Search Results for: carne asada

Authentic Carne Asada

March 16, 2016

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In case I haven’t mentioned it enough, I will say it again for the millionth time – I miss good, authentic Mexican food. Since I grew up in Southern California, I was so spoiled with all the delicious food at my disposal. In my opinion, the mark of truly good Mexican food is the carne asada. If they can do carne asada well, then they can probably do everything else well, too. Well, here in North Carolina, I have yet to find anyone that does a good carne asada. Which is why I took matters into my own hands.

I researched a lot of recipes, trying to find one that was authentic but not too complicated. I also called upon memories of sitting at the beach eating a carne asada burrito, trying to remember what I loved most about my favorite carne asada meals (Yes I realize how cliche that sounds. My high school also had a surf team. Deal with it.)

What I learned was my perfect carne asada is prefect balance of spicy and tangy. To accomplish this, I marinated a flank steak in a mixture of citrus juice with a variety of chili powders and spices.

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I really wanted to the flavors to seep into the meat, so I let this marinate overnight. But that isn’t necessary. You probably only need about 8 hours for it to really work it’s magic.

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Finally, my perfect carne asada should have a little char on the outside and a juicy center. Since I knew exactly (exactly what store, at least) where my meat came from, I cooked mine to medium/medium rare. But you can cook yours to whatever temperature you prefer. Also, a trick to perfectly tender steak that you can bite right into is to gut it against the grain. In the picture above, you can see the little creases and cracks in the meat, and I made my cuts perpendicular to those.

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Of course, my favorite way to eat the delicious Mexican meat is to wrap it in a big flour tortilla with some french fries, guacamole, and salsa in what we in California like to call a California Burrito. But since I am not a total glutton, I settled for a healthier option in corn tortillas, avocado, salsa, and chopped onion.

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These carne asada tacos were like a little bite of home for me. Now I know I don’t have to try to search out a place here in Charlotte that makes a good carne asada, I can just make my own at home. Of course, I will keep on looking. There’s nothing wrong with even the most mediocre Mexican food, in my opinion.

Enjoy!

[amd-yrecipe-recipe:7]

California Tacos with French Fries

January 18, 2017

Unless you are from Southern California or have spent a significant amount of time there, you may assume that a “California taco” is a taco with avocado in it. It’s a safe assumption. Just think of the California Roll or any California-named sandwich.

But if you are from Southern California, like I am, these tacos may remind you of the ultimate food with the Golden State as it’s namesake….

…the California Burrito!

For those who are unfamiliar, the California burrito is a classic carne asada burrito with FRENCH FRIES! Don’t ask questions, just know that it is delicious. My all time favorite California burrito is the Surf n’ Turf California at Lucha Libre in San Diego or Santana’s classic California burrito, which was a staple in High School. But just about any Mexican food spot in San Diego will have their own.

Of course, now that we live in the South, California burritos are completely non existent. Heck, a good burrito of any kind is hard to come by! And I can only get my fix during my annual trips home.

But it was on my last annual trip home that the inspiration came for these tacos in the form of a giant billboard advertising one restaurants own California tacos! I have no idea what restaurant or fast-food chain was advertising. I just saw a taco with French fries and I knew I could replicate that at home!

The tacos came together so quickly, we forgot to take pictures along the way. All we did was brown up ground beef with onion, jalapeno, and garlic while the store-bought frozen french fries crisped up in the oven. Once the meat was ready, we stuffed our tortillas and topped it with the fries and some pico de gallo. I made my homemade whole wheat tortillas because they are so much better than store bought and easier to make than you may think!

You could use carne asada instead of ground beef if you want to be super authentic. But I think the ground beef works perfectly! It’s also much easier than grilling up some carne asada.

These little tacos were freaking fantastic! Not only was my husband in heaven, but after one bite, I was transported back to my high school days when we would grab a burrito on our way to the beach after school to cheer on our surf team.

Was that the most California thing you have ever read? Well don’t worry, it’s not true….I wasn’t cool enough in high school to cheer on our surf team. But the burrito part is totally is. 😉

[amd-yrecipe-recipe:118]

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5 Minute Cauliflower Rice

March 2, 2016

5 minute cauliflower rice | Follow the Ruels

I have been using cauliflower rice as a substitute for rice for years! But I hadn’t perfected it until recently.

In the early days, my cauliflower rice (or cauli-rice) would turn out watery and a bit mushy. Everyone seemed to have a different method for making rice. One popular method says to make cauli-rice just as you would normal rice, by boiling the pulverized florets in twice as much water or broth. Well cauliflower isn’t rice and it isn’t going to soak up all that water so instead I would end up with mushy cauliflower soup.

Regardless of the method, I found that just about every recipe took longer than anticipated to prepare. Chop the cauliflower, rice or process the cauliflower, boil or saute the cauliflower. It was very labor intensive for a side dish. Maybe I am just lazy, but this seems like a lot of work when I am trying to prepare a whole other dish.

Finally, I decided to take matters into my own hands and do things my way. After thinking it through, I realized the end result of cauliflower rice is just small pieces of steamed cauliflower. So why couldn’t I steam the cauliflower and then process it? That’s how I would make mashed cauliflower, why should it be different for the rice?

It shouldn’t!

So here’s what I do:

First, I buy the cauliflower that has already been separated into florets. This saves me about 5 minutes I would spend hacking away at the cauliflower. Of course, if there is a good deal on a full head of cauliflower, I will buy that and put in the extra work. I’m a sucker for a good deal.

Then I steam the florets with a bit of water, salt, pepper, and garlic powder, which only takes 2 to 3 minutes.

Finally, I toss in the florets (making sure not to add in any water that may be left from steaming) into my food processor and pulse about 15 times (more or less) until all the florets have been chopped down into itty bitty pieces. I watch this part carefully, because if I process too much, I will end up with mashed cauliflower. Which is perfectly fine, but that’s not what I am after.

5 minute cauliflower rice | Follow the Ruels

And 5 minutes later I have myself a nice big bowl of cauliflower rice. Soooo much easier, right? Dare I say easier than actual rice?

I will never hassle over cauliflower rice again! I am just trying to make a healthy choice, so why not make it as easy as possible.

And for those of you who have never tried to make cauliflower rice, I hope this shows you how quick and easy it can be. And just like rice, it takes on the flavor of whatever you pair it with, so top it with teriyaki chicken, chicken tikka masala, carne asada, or whatever your little heart desires!

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Enjoy!

[amd-yrecipe-recipe:2]