Steak Burritos
We really enjoy this simple Mexican-style dish. Usually we grill the meat, but the weather did not permit use of our outdoor grill so we sauté it instead. There is some preparation involved - marinating the steak and cutting vegetables and cheese, but it's well worth it! Cilantro, guacamole, and grilled/sautéed peppers, onions, and mushrooms are nice additions. Originally served as part of: Steak Burritos.
Ingredients
- 1 pound flank steak beef
- 2 medium limes
- 3 cloves coarsely chopped garlic
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon tequila
- 1 tablespoon canola oil (divided)
- ¾ cup romaine lettuce (washed, dried, and torn into small pieces)
- ½ cup cheddar cheese (grated)
- ¼ cup plain low-fat yogurt
- salt & pepper
- 6 flour tortillas
- Picante sauce with cilantro salsa (Pace)
Instructions
We start in the afternoon by preparing the meat. We trim the extra fat that was left on both sides of the meat. We then score it on both sides using a serrated knife, going 1/8 inch into the meat in a diagonal pattern. This helps the marinade to penetrate a little and gives it a nice look when it is cooked (especially since we are unable to get grill marks).
We clean our hands and, working on a vegetable cutting board, we lean on and cut our limes. In a measuring cup we squeeze 1½ limes to get ¼ cup of juice. The remaining half of lime we cut in wedges, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate. In the measuring cup, we add the garlic, chili powder, tequila and half of the oil. We stir this marinade with a small spoon.
In a resealable storage bag, we place the steak and pour in the marinade. We smoosh the marinade all over the steak, seal, and place on a dinner plate. We place it in the refrigerator for about 4 hours (anywhere between 4 and 24 hours is good, much longer and the acid in the lime juice will change the texture of the meat).
We remove the bag from the refrigerator 30 minutes before we are ready to cook it. We prep the remaining ingredients that will be inside the burritos. We have bowls for the lettuce and cheese. For this recipe, we have yogurt on hand instead of sour cream. In a small bowl, we mix the yogurt with a squeeze of lime from one of the wedges. The rest of the wedges are placed in the bowl with the lettuce.
We heat our sauté pan for a few minutes on medium heat. We remove the steak from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels. We keep it on the dinner plate, discarding the bag and marinade. We wash up. We add the rest of the oil to the pan, sprinkle the steak with salt and pepper, and add it to the pan.
We cook the steak for about 6 minutes on each side. After that, we remove the steak to a clean plate and check the temperature with our digital meat thermometer. It reads 120 degrees F, which corresponds to rare, at the thickest part, perfect for Chris.
We let the steak rest for a few minutes to seal in the juices.
We cut the steak against the grain, somewhat on an angle to get nice slices. We place the tortillas on a microwave-safe plate between dampened paper towels and microwave for a minute.
The steak is served at the table with the tortillas and bowls of the lettuce, cheese, yogurt, and salsa.
Ingredients
- 1 lb flank steak
- 2 medium limes
- 3 cloves garlic (coarsely chopped)
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp tequila
- 1 tbsp canola oil (divided)
- ¾ cup romaine (torn small)
- ½ cup cheddar (grated)
- ¼ cup plain low-fat yogurt
- salt and pepper
- 6 flour tortillas
- picante sauce with cilantro (Pace)
Instructions
What's a kid job?
A Kid job is a step kids can help with, with a grown-up nearby, not one they do on their own. Every kid is different, so go by what your child can do rather than by age. Roughly:
- Little ones (about 2 to 4) can stir, pour in ingredients a grown-up has measured, tear lettuce, wash vegetables and sprinkle toppings.
- Older kids (about 5 to 8) can also measure and level, crack eggs, whisk, roll and cut out dough, and put things together.
- Bigger kids can read the recipe aloud, keep track of the timer, and take on more of the cooking as they're ready.
Steps with a knife, microplane, skewers, stove, oven, grill or hot oil, or with raw meat, poultry or seafood, are marked Grown-up. Kids can still watch those, from a safe distance.
Grown-up
In the afternoon, trim the fat from both sides of the steak and score both sides ⅛ inch deep with a serrated knife in a diagonal pattern.
With clean hands, squeeze 1½ limes into a measuring cup (¼ cup); cut the last half into wedges and refrigerate. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, tequila and half the oil.
Grown-up
Put the steak and marinade in a resealable bag, rub it all over, seal, and refrigerate on a plate about 4 hours (4 to 24; longer and the lime changes the texture). Take it out 30 minutes before cooking.
Kid job
Set out bowls of lettuce and cheese. Stir a squeeze of lime into the yogurt and put the rest of the wedges with the lettuce.
Grown-up
Heat a sauté pan over medium heat a few minutes. Pat the steak dry (throw out the marinade) and wash up. Add the rest of the oil, season the steak, and cook about 6 minutes a side, to at least 120°F (rare) at the thickest part. Rest it a few minutes.
Slice against the grain on a slight angle. Warm the tortillas between damp paper towels 1 minute and serve with the lettuce, cheese, yogurt and salsa.