Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (2024)

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A great carne asada marinade is the foundation of this popular Mexican classic. The marinade has to accomplish two things, add flavor and tenderize the meat. Since carne asada is made with skirt steak which is not the most tender of beef cuts, the marinade is crucial to this carne asada burrito recipe. And another important factor is how to grill carne asada.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (1)

When I lived in Southern California, we would all get together to have a cookout and Carne Asada was always the star of the evening. Carne Asada means “grilled meat” in English but it’s so much more than that. Skirt steak that has been seasoned by a carne asada marinade. And it’s then grilled with char and sliced against the grain, rolled in a heated tortilla with plenty of toppings. It’s a little bit of heaven.

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Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (2)

To make the best carne asada burrito, skirt steak is to be seasoned with a great carne asada marinade. And the marinade has to be rich enough to be the basis of the flavor and amount of tenderness of the meat. Our simple marinade recipe may not sound authentic but just wait till you taste the finished result. Just take one bite and you will think you are in dining in a Southern California taco shop. It’s just delicious!

Carne Asada Marinade Recipe:

Marinade Ingredients:

  • 3 Tablespoons of red bell pepper, minced
  • 5 medium lemons
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 7 ounce can pickled sliced Jalapeños, drained
  • 1 -10 ounce bottle teriyaki sauce
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoons salt
  • 3 pounds skirt steak or flank steak

Carne Asada Burrito Ingredients:

  • 12 flour tortillas
  • Guacamole or sliced avocado
  • Pico de Gallo

How to marinade skirt steak

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (3)

In a small bowl, combine teriyaki sauce, sugar and salt garlic, jalapeños, stir until sugar is dissolved.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (4)

Juice the 4 lemons, strain and add to the marinade, then stir in the minced bell peppers.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (5)

Place the skirt steak meat in a large marinade dish and pour the marinade over it. Make sure the marinade completely surrounds each piece or layer of the meat. Slice the remaining lemon into thin rounds and place between the meat layers and in the marinade.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (6)

Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight. When ready to grill, remove the marinaded carne asada from the container and dispose of the liquid.

How to grill carne asada:

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (7)

Grill the meat over a medium high flame for 6-8 minutes on each side. The meat should be barely pink inside and if it’s cooked too long, it could become tough.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (8)

Remove from fire, let rest 5 minutes, then slice into diagonal strips against the grain of the meat. Slicing against the grain of the carne asada makes it more tender instead of chewy.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (9)

Serve by adding strips of the carne on a warmed flour tortilla and topping with guacamole and pico de gallo. Roll up and enjoy.

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (10)

You could stand around the fire and eat that carne asada burrito with one hand and drink a beverage in the other. It’s a great way to bond friends together or just enjoy the friendship. We haven’t been able to find a great carne asada marinade since we left California. You can have it shipped but that is kinda pricey. So it came down to creating our very own recipe for the marinade. And after several experiments, we came up with this blend. It comes closer to any other I have ever tried and it brings back those great flavors of a carne asada burrito from those great times with those great friends.

Other Mexican Food Recipes:

  • Green Enchilada Chicken Casserole
  • Baja Fish Tacos
  • Steak Tacos
  • Margarita Grilled Chicken Tacos

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Carne Asada Marniade

Skirt steak grilled over open fire with a homemade carne asada marinade

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Marinade Time4 hours hrs

Total Time4 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican, Tex Mex

Keyword: Carne Asada Marinade, Grilled Carne Asada

Servings: 6

Calories: 675kcal

Author: Evelyn

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 3 Tablespoons red bell pepper minced
  • 5 medium lemons
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 7 oz can pickled sliced Jalapeños
  • 1 10 oz bottle teriyaki sauce
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 3 lbs skirt steak or flank steak
  • 12 flour tortillas
  • 2-3 avocados sliced
  • Pico de Gallo

Instructions

  • In a small bowl, combine teriyaki sauce, sugar and salt garlic, jalapeños, stir until sugar is dissolved.

  • Juice the 4 lemons, strain the seeds out and add the juice to the marinade. Then stir in the minced bell peppers.

  • Place the skirt steak meat in a large marinade dish and pour the marinade over it. Make sure the marinade completely surrounds each piece or layer of the meat.

  • Slice the remaining lemon into thin rounds and place between the meat layers and in the marinade.

  • Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

  • When ready to grill, remove the marinaded carne asada from the container and dispose of the liquid.

  • Grill the meat over a medium high flame for 6-8 minutes on each side. The meat should be barely pink inside and if it’s cooked too long, it could become tough.

  • Remove from fire, let rest 5 minutes, then slice into diagonal strips against the grain of the meat. Slicing against the grain of the carne asada makes it more tender instead of chewy.

  • Serve by adding strips of the carne on a warmed flour tortilla and top with guacamole and pico de gallo. Roll up and enjoy.

