These carne asada tacos have tender marinated grilled steak served on warm corn tortillas with a zesty avocado crema, fresh pico de gallo, and queso fresco. These are the best carne asada tacos you’ll ever have! Each bite is bursting with authentic street taco flavor, and it’s the perfect dinner for taco night.
This post is sponsored by ALDI USA. All opinions and statements are 100% mine.
Grilling season is officially upon us. On a recent trip to ALDI, I found a seasoned piece of meat perfect for the ultimate grilling recipe: Carne asada. Combined with my homemade marinade, tucked into warm tortillas, and finished off with avocado crema, this recipe made the most EPIC carne asada tacos that will ever touch your plate!
Since I’m on the grill about 4 days a week, I’ve had to make sure our house is fully stocked. One of my favorite places to shop for fresh organic produce and high-quality meats is ALDI. Not only are the products fantastic, but they’re also friendly on the budget, and anything right now that meets both of those requirements is a winner in my book! If you haven’t hit them up yet, I highly recommend it.
What goes with carne asada tacos? How about my Frozen Strawberry Margaritas and my favorite Classic Guacamole Recipe!
About These Marinated Carne Asada Tacos
- Bold flavors. The fresh citrus marinade soaks into the beef like a dream. Hinted with soy sauce and garlic, the flavors are zesty yet rich and umami-packed. It’s so easy to make with only 4 ingredients.
- Flexible. If you don’t have carne asada meat available, you could totally sub out the protein in this recipe for chicken or even Portobello mushrooms for a vegan option! These tacos turn out delicious no matter what.
- Totally homemade. I love to make everything in these carne asada tacos from scratch, from the juicy marinated and grilled beef to the pico de gallo and creamy avocado crema on top.
What is Carne Asada?
Carne Asada is a Mexican dish. It’s grilled beef that is marinated in a citrus-based marinade, then seared on the grill to impart some char flavor and then thinly sliced. Carne Asada can be served as a main dish with rice and beans, as an ingredient in other dishes, or chopped up and served on tacos.
The Best Meat for Carne Asada
The cut of beef you use should be flavorful, bottom line. Typically, Carne asada is made from skirt steak. If you can’t find skirt steak you could also use flank steak, top sirloin, ribeye or beef tenderloin.
Keep in mind that you will be marinating this beef to tenderize it even more and give it that classic carne asada flavor. For today’s recipe, I used an already-seasoned cut of beef from ALDI. The flavors went perfectly with the citrus marinade.
Carne Asada Marinade Ingredients
The marinade is KEY in this recipe, the acid from the orange juice and lime juice tenderizes the meat, so it retains its “juiciness” while adding loads of flavor. The salty-citrus combo caramelizes on the grill, creating a flavorful crust on the outside of the meat. Scroll to the recipe card for the full recipe with exact measurements.
- Orange Juice – Freshly squeezed citrus juice is best in this marinade. The flavor of orange juice “from concentrate” or bottled lime juice just doesn’t compare.
- Lime Juice – See above. Please use freshly squeezed!
- Soy Sauce – Or Tamari if you are gluten-free.
- Garlic – Freshly minced garlic, or you can replace each clove with 1 tablespoon of jarred garlic in a pinch.
- Liquid Smoke – This is optional, but it adds another layer of flavor to the meat.
How to Make Carne Asada Tacos
- Marinate the beef. Add the steak to a large plastic bag. Whisk together the orange juice, soy sauce, lime juice, garlic cloves, and liquid smoke (if using), and pour it over the beef. Seal the bag and place it into the fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour. Ideally, I like to do this step the day before and let the steak marinate overnight.
- Grill the steak. Preheat the grill to 375-400°F. Place the marinated carne asada on the grill, and grill the meat for 3-5 minutes per side.
- Rest the steak. Afterward, take the meat off the grill and let it rest for 5 minutes. Then, roughly chop the beef to prepare for tacos.
Assemble the Tacos
- Heat the tortillas. Warm a skillet over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, spray both sides of a tortilla with cooking spray. Place the tortilla in the skillet and toast it for 1-2 minutes per side, until browned.
- Assemble the carne asada tacos. Spoon the avocado crema over a warm tortilla, then add the chopped carne asada, pico de gallo, and crumbled queso fresco on top. Enjoy!
Easy Homemade Avocado Crema
I use this crema on everything from Baja fish tacos to shredded chicken tacos and pork carnitas tacos. It tastes amazing along with pico de gallo as a topping for these carne asada tacos, too. I include the details in the recipe card, and it’s super quick and easy to make in the blender:
- Blend. Combine avocado, garlic, cilantro, cumin, red pepper flakes, lime juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil, and salt in the blender or food processor.
- Serve or store. Blend all the ingredients until the avocado is smooth and looks like a purée or dressing. Use your crema right away or store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator until it’s time to serve.
Optional Toppings
In addition to the avocado crema, the possibilities are endless when it comes to toppings for these epic carne asada tacos. You could go classic with diced onion and cilantro, or really jazz it up with grilled pineapple or strawberry salsa. It’s a great excuse to use up what you have on hand! Here are my favorite toppings when it comes to tacos:
- Pico de Gallo: A fresh vibrant pico de gallo brightens up tacos beautifully. You could also use roasted tomato salsa.
