Ingredients
- 2 pounds of flank or skirt steak
- 1 orange (juiced)
- 2 limes (juiced)
- 1/4 cup of light beer
- 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 1 onion
Equipment. Grill or heavy pan, Sharp knife
Method
- Mark the steak with a sharp knife
- Mix all marinade ingredients
- Marinate the steak in the refrigerator for 4 to 8 hours
- Grill or pan fry till done
What goes in the marinade?
One orange and two limes is a heavy acid load, and the beer adds a little more. The soy sauce is the only salt in the build, so taste and add plain salt if it needs it.
Put the onion in the marinade, or slice it onto the grill beside the meat. Raw and diced on the finished plate works too.
How long should it marinate?
Four to eight hours in the fridge. Longer and the citrus cures the surface, which then cooks dry and stringy.
Two to four hours is enough if you are short of time. Skirt and flank are thin and take marinade quickly.
How do you cook it?
Pat the steak dry before it goes on the heat. Wet meat steams instead of charring. Throw the marinade away rather than brushing it back on, since it has held raw beef.
Seven to ten minutes a side on a hot grill is the working figure. Aim for 130F to 135F for medium rare. The conservative published figure is 145F with a three-minute rest.
Rest the meat for five to ten minutes, then slice it thinly across the grain. On skirt and flank the grain runs coarse and obvious, and cutting along it makes the meat chewy.
What do you serve it with?
Warm corn tortillas, diced white onion, coriander and lime. Rice and beans if it is a plate rather than tacos. Leftover slices are better cold in a sandwich the next day than reheated.