Kerry Simon's Addictive Soft Steak Tacos (Fajitas)

MarraMamba's Note:

Much quicker than you would think to prepare and absolutely delicious. If you like fajitas or steak tacos these are for you Kerry Simon is the chef of the Hard Rock Cafe in Las Vegas, recipe from an interview in esquire. Not nearly as complicated or time consuming as the list of ingredients looks at first and the salsa, crema and guac can be made a couple of hours ahead. I have used the lime crema for years on chili before I ever tried this recipe for tacos; will publish it separately as well (Lime Crema for Chili, Tacos, Fajitas and More). Once I discovered the crema I never went back to regular sour cream with Tex-Mex or Mexican dishes.

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 6

• 3 ½ lbs skirt steaks , cut against the grain into strips (a little smaller than your little finger)
• 20 (4 inch) flour tortillas
• ½ cup canola oil
• 1 large napa cabbage , cleaned, cut into thin strips, and tossed with the juice of 2 limes (also called Chinese)

For spice mixture

• 2 teaspoons dried chipotle powder
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons paprika
• 2 tablespoons cumin
• 3 teaspoons kosher salt , kosher

For salsa

• 1 jalapeno pepper
• 1 red onion , sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 4 plum tomatoes
• 2 ounces canola oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt , kosher
• ½ bunch cilantro , roughly chopped
• 3 limes, juice of , fresh

For guacamole

• 6 ripe Hass avocadoes , halved, pits removed, flesh scooped out and placed in large bowl with the juice of 4 limes
• 4 plum tomatoes , small diced (about 2 cups)
• 1 red onion , minced, about 1 cup
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro , roughly chopped
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt , kosher

For lime crema

• 2 cups sour cream
• 2 fresh limes

Directions:

1. To make tacos:.
2. Combine spice-mixture ingredients and toss with steak to coat. Set aside. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Warm tortillas on cookie sheet in oven. Heat two large sauté pans to medium-high. When pans are hot, add oil to each pan followed by 1/2 the seasoned meat. Spread meat out evenly and cook without turning while you lay out warm tortillas on a clean work area to get ready for assembly. Cook meat for approximately 3 minutes, turn, and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring occasionally to achieve even coloring. After 3 minutes, turn off heat and allow meat to sit in the pan, becoming just cool enough for you to handle.
3. To make salsa:.
4. Rub jalapeño, onion, and tomatoes lightly with oil and roast in large sauté pan on medium-high, turning frequently until lightly charred all over. Set aside to cool. When cooled, roughly chop and place in a food processor with salt, pulsing until almost smooth but still just a little chunky. Transfer to bowl, add cilantro and lime juice, cover, and refrigerate. (For a milder salsa, use only half the jalapeño).
5. To make guacamole:.
6. Lightly crush avocados with fork until almost smooth but still a little chunky. Evenly mix in tomatoes, red onion, cilantro, and salt; cover and refrigerate.
7. To make lime crema:.
8. Whisk 2 cups sour cream together with the juice of 2 fresh limes.
9. To serve:.
10. Spread 1/2 tbsp guacamole on each warmed tortilla, followed by a large pinch of cabbage. Distribute meat evenly and fold tortillas up end to end. Serve immediately on a large platter with the salsa, crema, guacamole.

Reviews

[Melvin'sWifey]

I think this recipe should have LIME somewhere in the title!! Good thing we like lime because it really stands out here. It really was an easy dish to put together, I used a round steak but let it simmer a lot longer in the pan to make sure it was nice and tender. I made my pieces pretty small too. I did not include any tomatoes in my guacamole since there were already some in the salsa. DH loved all the flavors. Very tasty!

[stovetop stephanie]

very tasty combo of flavors made the lime creme .the lime creme seemed to bring the different flavors out more lovely taco very good will make again and again for sure made and reviewed zwt 5 genies of gourmet

[Lazy Chef 2]

Wow...this was fantastic!! I used sirloin as that is what I had. Used regular cabbage because it is way cheaper! The only thing we didn't do was the guacamole as none of us like it...We will make this many times this summer I am sure!! Especially loved the Lime Crema sauce...think I could it eat by itself LOL!!! Thanks for posting. Made and reviewed for Zaar World Tour 5 for the Chow Hounds!!!