- Chili Lime Grilled Corn Salad: This corn salad is actually a side dish, but I love to spoon it onto tacos as well!
- Queso Fresco: This slightly salty, crumbly Mexican cheese is mandatory in our house on taco night. Feta is a readily available substitute in a pinch.
- Cilantro & Onion: If you decide to skip the fresh pico de gallo, I’d highly recommend adding fresh cilantro and diced yellow onion. Add a fresh squeeze of lime juice to brighten the flavors.
- Fruit Salsa: Sometimes I like to change it up with homemade pineapple salsa or mango salsa. The sweetness from the fruit compliments the salty carne asada so well!
Tips for the Best Carna Asada
- Marinate overnight. If you want the best, most tender and juicy carne asada meat ever, I’d highly recommend marinating overnight. This gives the marinade the most opportunity to flavor the meat and break down the proteins so when you do grill it, all the flavors are locked in and the juices stay in the meat.
- Don’t overcook the meat. When I grill, I set a timer. I put the meat I’m cooking on the grill and walk away. You don’t want to constantly check your meat, open the grill and let all the heat out or move the meat around. Put it on the grill and leave it! When it’s time to flip, flip it and walk away till your time is up. For this piece of beef, I grill each side for 3-5 minutes depending on the thickness. You’ll know it’s ready to flip if the meat releases from the grill. If it’s still sticking, it’s not ready to flip yet!
- Let the meat rest. Don’t slice into the grilled meat right away. After the meat comes off the grill, it is still “in shock” or tense from hitting the heat so all the juices are in the center. When you allow your meat to sit and rest for 5-10 minutes after cooking it allows the juices to redistribute through the meat again leaving you with a tender juicy piece of meat. If you cut the meat right after coming off the grill, the juices will end up all over your cutting board, not in your meat. That’s just a sad day for everyone!
- Use warm corn tortillas. Corn tortillas are not only authentic but they don’t overpower your taco as some flour tortillas do. I highly recommend warming them up before using them so they are more pliable. I like to spray both sides of mine with a cooking spray and toast them up on a skillet or the grill for 1-2 minutes per side.
Serving Suggestions
Serve these juicy carne asada tacos with tortilla chips and bacon guacamole or this quick restaurant-style salsa to start. Don’t forget a refreshing margarita or raspberry mojito! These tacos also pair well with cilantro lime rice or Mexican black beans.
Storing and Reheating Leftovers
- Refrigerate. Whenever possible, store the leftover carne asada separately from the taco ingredients. Keep the meat stored airtight in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheat. You can warm up the carne asada in the microwave or on the stovetop.
More Taco Recipes to Try
- Rotisserie Chicken Tacos
- Grilled Mahi Mahi Tacos
- Spicy Shrimp Tacos
- Steak Street Tacos
- Ground Beef Tacos
Carne Asada Tacos
- Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
- Yield: 16–18 1x
- Category: Beef
- Method: Grill
- Cuisine: Mexican
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
These are tender marinated carne asada tacos served on warm corn tortillas with a zesty avocado crema, fresh pico de gallo, and queso fresco cheese. Each bite is bursting with authentic street taco flavor!
Ingredients
Carne Asada:
- 1.5 lbs. Black Angus Thin Sliced Beef for Carne Asada
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1/4 cup tamari sauce (or soy sauce)
- 3 tablespoons lime juice
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1–2 drops of liquid smoke
Pico de Gallo:
- 3 roma tomatoes, diced
- 1/4 cup diced red onion
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1–2 tablespoons diced jalapeño
- juice of 1 lime (1–2 tablespoons)
- salt to taste
Avocado Crema:
- 2 avocados
- 1 garlic clove
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 tablespoon lime juice
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt to taste
Other Ingredients:
- 16 pueblo lindo corn tortillas
- cooking spray
- 1/2 cup pueblo lindo queso fresco, crumbled
Instructions
Marinate Carne Asada:
- Add black angus thin sliced beef to a ziplock large bag.
- To a small bowl add orange juice, tamari sauce, lime juice, liquid smoke and garlic cloves. Whisk together and pour over beef in large ziplock. Close ziplock bag and marinate beef for at least 1 hour. (best if overnight)
Pico de Gallo:
- To a medium bowl add roma tomato, red onion, fresh cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, lime juice and salt to taste. Gently toss together and set aside.
Avocado Crema:
- To a food processor add, avocado, garlic, 1/4 cup cilantro, cumin, red pepper flakes, 1.5 tablespoons of lime juice, red wine vinegar, olive oil and salt. Blend until smooth and looks like a puree or dressing. Set aside.
Grill Carne Asada & Assemble:
- Preheat grill to 375-400°F.
- Place carne asade on grill. Grill for 3-5 minutes per side.
- Remove from grill and let sit for 5 minutes to let juices redistribute. Roughly chop beef to prepare for tacos.
- To heat corn tortillas: heat a skillet to medium high heat, spray both sides of tortilla with cooking spray and cook for 1-2 minutes on either side until browned.
- Assemble Carne Asada Tacos: To one heated corn tortilla add 2 tablespoons of avocado crema, chopped carne asada, pico de gallo and crumbled queso fresco.
- Serve.
