“Happy Taco Tuesday!” It’s an utterance that changed the food choices of many people, including mine. Inspired by this wonderful occasion and reason to celebrate good Mexican food, I decided to make tacos this week.
For this week’s installment of “I Made It So You Don’t Have To,” we have steak tacos served with a soft guacamole sauce and homemade Pico de Gallo, topped with goat cheese and a little bit of lemon juice. This dinner is a perfect weeknight meal and it did not take too much time to prepare.
This recipe was inspired by TikTok chef @Eatwitzo, who does a terrific walkthrough for how to make these tacos. I would also recommend the spice rub for the steak because, in my opinion, it is a perfect blend.
First, chop up the tomato, red onion and cilantro, adding it to a bowl. If you are unsure about how to measure out amounts of cilantro, I used about 10-15 stems. Separate the larger stems and keep the leaves, finely chopping them into an almost spreadable consistency. Make sure that the tomato and red onion are evenly diced into small cubes.
Add the lime juice of two limes and combine. Add salt and pepper to taste. I added about two pinches of salt and just a small dash of pepper, but I did not want the pepper to overpower the universally loved salt-and-lime flavor. Once this is ready, throw it in the fridge for a nice burst of cold when you add it to the tacos later.
For the guacamole sauce, add one avocado into a blender. Then, add about four tablespoons of ranch dressing or sour cream. I did not have sour cream, so ranch had to do. Squeeze one lime into the mixture and then two teaspoons of lemon juice. Add two minced garlic cloves and a quarter cup of fresh, chopped cilantro. Blend these together. If the consistency is still too thick, add water until you have reached the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.
For the steak, chop up whatever cuts of steak you buy—I used sirloin—into cubes about the size of the cuts of steak they give you at Chipotle. If you have never been to Chipotle, I am sorry, but make them about half-inch cubes. Add all of this to a bowl and season using the listed amounts of chili powder, garlic powder, black pepper and salt. Drizzle a tablespoon of olive oil so the spices stick better to the meat. If you want some spice, you can add a dash of chili flakes.
Heat a sauté pan to medium-high heat, drizzle some olive oil and add the steak. If your steak has too much fat, cut it off and add that instead of olive oil because it will render and create oil. Cook the steak for at least six minutes and then try it until it is as tender as you like it.
I left the steak a little longer to char some of the pieces to give it a smoky flavor. When you have all the components ready, it’s time to assemble your tacos! I placed the guacamole sauce on the base then added the steak and Pico de Gallo. I topped it with goat cheese, more sauce and lime juice.
This was a great meal for three and comfortably made 12 tacos, but it could be extended to 14-15 tacos. It’s perfect for your next taco night or for the ever-so-popular taco bowls. It took me about 30 minutes to make, so time was not an issue. This recipe is also customizable, so you can add other toppings to the taco. Goat cheese, while sounding bougee, was a great addition and certainly worth moving away from the regular “Mexican cheese blend” that I usually put on tacos.
Ingredients:
Guacamole Sauce:
1 whole guacamole
4 tablespoons of ranch dressing or sour cream
2 minced cloves of garlic
1-quarter cup of fresh, chopped cilantro
Salt & pepper
Pico de Gallo:
1 large red tomato (diced)
1/2 a red onion (diced)
1/4 cup of fresh, chopped cilantro
2 limes juiced
Salt and pepper
Steak:
1 to 2 pounds of sirloin steak
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper
Rating: 4.9/5
Price: $29.18