How to Turn Beef into Taco Tuesday or Fajita Friday
You can use any cut of sliced tougher cuts for this recipe, as long as it's cut into strips. The goal is to cook down any toughness from a cut that might usually be meant for a stir-fry.
Cooking is an art, so if any ingredient doesn't work for you or you want to adjust the amount, just go do it and trust your nose. If it's not salty enough, add more. Need more heat? Add more chili and hot sauce.
The advice and recipes in this blog are by no means meant to be authentic or authoritative. If you need some ideas for a quick way to cook up some beef for Taco Tuesday, give it a go and change as needed!
Toppings listed are suggestions. Treat it like any taco Tuesday or fajita Friday, but with a new filling. Enjoy!
Steak and Seasonings:
1.5 pounds sliced stir-fry beef
1 diced small tomato
1 cup water or broth
1/4 cup apple cider or red wine vinegar
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoon chopped fresh garlic
2 tablespoons chopped jalapeño (or your favorite chili)
1 tablespoon Rocoto Hot Pepper Sauce
2 tablespoons adobo seasoning (or any all-purpose seasoning)
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 tablespoon ground black pepper
2-3 bay leaves
salt to taste (some seasoning mixes have salt, taste and add more as needed)
Salsa Criolla:
1/2 chopped red onion
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 cup vinegar, we like apple cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar
1 tablespoon chopped jalapeño or other chili
salt to taste
Misc:
Tortillas
Shredded cheese
Lime wedges
Chopped tomatoes
Shredded lettuce
Steps:
Heat up some olive oil over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the chopped garlic and the chopped chili. Stir and sautee until coated with oil and fragrant.
Add your dried spices to the pan and stir until coated. You want to cook and stir until the spices start giving off an aroma. Add the chopped tomato and stir, coating it with the oil and spices. Cook until soft and they smell nice.
Add the beef and stir. Cover with a lid and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the water/stock and the vinegar, and stir. Add your rocoto hot sauce, stir and cover.
Lower the heat a bit, stir, and add liquid as needed. Stock is best, but water is fine, too. Keep the heat at medium and only add liquid if it's evaporating too fast. You don't want to cook the meat too quickly or have it dry out.
If your meat is done and the sauce doesn't cook down, add some flour, about one tablespoon at a time. Stir and let the sauce heat and thicken. Repeat as necessary, you can use corn starch or another thickener. This might be the case if you use leaner cuts of meat.
Once the meat is cooked, let it cool for a moment before assembling your fajita or taco. Garnish with lime and salsa criolla. Top with more rocoto hot pepper sauce as desired and enjoy!