Grilled steak · Research Edition
Carne Asada Tacos
Steak with a real grilled edge, cut across the grain and tucked into warm flour or white-corn tortillas with onion, cilantro, and lime.
Before you start
Buy steak cut about ½ inch thick so it can brown quickly without a long cook. Choose one tortilla style for all 12 tacos, or use six of each to try both. Red and green salsas are optional prepared condiments served separately; this recipe does not claim to make either sauce.
Cook it
- Get the table ready. Dice the onion, chop the cilantro, and cut the limes. Keep these fresh toppings ready so the tacos can be served as soon as the meat is sliced.
- Heat and season. Heat an outdoor grill to medium-high or a heavy grill pan over medium-high heat. Pat the steaks dry and rub with the tablespoon of oil, salt, and pepper. Lightly oil the cooking surface.
- Grill the steak. Cook the steaks in a single layer, turning once, until the outside is deeply browned. Begin checking after 3 to 4 minutes per side; thickness and grill heat will change the time. For the USDA safe minimum for whole beef steaks, insert a food thermometer from the side into the thickest part and reach 145°F (63°C) before removing from heat.
- Rest and cut. Transfer the steak to a clean plate and rest for at least 3 minutes. Slice thinly across the grain, then cut long slices into bite-size pieces. Return any juices on the resting plate to the sliced meat.
- Warm your chosen tortillas. For flour tortillas, warm briefly on a medium-hot dry comal or skillet, turning once, until soft and pliable; keep under a clean towel. For white-corn tortillas, warm on the dry comal until flexible and heated through, about 20 to 30 seconds per side, then keep covered. Do not toast either tortilla until rigid.
- Build the tacos. Divide the steak among 12 warm tortillas, about 2 ounces of raw-steak allocation per taco before cooking. Add a small spoonful of diced white onion and a pinch of cilantro to each. Serve lime wedges and the two salsas in separate bowls alongside, so each person can choose red, green, both, or neither. Squeeze lime over a taco just before eating.
If something goes wrong
If the steak browns too quickly before its center reaches temperature, move it to a cooler part of the grill or lower the pan heat. If the tortillas crack, warm them a little longer and keep the stack covered. Slice against the grain; cutting with it leaves long, harder-to-chew fibers.
Keep and reheat
Refrigerate the cooked steak and fresh toppings separately in shallow covered containers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 90°F (32°C). Use refrigerated leftovers within 3 to 4 days. Reheat the steak to 165°F (74°C); warm fresh tortillas and add fresh onion, cilantro, and lime when serving.
Flour or white corn?
Flour: a soft, thin, gently glossy tortilla bends around the steak. Warm only until supple. White corn: a thinner, pale-ivory corn tortilla brings a different corn flavor; warm until flexible and keep covered so it does not dry out. Both receive the same measured steak and toppings. The red and green salsas stay in separate bowls so each cook can adjust the flavor and heat.
Understand it
Why the slice matters
Rest the steak before cutting, then return any juices collected on the plate to the slices. Cutting across the grain shortens the fibers; the small pieces fit a taco without pulling the filling out in one bite. A hot cooking surface gives the exterior color before a thin steak overcooks.
Know it
More than one taco setting
Carne asada is not one fixed garnish list or tortilla rule. Pati Jinich documents a Sonoran flour-tortilla version with grilled beef and accompaniments; Rick Bayless documents grilled steak tacos on corn tortillas. Our spare onion-cilantro-lime serving is a practical editorial version, not a claim that every region serves it this way.
Sources and edition
About this recipe
We developed this Research Edition from documented practitioner methods and a kitchen-consistency review. No owner-supplied ingredient formula or human cooking test was provided. The yield and times are estimates; the images visualize the two serving choices rather than recording a real cook.
- Pati Jinich, Sonora Style Carne Asada Tacos — grilled-beef and flour-tortilla example.
- Rick Bayless, Grilled Skirt Steak Tacos — corn-tortilla grilled-steak example and cross-grain slicing.
- USDA FSIS safe temperature chart — 145°F plus a three-minute rest for whole beef steaks and 165°F for leftovers.
- USDA FSIS leftovers guidance — 3 to 4 days refrigerated.
Developed 6 October 2026. See our corrections policy for updates.
