crunch. Heating it also takes away some of the “rawness” that corn tortillas have when they are straight out of the bag.

From Steamy Kitchen