IPA Carne Asada Tacos

Beer and meat; meat and beer. I’m starting to come to the beautiful conclusion that these two things were meant to be together.

You might be wondering why I went with an IPA as my beef marinade. Truthfully, I wasn’t sure if my experiment was going to have a hoppy ending (I had to, sorry). I can dig IPAs to a certain degree, but I have to be in the mood for them. My fiance on the other hand loves his IPAs, so I wanted to test it out in the kitchen to see if it’s a strong contender for cuisine. Not to mention the fact that IPAs pair wonderfully with Mexican foods because of all the light and dark flavours; they also pair well with grilled meats. So I figured hey, why not grill a meat that’s been soaked in an IPA overnight and use it in a Mexican dish? My hungry brain, I’m tellin’ ya…

The result? It worked; it worked SO WELL.

Prior to submerging my beef into my IPA (I chose Double Trouble Brewing Co.‘s Hops and Robbers – from Guelph, ON) I made a slightly sweet, mostly smoky dry rub. I don’t know if it’s silly to use a dry rub prior to marinating. I mean, it kind of seems like defeating the purpose of a dry rub if things are going to get wet, but whatever. I’m a rebel without a cause culinary degree. I’m sure my BBQ master fiance will shake his head, but it’s all good. My theory was that if I massaged a rub into the meat, the flavours would cling and embed themselves into the flesh as the meat soaked – seems legit. I marinated the flank steak overnight and after grilling it the following day, I feel as though the dry rub wasn’t a waste after all. The meaty juices were totally drunk on hops while the exterior carried out a nice smoky flavour. I say go either way – what matters most is that your steak is jacked up with beer.

To dress up the meat, I made a lime and chipotle chimichurri – you can find the recipe for it here. I also whipped up a simple lime sour cream to drizzle on top by mixing 1/2 cup sour cream with 1 tablespoon of lime juice and 1 teaspoon of lime zest.

I like my beef medium rare. Medium is pushing it. Anything beyond medium, and we can’t be pals. (I jest).

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IPA Carne Asada Tacos

By: Dana Sandonato

Delicious carne asada tacos drunk on IPA!

Prep Time: 12 hours hours

Cook Time: 6 minutes minutes

Total Time: 12 hours hours 6 minutes minutes

Servings: 6

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Ingredients 

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• ▢ TACOS:
• ▢ 1 17 oz flank steak
• ▢ 16 oz Indian Pale Ale
• ▢ 2 cups of red cabbage, shredded
• ▢ 2 avocados, cubed
• ▢ 6 soft-shell corn tortillas
• ▢ 1/2 cup chopped flat leaf parsley
• ▢ OPTIONAL GARNISHES:
• ▢ Chimichurri, see notes for my lime and chipotle chimichurri recipe
• ▢ Lime Sour Cream, see notes
• ▢ DRY RUB:
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

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Instructions 

• NIGHT BEFORE:
• Mix the dry rub ingredients together until well blended and massage the dry rub into the flank steak (both sides).
• Place the steak in a container, and pour the IPA over the steak.
• Cover and refrigerate overnight.
• TO SERVE:
• Grill the flank steak to your preference of doneness.
• Slice the steak thin, against the grain, and serve on soft-shell corn tortillas with your preference of toppings.

Notes

Lime and Chipotle Chimichurri: find it at https://www.killingthyme.net/2015/02/22/lime-chipotle-chimichurri/

Lime Sour Cream: Simply mix 1 tablespoon of lime juice and 1 teaspoon of lime zest to every 1/2 cup of cour cream.

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