Citrus marinated flank steak and shrimps
Fresh grilled corn and black bean salad
Guacamole
Flour and/or corn tortillas
Brewskies by way of Pacifico
It was a really great summertime meal with bright, simple flavors. For the steak, you can use either flank or skirt steak. I asked the butcher for a piece that would feed about six. To marinate the flank steak, I put it in a plastic freezer bag along with the following:
-The juice of two limes, as well as the husks.
-The juice of one lemon, as well as the husk.
-The juice of half an orange, as well as the husk (sensing a theme here? Why not chuck the whole thing in after you've juiced it and get as much flavor as you can? That's what I thought).
-One chopped jalapeno pepper. I took the seeds and ribs out, but if you want more heat, by all means leave them in. It totally won't hurt my feelings.
-Two or three chopped cloves of garlic.
-Salt and pepper, depending on your taste. I threw in a couple of good pinches of salt and grinds of pepper.
-An eight to ten count of olive oil.
-A couple of splashes of beer. A little for the marinade, a little for me.
I sealed the bag and mooshed everything up together and threw it in the fridge. I only had time to marinate for an hour, but you could go up to two or three. The marinade for the shrimps was quite similar but, but I didn't put jalapeno pepper. Instead I added a dash of cayenne pepper. Also there were way less shrimps than steak, so I just eyeballed it and cut back on the marinade. The shrimps were purchased already peeled and de-veined, by the way. No need to do that yourself. Shudder.
While the meat was in the fridge getting delicious, I made the guacamole. This is my wonky version, but I find it to be pretty popular. Add or change as you feel, but only if you're super lame. I took four ripe Haas avocados and added the juice of one lime, two grated cloves of garlic, some chopped cilantro (although I had to omit the cilantro tonight on account of my dear friend, let's call her Shmannie), a few splashes of beer (another theme this evening), and some salt and pepper. I mixed this all up together and mashed the chunks of avocado with a fork - I like my guacamole fairly smooth. Be sure to taste and taste until you get the seasoning just right.
Next I made the corn and black bean salad. I shucked four ears of fresh corn and brushed them with some olive oil and salt/pepper. Adam threw those guys on the hot grill for a few minutes to give them a nice char, but not too much. You don't want them to be over cooked. Once the corn had cooled a bit, I cut it off of the cob into a bowl. I then added two cans of black beans that I had drained and rinsed. In a separate bowl, I made a vinaigrette with four table spoons of red wine vinegar, two tablespoons of dijon mustard, a few......splashes of beer (yes, again. Deal.), the juice of half a lemon, some salt/pepper, and half a teaspoon or so of chili powder. Whisked that, then streamed in a quarter of a cup of olive oil. You don't want this vinaigrette to be too thick, so watch the consistency, and add more beer if necessary. To the vinaigrette I added half a red onion that I sliced thinly and a chopped jalapeno (again with the seeds removed, you know the drill). When I put raw onion or shallot in a salad, I like to let it sit in the vinaigrette first to take out some of the raw bite. After the the onions and jalapeno soaked for about ten minutes, I added the mixture to the corn and black beans. I tossed in some chopped parsley (should have been cilantro, but whatevs. I love Miss Annie) and some Manchengo cheese. You could also use a softer cheese here: a feta, ricotta solata, or cojita would all be super tasty. Finish it off with another squeeze of lime, and as always, taste for seasoning. A few dashes of sriracha or tabasco would be yummy too.
Okie, so that was the side dishes. As the steak marinated, I made sure to toss the bag around a few times so that the marinade was evenly distributed. I wrapped some flour and corn tortialls in foil and had Adam throw those on the grill with the steak. I really like flank steak medium rare, and it depends on the thickness of the steak but it seemed as though it was around seven minutes for the first side to get a good sear, and about four or five for the second. As it rested, Adam skewered the shrimps and threw those on the grill for really no more than five minutes total. Apparently overcooked shrimps aren't so tasty. As if I would know. I'm a giant baby and don't like seafood. Yeah yeah yeah I know. I don't know what I'm missing blah blah blah.
This last step is super important kids: after the meat has rested a bit, slice it AGAINST the grain of the meat. It will be super tender if you do so. Then it was time to build some tacos! Guac, black bean and corn salad, cilantro (hooray!) carne asada and mmmmmmmmmmmmm. I ate too much but it was totally worth it.
Do it.
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