Carne Asada

Sometimes the recipes I try are chosen strictly by curiosity.  I want to know what carne asada is, so I look it up, choose a recipe that looks approachable, and head to the grocery.  You'd be surprised how often that works.  This one starts with a marinade full of fresh cilantro and garlic.  It also called for the juice of two limes, and without any sort of juicing appliance, I got by slicing the limes into quarters and trapping the individual sections between my palms, crushing them in a double fist.  My nose is more decorative than functional, so I know my hands smelled like something for the rest of the day, and while I don't know whether it was the lime or the cilantro, it was better than the weird minty soap we have in the bathroom, so I was happy with it.  The marinade also included a single jalapeno pepper, chopped and seeded, and later I wished that I had used two, because I didn't notice its effect at all.  Maybe I picked a weak specimen.

Marinade, sans meat

The recipe above calls for "flank or skirt steak."  I had no idea what that was, but I managed to find approximately the right amount of it at the grocery (a little on the light side, but I figured that would let the marinade flavors come through stronger, and I was happy with that).  It turns out what looks like a short slab of beef is actually a very long, thin ribbon of meat.  I had to fold it back and forth in a baking dish, spreading marinade between the layers.

You may notice some beef under all that cilantro, but there's no guarantee.

Bereft of a backyard or porch, our grilling option is a panini press/griddler appliance in the kitchen.  It was nowhere near as long as the beef ribbon I had marinated all afternoon, so I cut the meat into smaller, more manageable portions, and I didn't bother brushing the marinade ingredients off the meat before cooking it.  If I were worried about cilantro falling into my gas jets, that might have changed, but it's not an issue for me.

Try to limit your sampling size before serving so whoever eats dinner with you doesn't notice half a pound of beef is missing from the menu.

I also made Spanish Rice that night, and we paired the two in flour tortillas with avocado, cheese, salsa, and sour cream.  I might have growled a little while eating, but only because the Chief Taster reached for something near me, and I thought she was moving to steal my food.  That won't stand.

There are veggies in the rice, so this is healthy!