The Best Easy Carne Asada Recipe + Marinade

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You are in for a treat with this simple homemade carne asada recipe! Because there’s so much to love about it. Not only is it incredibly versatile, but it’s so simple to make. This easy carne asada marinade takes just 5 minutes to prep and 7 ingredients. And no fancy ingredients needed, the ingredients are very basic and probably already in your pantry. Keep reading to learn how to make carne asada, because once you know how, you’ve got so many options for what to do with it! Then try more easy steak recipes like London broil next.

Try this Mexican carne asada stuffed into tacos, with cauliflower nachos, or with fresh veggies or salads. One bite and I think you’ll declare it the BEST carne asada marinade ever!

There’s something about Mexican food that I just love. Don’t you agree? The bright flavors of lime and cilantro, the hint of spice, the endless ways to turn one dish into so many different meals.

My latest favorite way to make homemade marinades is using the WhiskWare Dressing Shaker. It makes for easy cleanup, plus I can make the marinade ahead – which means less time in the kitchen and more time with my family. It comes in a glass or plastic version – your choice.

What Is Carne Asada?

Carne asada is marinated and grilled steak that is sliced. It literally translates to “grilled meat” and is most often used as a component of other dishes like tacos, burritos, or tortas.

The cut of steak varies from recipe to recipe, but this Mexican carne asada marinade would work on just about any cut! We’re using flank steak for this recipe. It’s a great steak for marinating and slicing thin.

Carne Asada Ingredients

As always, my recipes always have less than 10 ingredients, and this carne asada recipe is no exception.

• Flank steak (or another cut of steak)
• Jalapeno
• Garlic
• Cilantro
• Lime juice
• Olive oil
• Cumin

How To Make Carne Asada

The steps to make this carne asada meat couldn’t be easier!

• Mix together the asada marinade. It’s full of classic flavors like lime, jalapeno, garlic, and cumin. It reminds me a little bit of chimichurri sauce. Just toss everything into the WhiskWare Dressing Shaker and shake it up. There’s a whisk ball inside to help the marinade emulsify.

• Arrange the meat in a glass dish and pour the marinade over it. The Dressing Shaker makes this super convenient and pours easily!

• Marinate the meat in the fridge. I recommend anywhere from 2-8 hours, but no longer as you don’t want to end up with mushy meat. I like to drizzle the marinade over the meat in a glass baking dish. Store it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to cook it.

PRO TIP: Remove your Mexican carne asada about 30 minutes before you’re going to cook it. This helps it cook evenly.

• Sear the beef asada in a grill pan. You could grill your meat, but I’m sharing directions on how to cook carne asada in the oven because I think the stove and oven combination works so well for steaks. (I use the same method for cooking filet mignon and top sirloin steak in the oven.) We use a cast iron grill pan to get those grill marks (!!) on the stove top first.

• Finish the carne asada in the oven. After the initial sear on the stove, transfer the grill pan to the oven to finish cooking to your liking.

TIP: An oven-safe probe thermometer works best to ensure you don’t overcook your carne asada. If you don’t have one, use this sirloin steak time chart – the cook times will be about the same.

• Let it rest. Don’t forget to rest the carne asada steak after cooking! This is important because the internal temperature will come up another 5 degrees, and will prevent the juices from leaking out when you cut into it.
• Slice the carne asada thinly against the grain.

How Many Carbs Does Carne Asada Have?

Carne asada is incredibly low in carbs. In my recipe, each 5 oz portion of steak + marinade has just 2 grams of carbs. The full nutrition stats can be found in the recipe card below, but here are the highlights:

• 340 calories
• 2 grams carbs
• 32 grams protein
• 21 grams fat

Is Carne Asada Keto?

Yes! Carne asada is keto. Recipes can of course vary, so you would always want to double check, but this carne asada steak has just 2 grams of carbs per serving. Pair it with some keto-friendly sides, and you’ve got a delicious keto dinner.

Can You Make Mexican Carne Asada Ahead?

You can make carne asada ahead of time, but it will depend just how ahead of time you want to make it.

If you want to make it earlier in the day for serving that night, then the timing will be just about perfect. Make the marinade in the morning or mid day and let the steak marinate until it’s time for dinner. (Just not longer than 8 hours!)

If you want to prep it further ahead than the 8 hours, I would recommend mixing together the marinade, but not putting the steak into the marinade until you’re closer to cooking it. The WhiskWare Dressing Shaker is perfect for this because you can make the carne asada marinade and store it in the same container.

Don’t let the marinate for much longer than 8 hours. Otherwise, the meat can get a bit mushy.

What To Serve With Carne Asada

Traditionally, Mexican carne asada is served as a component of a meal, but you can really go in so many directions with it. You can serve it in tacos, keep it really simple and serve it over a bed of greens and sauteed peppers, or try one of these delicious low carb and keto recipes:

• Lettuce wraps with Mexican fixings like cilantro, tomatoes, jalapenos, avocados, and limes
• Make tacos with Fresh Jicama Tortillas or Coconut Flour Tortillas
• Top it with Creamy Tomatillo Avocado Salsa Verde or Red Homemade Salsa
• Pair it with Low Carb Tortilla Chips
• Serve it instead of ground beef over a Healthy Taco Salad

• WhiskWare Dressing Shaker – Super convenient for mixing and storing the marinade!
• Glass Food Storage Dishes – These are great for storage, but also for marinating meats.
• Cast Iron Grill Pan – The best pan to take my authentic carne asada recipe from stove top to oven. Cleans up really easily, too!
• Digital Meat Thermometer – You’ll never cook meat without it again. This is the easiest way to tell when meat has reached the proper – and ideal – temperature.

4.72 from 14 votes

The Best Easy Carne Asada Recipe + Marinade

Learn how to make steak carne asada recipe with marinade at home! Takes just 5 minutes to prep and is perfect for tacos or over a salad.

Prep: 5 minutes

Cook: 10 minutes

Marinating 2 hours

Total: 15 minutes

Author: Maya Krampf from WholesomeYum.com

Servings: 6 (adjust to scale recipe)

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Ingredients

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• 1 medium Jalapeno (minced) ▢
• 4 cloves Garlic (minced) ▢
• 1/2 cup Fresh cilantro (chopped finely) ▢
• 6 tbsp Lime juice ▢
• 6 tbsp Olive oil ▢
• 1 tsp Cumin ▢
• 1 1/2 tsp Sea salt ▢
• 1/2 tsp Black pepper ▢
• 2 lb Flank steak ▢

Instructions

Tap on the times in the instructions below to start a kitchen timer while you cook.

1. Whisk together all the carne asada marinade ingredients (everything except the steak) in a WhiskWare Dressing Shaker.

2. Place the steaks in a single layer in a glass baking dish. Pour the marinade over the steaks and turn to coat.

3. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 8 hours. (The meat may get mushy if you do it for longer.)

4. Cook carne asada using a grill pan followed by the oven - use this recipe for how to cook steak in the oven (this link includes cook times).

5. Rest for 5 minutes, then slice very thinly against the grain.

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Recipe Notes

Serving size: ~5 oz steak

Nutrition Facts

Amount per serving. Serving size in recipe notes above.

Calories 340

Fat 21g

Protein 32g

Total Carbs 2g

Net Carbs 2g

Fiber 0g

Sugar 0g

Nutrition facts are provided as a courtesy. Have questions about calculations or why you got a different result? Please see our nutrition policy.

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Keywords: carne asada marinade, easy carne asada recipe

Calories: 340 kcal

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