These carne asada tacos are made with tender and tangy marinated carne asada that is a total cinch to make and topped with lightly charred red onions, sliced avocados, and cilantro.

Carne Asada Taco being picked up. - 1

Today I have for you another Carne Asada recipe made with my absolute favorite Carne Asada Marinade , super quick and simple Carne Asada Tacos.

Easy Carne Asada Tacos Recipe

These carne asada tacos are made with tender and tangy marinated carne asada that is a total cinch to make and topped with lightly charred red onions, sliced avocados, and cilantro.

Technically the tacos take about 24 hours to make since you’ll want to marinate your carne asada overnight (both for flavor and for convenience), but your actual hands-on cooking and prep time is very short.

We’re going to cook the steak for the tacos under the broiler, so it doesn’t need a ton of babysitting and cooks up to a beautiful medium-rare in less than 10 minutes. From the time you pull your marinated meat out of the fridge, between cooking, cutting, and assembling the tacos, you can be eating in less than 25 minutes.

Overhead photo of carne asada tacos. - 2 Overhead photo of carne asada tacos. - 3

How to Make Carne Asada Tacos

  • Start marinating your steak the night before so it’s ready to go when dinner comes around the next day. Flip the marinade bag in the fridge before you head off to work so the meat marinates evenly.
  • When you’re ready to cook, place the steak on a heavy-duty baking sheet or broiler tray. Arrange sliced onions around the meat, and broil everything for a few minutes per side. The meat is done when its internal temperature reaches 135°F for medium-rare, 145°F for medium and onion slices are lightly charred and softened.
  • Then give your meat a short rest before slicing and assembling into tacos.

What is the best meat for carne asada tacos?

The best meat for carne asada tacos is something with a well-defined grain that’s going to pick up a marinade well, and something that you can cook over quick, high heat. Flank steak, skirt steak, and flap meat all fit this bill. They have a ton of flavor and do well when cooked fast and hot.

Flap meat is my favorite of the three because it’s typically the cheapest option, but you can’t go wrong with any of them.

Alternative Taco Toppings

  • Diced white onions
  • Sliced radishes
  • Crumbled Cotija cheese
  • Chipotle yogurt sauce
  • Eggs, cheddar cheese, and fajita veggies for breakfast tacos
Three carne asada tacos with avocado on a plate. - 4 Three carne asada tacos with avocado on a plate. - 5

More Carne Asada Recipes

  • Carne Asada Salad
  • Carne Asada Burrito Bowls
  • Carne Asada Sandwiches
  • Carne Asada Fries

Recipe Notes

  • If you have leftover carne asada, pour any remaining pan juices over the top before storage–this will help keep the meat moist.
Carne Asada Tacos - 6

Ingredients

Carne Asada Marinade

  • ▢ 1 1/2 to 2 pounds skirt, flank, or flap steak
  • ▢ 1/2 cup orange juice bottled is fine
  • ▢ 1/2 cup soy sauce low-sodium is fine
  • ▢ 1/4 cup lemon juice bottled is fine
  • ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil
  • ▢ 2 tablespoons lime juice bottled is fine
  • ▢ 2 cloves garlic pressed or diced
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon paprika
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • ▢ 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • ▢ 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chili pepper OR 1 teaspoon finely chopped canned chipotle pepper, optional
  • ▢ 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro chopped about 3/4 cup very loosely packed

Tacos

  • ▢ 1/2 red onion sliced into 1/4-inch rounds (do not separate the layers)
  • ▢ 1 medium avocado sliced
  • ▢ 8 taco-size tortillas flour or corn are fine
  • ▢ 1/2 bunch chopped cilantro for topping
  • ▢ 2 limes quartered, optional for topping

Instructions

Carne Asada Marinade

  • Place steak in a gallon plastic bag or shallow container for marinating. In a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, stir together all marinade ingredients and pour marinade over the steak. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, flipping the meat halfway through.

Carne Asada and Onions

  • Adjust the top rack in your oven so it’s about 4 inches from the broiler and heat broiler on high. Transfer meat to a foil-lined heavy-duty baking sheet or broiler pan. Place onion rounds around the meat on the baking tray wherever they will fit.
  • Broil for 4 to 6 minutes per side (flip both the meat and the onion rounds), until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the steak reads 135°F for medium-rare, 145°F for medium.
  • If onions have not yet reached your desired level of doneness, you can transfer the meat to a cutting board and return onions to the oven. Once onions are done, slice the rounds in half, separate the slices, and toss them in the pan juices. Allow the meat to rest for 5 minutes before slicing across the grain into strips.

Assemble Tacos

  • Gently warm tortillas by placing them on a plate and covering the stack with a damp paper towel. Microwave until heated through, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
  • Top warmed tortillas with sliced carne asada, onions, sliced avocado and cilantro. If desired, add a squeeze of lime juice, and enjoy!

Notes

The quickest and easiest way to make a homemade buttermilk substitute with just two ingredients.

