Soup Spice Everything Nice: Mexicana Beef Tacos

Thursday, June 25, 2015

Mexicana Beef Tacos

I think I have found that secret ingredient that makes restaurant tacos and fajitas so tasty. It is called Maggi Seasoning Sauce! For years my dear sister has said she thought they used soy sauce in their marinades. She was not far off. We now know it is Maggi. It is similar to soy but it has more of a smokey note. When you taste it you will immediately think, that's it! It has a very familiar and memorable flavor. Now that I have convinced you that you need Maggi Sauce, don't fret if you can't find it. One chef says you can substitute equal parts soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce. I found my bottle at the international grocery. It is also available online too.

You might be wondering how did I discover this secret? It was totally by accident. I bought the Maggi Seasoning Sauce to make another recipe. When I did a taste test of my new purchase I knew I had found a new flavor secret. I could not wait to experiment. Now I did not make the recipe I bought it for, I decided to try to recreate some tacos I had at a restaurant in Bossier City. The Carne A la Mexicana at El Mariachi are so delicious! They are served fajita style with the tortillas on the side just like the Alambre Chicken Tacos. It is a simple but favorful plate piled high with grilled skirt steak smothered in tomatoes, onions and peppers. They serve it with rice, refried beans, a dollop of sour cream and guacamole. They are so good! What I like about these tacos is it eats like ground beef, meaning it is easy to eat. No pieces of steak or veggie that you can't bite through. But then it taste smokey and fresh like fajitas. It is not heavy on cumin or chili powder the spices commonly found in ground beef tacos. As a bonus if served straight up without sides and toppings they are very healthy too.

Well, I feel like I have nailed the flavor perfectly. The marinade makes the skirt steak smokey and savory. The pico adds fresh tangy and saucy flavor. I used my homemade Pico de Gallo but your can use store bought or your favorite recipe. If you like spicy add more jalapeno to the pico. It will be great! What I am still missing is their secret to grilling the skirt steak. They get a perfect crust and a medium rare center. So I am still practicing and perfecting the grilling. But I could not wait to share these tacos with you. They are so good! Trust me you have to try these on your next taco night.

Mexicana Beef Tacos
Serves 4

Ingredients

1 lb. skirt steak
Juice of 1 lime (3 Tbsp.)
3 Tbsp. Maggi Seasoning Sauce
3 Tbsp. vegetable or olive oil
2 tsp. chipotle hot sauce
Black pepper, to taste
Kosher salt, to taste
3 to 4 cups Pico de Gallo
8 small flour tortillas

Directions

Place skirt steak in a food storage bag. Combine lime juice, Maggi sauce, oil and hot sauce, whisk to emulsify. Pour over steak, seal storage bag removing as much air as possible. Place in the refrigerator for about 2 hours. Flip bag over every 30 minutes if possible during the 2 hours.

Remove the steak from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature. Pre-heat grill to high heat for 10 minutes. Pat steak to remove excess marinade and season with salt and pepper. Grill for 3 to 4 minutes a side. Remove from grill and let it rest 20 minutes. Cut steak into 1/2” dice and set aside.

Heat a large skillet to medium high to high heat. Add Pico de Gallo and sauté until most of the moisture has evaporated. Add the steak and sauté until heated through.

Place a skillet on high heat, when hot warm the tortillas on both sides until warm and blistered. To serve place beef mixture in warm flour tortillas.

Note: You can add additional toppings of you choice. I have tried cheese, sour cream and guacamole all delicious.

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