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This healthy Carne Asada is so easy and delicious! In addition to this easy Carne Asada marinade recipe, I’m including recipes that you can make with the leftovers–if you have them! Street Tacos, a Burrito Salad Bowl with Homemade Dressing, Enchiladas, and Tostadas!
The “problem” in our house is that we always have extra Carne Asada, so I figured this was something that others have, as well. In addition to the easy and healthy recipe for Carne Asada, there are recipes for the leftovers, as well. I hope you enjoy them all!
This healthy Carne Asada marinade is so easy to make–and it can easily be sliced and marinated, then frozen. I love doing it this way so that as it’s thawing, it’s also marinating. Multitasking at its best, for sure.
Why is this healthy Carne Asada?
We’re talking limited ingredients in this recipe, and they’re all from whole foods. No extra fats or oils, and only the vinegar and coconut aminos (or Tamari, or soy sauce if you’d prefer) are from a bottle.
I highly recommend using the fresh limes and oranges in this recipe instead of using bottles–it really helps the authentic citrus flavors of traditional Carne Asada.
I highly recommend using flank steak for this dish instead of skirt steak, as the fat content is much lower.
How do you make this easy Carne Asada Marinade?
- Dice the skirt steak.
- Combine all the marinade ingredients in a large zippered bag or container with lid.
- Add the diced steak to the container and mix to ensure it is completely covered by the marinade.
- Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
- Coat a large skillet with olive/avocado oil and heat on high heat. When the pan is hot, scoop the meat into the skillet and dispose of the marinade.
- Cook the meat until the desired doneness (a minimum internal temperature of at least 145°F. (approx. 5-8 minutes)
- Remove the carne asada from the heat and warm your low carb tortillas on the hot skillet.
- Chop the onions and cilantro.
- Assemble your tacos and garnish as desired.
Can I cook this Carne Asada on a discada disc?
You are my spirit animal and yes, you can! My husband and I love cooking on our discada–here’s a picture of some chicken and steak tacos that we made on it, but we do Carne Asada all the time!
What kind of meat is Carne Asada?
Carne Asada is any kind of thinly sliced beef served in Mexican food dishes like tacos, burritos, tostadas, and salads. Typically it’s made with flank or skirt steak, but it can be made with any steak as long as it’s sliced thin.
Are Carne Asada and steak the same?
Technically, yes. Carne Asada literally means “grilled meat.” Though it’s often made on the stove. Carne Asada is considered to be the thinly sliced steak along with the Mexican seasonings.
It’s such an easy recipe, though, why not just make the Carne Asada?
How long should I grill Carne Asada?
It takes about 10-15 minutes to grill or cook Carne Asada in steak form. You’re looking for the meat to get to an internal temperature of 140º. For sliced Carne Asada, you can easily see when it’s browned.
Why do you consider this an Easy Carne Asada recipe?
Anything that I can pull together in a few minutes is considered easy in my house! I love that I can marinate the meat and cook it right away, or freeze it–that makes for an easy weeknight meal.
I marinate the steak, then stick it in the fridge while I prepare a side dish or vegetable to grill. By the time I’m ready to pull it out of the fridge my sides are ready to go and I’m ready to put the meat on the stovetop or grill.
What recipes can I make with leftover Carne Asada?
Seriously great question. I always seem to have leftovers when I make Carne Asada, and I love that it’s so versatile. I love the choices I have when using the beef leftover.
Here are four recipes that you can make (so easily) with leftover Carne Asada, you can definitely get creative with them:
- Skinny Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Red Sauce
- Beef Tostadas
- Carne Asada Street Tacos
- Carne Asada Burrito Bowl
Skinny Beef Enchiladas with Homemade Red Sauce
- 12 corn tortillas
- 1 lb. cooked carne asada
- 2 cups shredded cheese
- 1/2C cup homemade enchilada sauce
How to make enchiladas:
- Preheat the oven to 350º F.
- Lightly grease the bottom of a casserole pan.
- Cover the bottom of the pan with 1/4 cup of enchilada sauce.
- Roll the enchiladas, placing some cheese and meat in the center of a corn tortilla. Fold the side over and place the enchilada seam side down in the pan. Continue until your pan is full.
- Spread the remaining 3/4 cup of enchilada sauce over the enchiladas and top with the remaining cheese.
- Bake the enchiladas for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is melted and kind of crispy. Garnish with cilantro and serve.
Beef Tostadas Recipe with leftover Carne Asada
- 4 corn tortillas
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 4 Tbsp plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup canned black beans (optional)
- 2 cups chopped romaine lettuce
- 1 roma tomato, diced
- 3 cups carne asada
- cilantro and onions
Homemade Hot Sauce:
1 tbsp enchilada sauce
2 tbsp water
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the corn tortillas on a baking sheet and spray or brush lightly with the olive oil.