Milk being poured into a measuring up to make buttermilk substitute. - 7

Hey, friends, today we’re going to chat about the whys and hows of making a homemade buttermilk substitute. But if you’re in the middle of a recipe and just need that info quick, here you go:

Buttermilk Substitute Ratio

Add the following amount of lemon juice (fresh or bottled) or white vinegar to your measuring cup and fill the cup the rest of the way with milk, stir, and continue baking.

For 1 cup of buttermilk use 1 tablespoon lemon juice/vinegar and fill the rest of the way with milk 3/4 cup use 2 1/4 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar 2/3 cup use 2 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar 1/2 cup use 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar 1/3 cup use 1 teaspoon lemon juice/vinegar 1/4 cup use 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice/vinegar

Okay, back to our buttermilk chat.

What is buttermilk?

Traditional buttermilk is the liquid left behind after churning cream into butter, but these days most of the buttermilk we consume is what’s called cultured buttermilk.

Cultured buttermilk is pasteurized milk with added bacteria cultures to create the thickened, tangy milk that makes our pancakes and waffles taste so good.

The “homemade buttermilk” we’re making today is not true buttermilk, but you can use it pretty much anywhere you’d use regular store-bought buttermilk (except for drinking).

Wait, can I just use milk instead of buttermilk in baking?

Usually no. Buttermilk does more than just add moisture to a recipe. It’s also acidic which helps activate some leaveners (the things that make your baked goods rise) in baking. Without that acidic ingredient, your recipe won’t bake up properly.

This is why when making a buttermilk substitute with milk you add acid in the form of lemon juice or vinegar so your homemade buttermilk can serve all the functions of buttermilk in a recipe.

How long will homemade buttermilk last?

Homemade buttermilk will keep for about a week in an airtight container in your fridge.

However, personally, I prefer to just make it when I need it since it’s hard to tell whether it’s gone off or not because it’s already slightly curdled and sour smelling.

But if you have leftovers you want to use up, check out this post: What to Do With Leftover Buttermilk .

Can you make buttermilk with non-dairy milks?

Yes! Use the same ratio of lemon juice/vinegar to non-dairy milk as you would regular milk. BUT if a recipe specifically calls for whole milk, you may want to use a higher fat/creamier non-dairy milk like cashew, soy, or coconut milk.

Recipes to Make With Homemade Buttermilk Substitute

Here are a few of my favorite recipes you can make with your homemade buttermilk:

  • Small Banana Cake
  • Small Red Velvet Cake
  • Sweet Buttermilk Cornbread Muffins
  • Mini Strawberry Breakfast Cake

You Might Also Enjoy

  • Homemade Taco Seasoning
  • The Perfect Cinnamon Sugar Ratio
  • Pumpkin Pie Spice
Milk being poured into a measuring up to make buttermilk substitute. - 8

Ingredients

  • ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon juice OR white vinegar
  • ▢ Scant 1 cup milk any percentage is fine

Instructions

  • Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar to a 1-cup measuring cup.
  • Fill the cup the rest of the way with milk.
  • Let sit for 5 minutes.
  • Use as you would buttermilk.

Notes

  • 3/4 cup use 2 1/4 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar
  • 2/3 cup use 2 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar
  • 1/2 cup use 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon juice/vinegar
  • 1/3 cup use 1 teaspoon lemon juice/vinegar
  • 1/4 cup use 3/4 teaspoon lemon juice/vinegar

This easy recipe for Small-batch Chocolate Chip Cookies makes six perfect cookies in 20 minutes.

I call these cookies my instant-gratification chocolate chip cookies because they go from cookie desire to cookie reality in 20 minutes.

Overhead photo of small-batch chocolate chip cookies. - 9 Overhead photo of small-batch chocolate chip cookies. - 10

These photos have been updated. Don’t worry, you’re in the right place. 🙂

The Best Small-batch Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe

This recipe is designed to make the best chocolate chip cookies possible FAST. It uses melted butter so there is zero waiting time for butter to come to room temperature AND you don’t have to chill the dough.

So you can throw these cookies together with no planning needed and then pop them right into the oven.

It will make half-a-dozen chocolate chip cookies, and they come out soft, a little chewy, and packed full of gooey, melty chocolate chips.

How you choose to distribute those six cookies is up to you, though I vote for being a cookie monster and eating two for breakfast and then hiding the rest of them at the back of your freezer so you don’t have to share.

Hand holding a gooey chocolate chip cookie that's been split in half. - 11 Hand holding a gooey chocolate chip cookie that's been split in half. - 12

How to Make Small-batch Chocolate Chip Cookies

  1. Start with melted and slightly cooled butter. Your butter should NOT be hot to the touch as it can cause bits of your egg to cook if it’s too warm. Mix the butter with granulated sugar and brown sugar.
  2. Add the yolk from a large egg and vanilla. Make sure you’re working with a large egg or you might not have enough liquid in your dough for it all to come together.
  3. Add flour, measured precisely, and the other dry ingredients. Flour measurement is really important in small-batch recipes. Measure by weight or using the spoon and sweep method (stir the flour in your container to fluff it up and then spoon it into your measuring cup, sweep excess off with the flat of a knife). Too much flour can lead to a dry, sandy dough.
  4. Add chocolate chips. This recipe calls for semi-sweet, but you can use any chips you prefer (or add M&Ms and make M&M Cookies ).
  5. Bake. Do not overbake your cookies! Bake just until the cookies look set and then pull them from the oven. They might still seem a little gooey, but they’ll continue cooking on the hot baking sheet as it cools.