Nutrition

Calories: 675kcal | Carbohydrates: 47g | Protein: 56g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 143mg | Sodium: 1189mg | Potassium: 1203mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 284IU | Vitamin C: 61mg | Calcium: 136mg | Iron: 7mg


Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (12)

Carne Asada Burrito Recipe with Marinade (2024)

FAQs

What is carne asada marinade made of? ›

What Is Carne Asada Marinade? Orange juice, lemon juice, and lime juice add fruity flavor to this marinade. Soy sauce lends a rich, savory flavor to the steak. This marinade includes cilantro, garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika, pepper, and oregano.

Can you marinate carne asada too long? ›

Don't over-marinate.

The carne asada marinade is highly acidic which means you don't want to marinate the steak as long as you would in a marinade without as much citrus. Don't marinate much longer than 12 hours or the muscle fibers can break down and become mushy.

What does an authentic Mexican burrito have in it? ›

Authentic Mexican burritos consist of two thin flour tortillas filled with a variety of ingredients. Although the ingredients can be as creative and unique as one's imagination, a traditional burrito is filled with meat, vegetables, and beans. However, rice and guacamole are two very common additions.

What is a carne asada burrito made of? ›

Carne asada with house-made refried beans, rice, and Monterey Jack cheese, encased in a flour tortilla and smothered with up to two or our sauces. Topped with lettuce, pico de gallo and sour cream.

How long should I marinate steaks? ›

How long to marinate your steak depends on the size and variety of the cut you're using. Thinner cuts, such as skirt or flanks steaks, should be marinated for 2-4 hours. Tougher cuts, such as top sirloin or sirloin tip, will benefit from marinating overnight (about 8 hours).

What kind of meat is carne asada at Mexican restaurant? ›

Carne asada is typically made with skirt steak, but I wanted to test out a variety of inexpensive cuts to be sure. I bought a half dozen different cuts of beef and marinated them in a basic mixture of lime juice, garlic, cilantro, olive oil, and chiles before grilling them to medium-rare over hot coals.

What is the best meat for carne asada? ›

The BEST cuts for the Mexican version of the dish we all know and love are either skirt steak or flank steak. Personally, I prefer skirt steak (pictured). It's more tender and flavourful than flank and can be cooked well done (for those who prefer well) without getting tough and chewy.

Do you cut carne asada before or after cooking? ›

  1. It depends on what result you want, but the usual answer is "after."
  2. Cutting meat is all about the tradeoff between browning on the outside and tenderness on the inside. ...
  3. Carne asada in particular is usually made with thin pieces of skirt steak, which is a cut of meat that gets jaw-numbingly chewy if it's overcooked.
May 21, 2015

Why is my carne asada tough? ›

Your steak is chewy and tough most likely because the cut of steak was not tender to begin with. Another reason your steak is chewy and tough could be that you overcooked or undercooked the steak. Your steak could also be chewy and tough because you didn't let it rest long enough after cooking it.

How to make a burrito that tastes like a restaurant? ›

Directions
  1. Cook the rice in the broth. ...
  2. Add in the beans, pico de gallo, lime zest and juice and seasoning. ...
  3. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then mix in the cilantro.
  4. Cook or warm the meat and other toppings, grate the cheese and set up your other fixings while the rice is cooking and cooling down.

Do Mexicans put rice in burritos? ›

Authentic Mexican burritos are usually small and thin, with flour tortillas containing only one or two of several ingredients: either some form of meat or fish, potato, rice, beans, asadero cheese, chile rajas, or chile relleno.

What is the difference between Mexican burritos and American burritos? ›

While burritos are undeniably Mexican in their origins, they have evolved significantly over time, especially in the United States, where their popularity has gone global thanks to American movies, series, and books. In the United States, burritos tend to be much larger than their Mexican counterparts.

What is the best meat for burrito? ›

Beef and pork are the most popular meats for burritos and you can create some fantastic combinations using these ingredients. For instance, the burrito Guadalajara uses seasoned ground beef, Spanish rice, Jack or mozzarella cheese, and diced tomatoes.

What is a California style burrito? ›

Frequently confused with the Mission, Cali burritos are also gigantic and have multiple fillings. But they skip the beans and rice and starch up instead with French fries alongside carne asada, guacamole, pico de gallo, and cheese. The Cali originates from the southern end of California, in San Diego.

What does carne asada mean in english? ›

The term carne asada in Spanish translates to roasted or grilled meat in English. That's why it's important to recognize that, in Mexico, carne asada refers to how the beef is cooked rather than a specific recipe.

What is traditional carne asada made from? ›

The most common type of meat used to make carne asada is skirt steak or flank steak. Skirt steak is usually thinner and a bit more fatty, whereas flank steak is often a thicker and leaner cut. As long as they're both sliced thinly after grilling, they both make great options for carne asada.

Where is carne asada made from? ›

What Is Carne Asada? Let's start with the basics—carne asada is a traditional Mexican dish composed of marinated skirt steak or flank steak that has been grilled and thinly sliced. The term carne asada in Spanish translates to roasted or grilled meat in English.

How is carne asada different from steak? ›

The steak gets marinated in this adobo sauce before being put on the grill. The carne asada meanwhile, isn't marinated but simply seasoned with an undisclosed unique blend of spices. Unlike the steak, the carne asada also gets garnished with cilantro and lime juice.

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