By Jonny and Amy Seponara-Sills, We Are Never Full
Serves 3 to 4
Ingredients for steak:
3 pounds steak (preferably skirt or flank)
Salt
Corn or flour tortillas (corn preferable)
Optional toppings: avocado slices, lime juice, crema/sour cream, thinly sliced cabbage, diced onion, jalapenos, scallions, etc.
Ingredients for Rajas:
2 poblano peppers, roasted, skin removed and thinly sliced
Optional and not traditional: yellow or orange pepper, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
Oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch of oregano ,thyme (optional)
Salt
Ingredients for Salsa Verde (Tomatillo Salsa)
3 to 4 tomatillos, husk removed, washed and roasted in oven
1 clove garlic, minced
1 scallion, sliced
Handful of fresh cilantro
Lime juice
Pinch of salt
Optional: Roasted spicy pepper like habenero or Serrano, minced
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.
2. When oven comes up to temperature, roast the tomatillos whole for 10-15 minutes until soft and slightly browned.
3. Salt your steak on both sides. Roast the poblano pepper by placing pepper directly on the open flame of your gas stove turning frequently (or set it under the broiler in your oven). You will do this until the skin is blistered and blackened all over the chile. Remove and place a towel over it until it cools.
4. Remove tomatillos from oven and make salsa verde by placing all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Taste for seasoning by adding salt and extra lime juice if necessary.
5. To make the rajas, heat up a skillet till red hot. Add oil and sautée the onions and yellow pepper (if using). Allow to sautée for 4 to 5 minutes and then add the garlic. Allow to sautée for another minute or two. Finally, add the roasted poblano pepper and sautée for 30 seconds. Remove all to a plate.
6. In the same skillet, not adding any extra oil, add your steak. This process should be QUICK. We like our steak really pink inside – medium rare. For a thin piece of steak, this will mean cooking each side for about 3 to 4 minutes per side. If worse comes to worse, UNDERCOOK it and then make a little slice in it. You can always cook it a bit more, but never take back the cooking time on an overcooked piece of steak.
7. Remove steak and allow to rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, heat up your tortillas. If using flour, heat in dry skillet for a few moments on each side and wrap in a towel. Or, microwave for 20 seconds wrapped in a towel. If using corn tortillas, you should fry them a bit in some oil in the skillet. You don’t want them crispy, just pliable and cooked.
8. Cut your steak on the bias against the lines of the steak so you get a clean cut. Assemble your tacos by putting all the various toppings you’d like on each!