Tips and Tricks

Can I freeze these cookies? Yes! Just store the cookies in an airtight container or freezer bag and they’ll keep for up to 2 months in the freezer. Give them five minutes at room temperature to soften a bit before eating or enjoy them frozen on a hot summer day.

Can I double the recipe? Yes! If you want to double the recipe, you can do so with no changes or use one whole egg instead of two yolks.

If you’re having trouble with your cookies, here are a couple troubleshooting tips that might help:

My dough is dry/crumbly: This is usually caused by too much flour in the dough (make sure you’re measuring it by weight or the spoon and sweep method) or it can happen when you get a particularly small egg yolk, so there isn’t enough liquid for everything to mix well. To fix crumbly dough, add a little milk or water by the half teaspoon, just enough so that everything comes together and there are no dry bits of flour at the bottom of the bowl, and your dough should be good to go.

Soft small-batch chocolate chip cookie on parchment paper. - 13 Soft small-batch chocolate chip cookie on parchment paper. - 14
  • Small-batch Peanut Butter Cookies
  • Small-batch Oatmeal Cookies
  • Perfect Small-batch Sugar Cookies
  • Small-batch Gingerbread Cookies
  • Small-batch Buckeye Brownie Cookies

Or check out my entire Small-batch Cookie Recipe Archive .

This recipe uses just one egg yolk. Check out these Egg White Recipes for ideas on what to do with the leftover egg white.

Overhead photo of small-batch chocolate chip cookies. - 15

Ingredients

  • ▢ 2/3 cup ( 80 g) all-purpose flour measured by weight or the spoon and sweep method*
  • ▢ 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • ▢ 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • ▢ 1/4 cup ( 2 oz) butter melted and slightly cooled
  • ▢ 1/3 cup ( 66g ) brown sugar
  • ▢ 2 tablespoons ( 25g ) granulated sugar
  • ▢ 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ▢ 1 large egg yolk
  • ▢ 1/2 cup ( 3oz ) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
  • In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt.
  • In a medium bowl, whisk together the butter and brown and granulated sugars. Add egg yolk and vanilla and whisk until well-combined. Stir in the flour mixture until just mixed and fold in the chocolate chips.
  • Drop dough by rounded spoonfuls (just under two ounces) onto your prepared cookie sheet (for the most perfectly round cookies, roll into ball first), and bake for 9 to 12 minutes, until the cookies just look set. Cool on the cookie sheet and enjoy!

Notes

Carne Asada Tacos - 16

Carne Asada Tacos

Ingredients

Carne Asada Marinade

  • 1 1/2 to 2 pounds skirt, flank, or flap steak
  • 1/2 cup orange juice bottled is fine
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce low-sodium is fine
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice bottled is fine
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons lime juice bottled is fine
  • 2 cloves garlic pressed or diced
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground chipotle chili pepper OR 1 teaspoon finely chopped canned chipotle pepper, optional
  • 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro chopped about 3/4 cup very loosely packed

Tacos

  • 1/2 red onion sliced into 1/4-inch rounds (do not separate the layers)
  • 1 medium avocado sliced
  • 8 taco-size tortillas flour or corn are fine
  • 1/2 bunch chopped cilantro for topping
  • 2 limes quartered, optional for topping

Instructions

Carne Asada Marinade

  • Place steak in a gallon plastic bag or shallow container for marinating. In a liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, stir together all marinade ingredients and pour marinade over the steak. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight, flipping the meat halfway through.

Carne Asada and Onions

  • Adjust the top rack in your oven so it’s about 4 inches from the broiler and heat broiler on high. Transfer meat to a foil-lined heavy-duty baking sheet or broiler pan. Place onion rounds around the meat on the baking tray wherever they will fit.
  • Broil for 4 to 6 minutes per side (flip both the meat and the onion rounds), until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the steak reads 135°F for medium-rare, 145°F for medium.
  • If onions have not yet reached your desired level of doneness, you can transfer the meat to a cutting board and return onions to the oven. Once onions are done, slice the rounds in half, separate the slices, and toss them in the pan juices. Allow the meat to rest for 5 minutes before slicing across the grain into strips.

Assemble Tacos

  • Gently warm tortillas by placing them on a plate and covering the stack with a damp paper towel. Microwave until heated through, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
  • Top warmed tortillas with sliced carne asada, onions, sliced avocado and cilantro. If desired, add a squeeze of lime juice, and enjoy!

Notes

Nutrition