Bite Out of Life – a Recipe for Street Tacos to Cleanse the Soul

Soul-Cleansing Street Tacos

By Kaitlynn Garrett

I don’t know about any of you, but there are some days where I just need a taco. I can’t describe the feeling, but tacos have this way of cleansing the soul and making things right. A lot of the recipes that I share with you guys are usually quick to make, so this one might seem like it takes more prep (except for the side dish). However, I can promise you that it’s 142% worth the extra effort. That is, if you like tacos. If you don’t, I’m not sure what to do other than ask, “who hurt you?”

Personally, I rarely marinade anything because I feel like it takes more patience than I have. For this recipe though, I highly recommend doing it because the flavors come together so beautifully the longer they sit. Also, letting the steaks marinade gave me plenty of time to go get iced coffee, so that was definitely a plus in my book.

I tried ordering thin beef sirloin tip steaks, but the store was out of stock and replaced it with beef milanesa which is a top round cut of beef. I’m not an expert on cuts of meat by any means, but I thought this was a perfectly good alternative to the sirloin cut that I’ve used before. As long as the cut is fairly thin, it should work fine!

Also, elote is typically served using corn on the cob, but I wanted to try and switch the recipe up a little to make it into more of a salad-style side dish. One last thing, the shells that I used (see pictures) were flour based. I’ve used corn based too, but the flour-based ones held together really nicely for this recipe.

Street Taco Ingredients

• 95 – 1.9 lb Thin Steak
• 2 Tbsp Soy Sauce (Low sodium)
• 2 Tbsp Lime Juice
• 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 2 tsp Minced Garlic
• 3 tsp Chili Powder
• 2 tsp Cumin
• 1 tsp Oregano
  
• 1 tsp Onion Powder
• 1 7oz Can of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce
• 1 White Onion
• 1 Bunch of Cilantro
• Lime Juice
• 3 – 4 Avocados (Optional for garnish)
• Salsa Verde (Optional for garnish)
• Tortillas

Elote Salad Ingredients

• 1 15oz Can of Corn
• ¼ – ½ c Cotija Cheese
• 1 Tbsp Mayonnaise
• 1 tsp Chili Powder
• 1 tsp Lime juice

Street Tacos

1. Add your steaks to a gallon plastic bag. Add in soy sauce, lime juice, olive oil, garlic, chili powder, cumin, oregano, onion powder, and chipotle peppers. You can stir your marinade in a separate bowl, but I dumped everything in the bag and smushed (technical term for professional chefs like myself) it all around until it looked evenly coated.
2. Let this sit in your fridge for the same amount of time it takes you to get ready, go get iced coffee, sing along to Paramore way too loudly with the windows down (essential for the recipe to work well), and return home. For me, this was about 2 hours.
3. Once again this week, I used my cast iron grill pan, but I’m sure any pan will do the trick. Heat the pan on high and start putting on the steaks when the pan is hot. The steaks are thin, so it may only take about 2-3 minutes per side to cook.
4. While your steaks are cooking, chop your onion and cilantro. Put these into separate serving bowls.
5. Once the steaks are cooked, chop into bite-sized pieces and place in a bowl.
6. Warm your tortillas. I was very fancy and used the microwave for a few seconds.
7. I assembled my tacos by using one tortilla, a spoonful or two of meat, a few onions, a couple of sprigs of cilantro, slices of avocado, a sprinkle of lime juice, and a little salsa verde.

Elote Salad

1. Drain and rinse your corn.
2. Put this, your mayonnaise, chili powder, cotija cheese, and lime juice into a bowl and stir. Depending on your preferences for texture, you may want a little more mayonnaise and cheese, but this is the ratio that worked for me.

Something about this recipe just makes my heart happy. Whether you’re dining alone listening to your new favorite podcast (“And That’s Why We Drink”), or turning it into a family dinner with a build-your-own-taco bar, this recipe is a great addition to your weekly meals!