ipa tacos de carne asada 5

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).

IPA tacos de carne asada 3

 

IPA tacos de carne asada 2

IPA Carne Asada Tacos

Delicious carne asada tacos drunk on IPA!
No ratings yet
Print Pin Rate
Prep Time: 12 hours
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Total Time: 12 hours 6 minutes
Servings: 6
Author: Dana Blacklock

Ingredients

  • 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

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.