- Bake the tortillas for 8-10 minutes until they are crispy and hard like tostadas.
- Remove the tortillas from the oven. Spread 1 tbsp of yogurt on each tortilla to hold the meat and beans to the tostada.
- Add 2 tbsp of beans to the tostada. Then add meat, lettuce, and tomatoes to the tostada. Top with cilantro and onions and hot sauce if desired.
Carne Asada Street Tacos
- corn tortillas
- carne asada
- chopped onions
- minced cilantro
- lime wedges
- Heat the corn tortillas on both sides in a skillet on the stove. This will make the tortilla mailable and keep it from breaking.
- Spoon some meat in the center of the tortilla and top with onions and cilantro.
Carne Asada Burrito Bowl
- 4 cups chopped lettuce of choice (romaine, green leaf, etc)
- 1 cup canned black beans
- 1 cup corn kernels
- 2 roma tomatoes, diced
- 1 avocado, diced
- 3 cups carne asada
Dressing: (optional)
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup enchilada sauce or hot sauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tsp salt
- Combine all the salad ingredients together in a large bowl or make individual bowls.
- In a separate small mixing bowl mix together the dressing ingredients.
- Pour the dressing over the salad and mix.
Healthy Eating Plans
Weight Watchers Points
Using 1 1/2 pounds of trimmed flank steak and coconut aminos, this recipe counts as 4 Blue Plan Points | 4 Green Plan Points | 4 Purple Plan Points per serving. For most accurate counts, divide the recipe into six equal servings and use 1 1/2 pounds of beef total.
21 Day Fix and Ultimate Portion Fix
Each 3/4 cup serving counts as one red container. The oil is negligible, as it’s such a small amount over six servings.
Trim Healthy Mama
This recipe falls under THM-S when using liquid aminos instead of coconut aminos or tamari, and coconut or MCT oil instead of olive. You may choose to use orange and lime extracts instead of the juice depending on how true you stick to the plan.
Healthy Carne Asada Recipe + Leftover Recipes!
Equipment
- Kitchen Knife
- Cutting Board
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb skirt steak diced into small pieces
Healthy Carne Asada Marinade
- .25 cup vinegar white
- 2 tbsp coconut aminos or low sodium Tamari or Soy Sauce
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tbsp lime juice 1 lime
- 2 tsp olive oil
- 1 orange juice from
- 1 tbsp chili powder
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
Garnish with diced onions and cilantro as desired
Instructions
- Dice the skirt steak. 1.5 lb skirt steak
- Combine all the marinade ingredients in a large zippered bag or container with lid. .25 cup vinegar , 2 tbsp coconut aminos, 1 tsp garlic powder, 2 tbsp lime juice, 2 tsp olive oil, 1 orange, 1 tbsp chili powder, 1 tsp oregano, 1 tsp ground cumin, 1 tsp onion powder
- Add the diced steak to the container and mix to ensure it is completely covered by the marinade.
- Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour, or overnight.
- Coat a large skillet with olive/avocado oil and heat on high heat. When the pan is hot, scoop the meat into the skillet and dispose of the marinade.
- Cook the meat until the desired doneness (a minimum internal temperature of at least 145°F. (approx. 5-8 minutes)
- Remove the carne asada from the heat and warm your low carb tortillas on the hot skillet.
- Chop the onions and cilantro.
- Eat this by itself, with one of the recipes above.
Video
Notes
Weight Watchers Points
Using 1 1/2 pounds of trimmed flank steak and coconut aminos, this recipe counts as 4 Blue Plan Points | 4 Green Plan Points | 4 Purple Plan Points per serving. For most accurate counts, divide the recipe into six equal servings and use 1 1/2 pounds of beef total.21 Day Fix and Ultimate Portion Fix
Each 3/4 cup serving counts as one red container. The oil is negligible, as it’s such a small amount over six servings. Nutrition information was calculated with meat and marinade only.Nutrition
Make This Recipe?
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The tostadas are my favorite! Loving this crazy versatile recipe for carne asada!
This is an absolutely wonderful recipe, so easy and tasty!
I’m new to the 21DF how is 3/4c equal to 1R if 1R is a cup? There is so much to learn, it’s overwhelming so I appreciate the container counts in the recipes!
The red container is 3/4 cup :) This might be helpful to you: https://youtu.be/uPl0bUExHe4
And also, here is a list of the real container measurements. If you didn’t buy yours from Beachbody or a reputable dealer, they could be wrong: https://www.carrieelle.com/21-day-fix-container-sizes/