Many celebrations, big and small, feature skirt steak in our household. Whether it’s birthday bashes or graduations, we serve the quick-cooking, bold beefsteaks whenever the weather cooperates for grilling. This is a cut that deserves and welcomes the sear from a hot cooking surface.
It’s a given that we’ll trim and marinate a pile of skirt steak for Cinco de Mayo (the fifth of May). The holiday celebrates the anniversary of a hard-won battle over France in Puebla, Mexico, in 1862. In this country, the date marks a fine reason to enjoy some of the classics from Mexico’s world-class cuisine, including guacamole and arrachera (skirt steak).
Most experts say the outside skirt steak has their preference for tenderness and flavor. In side by side testing, we found it to be slightly tenderer than the less expensive inner skirt steak. When both are well-trimmed of silver skin, however, we found the difference minimal. Flavor differences, likewise, prove nominal.
I enjoy doing the trimming, using a very sharp, thin-bladed knife, and working carefully to remove the connective tissue and excess fat. Alternatively, ask the butcher to trim the steak for you; but know that they will very likely weigh it before trimming. A whole outer skirt steak, untrimmed, weighs about 2 1/2 pounds. Trimming away all the silver skin, as well as much of the fat, will yield about 1 3/4 pounds lean steak.
Marinating the meat and high-heat cooking ensure tenderness too. So does slicing the steak across the grain (rather than with the grain). Same for flank steak, which makes a fine, if slightly less rich and beefy, substitute for skirt steak. As a bonus, flank steak rarely needs much of a trim and can be slightly less expensive. Cooking time will be 2 to 4 minutes longer.
Serve this chipotle-tequila marinated steak with grilled red onions. I like to serve small bowls of soupy black beans and grilled sliced zucchini on the side. Start the festivities with simple cheese-stuffed jalapeños and a bowl of guacamole spiked with corn, lime, and a drizzle of tequila. This is a meal fit for celebrating Cinco de Mayo or any day of the year.
Chipotle and Tequila Marinated Skirt Steak With Red Onions
Makes 4 to 6 servings
- 1 1/2 to 2 pounds trimmed skirt steak or flank steak
- 3 or 4 small red onions, peeled, sliced into 3/4-inch thick rounds
- Grated rind of 3 small limes
- 1/3 cup fresh lime juice
- 1/4 cup tequila
- 3 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 tablespoon pureed chipotle in adobo or chipotle hot sauce to taste
- 2 teaspoons agave syrup
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon salt ground cumin
- Chopped fresh cilantro and cilantro sprigs, for garnish
- Lime wedges, for serving
Cut skirt steak into 6-inch lengths for easier handling on the grill. (If using flank steak, leave it whole.) Put sliced onions on a baking sheet in a single layer.
For marinade, mix lime rind, lime juice, tequila, garlic, chipotle, agave, salt, and cumin in the bottom of a non-aluminum baking dish. Spoon a little of the marinade over each onion slice. Add steak to the remaining marinade in the dish and turn to coat it on all sides. Refrigerate steak up to 1 hour.
Remove steak from refrigerator and let sit on the counter while you preheat a gas grill to medium hot or prepare a charcoal grill and let coals burn until red hot embers.
Grill onions in a single uncrowded layer directly over heat source, for 5 minutes. Carefully flip onions and move to the outer edges of the heat source. Add steak to grill in a single, uncrowded layer directly over heat source. Grill steaks, without turning, until underside is nicely marked and brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Flip steak and continue to grill until medium-rare, 2 to 3 minutes more depending on grill’s heat. (Flank steak will take 2 to 4 minutes longer.) Remove onions as they turn soft and golden.
Let steak rest 5 minutes on cutting board. Then, slice thinly across the grain. Serve steak and onions garnished with cilantro and lime wedges.
Cheese-Stuffed Jalapeños
Makes 6
- 6 large jalapeño peppers with pretty stems
- 6 thick chunks of Chihuahua or Monterey Jack cheese
- Roasted tomato salsa
- Chopped fresh cilantro
Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Put jalapeños on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 15 minutes. Turn peppers over. Continue roasting until golden and soft, about 10 minutes more. Cool.
Use the tip of a sharp knife to make a slit in peppers. Use a small spoon or clean finger to gently scoop out most of the seeds. Insert a chunk of cheese into each pepper. Return to the baking sheet. (This can be done a day or so in advance.)
Shortly before serving, heat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake stuffed peppers until cheese is melty, 6 to 8 minutes. Serve hot topped with salsa. Garnish with cilantro.
Sweet Corn and Roasted Poblano Guacamole
Makes 6 servings
- 1 poblano pepper
- 1/2 cup sweet corn kernels
- 2 large or 3 medium-sized ripe avocados
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 2 teaspoons tequila
- Juice of 1/2 of a lime
- 1/2 teaspoon finely grated lime rind
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Diced tomato, for garnish
- Tortilla chips, for serving
Heat oven to 450 degrees F. Put poblano on a parchment-lined baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes. Turn pepper over and continue roasting until tender and skin is golden, about 10 minutes. Cool, then slip off the skin, slice pepper open, and rinse away seeds. Cut into small dice.
Microwave corn and 1 tablespoon water in a small bowl covered on high for 2 minutes. Cool and drain.
Cut avocados in half and remove pit. Use a spoon to scoop flesh into a large bowl. Use a large fork or old-fashioned potato masher to roughly crush the avocado. Add diced poblano, corn, cilantro, tequila, lime juice and rind, and salt. Mix to incorporate all ingredients into the avocado. Refrigerate covered with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the guacamole for up to 1 hour.
Serve garnished with tomato. Pass tortilla chips.
