CARNE ASADA - Roy Choi

 There are few foods more emblematic of Los Angeles than carne asada. In fact, the phrase has become so recognizable that you don’t even have to translate it to English: just say it out loud, and most people will know it’s marinated beef, thinly sliced and grilled to a char on a sunny Cali picnic day. I have heavy roots with carne asada: I grew up around it in Koreatown and ate it almost every day as a lowrider. I love that it’s a wet marinade but somehow dries the meat just right. Whenver you eat carne asada, it feels like L.A. Wash it down with some fresh horchata. Orale, carnal.

SERVES 4

MARINADE

¼ cup garlic cloves, peeled

¼ onion, peeled

¼ cup chopped scallions

¼ cup ancho chile powder

1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper

2 jalapeño peppers

½ bunch fresh cilantro

¾ cup Budweiser or any other beer you got in the fridge

Juice and grated zest of 1 orange

Juice and grated zest of 2 limes

½ kiwifruit, peeled

¼ cup mirin

Good pinch of kosher salt

Good pinch of sugar

1 pound skirt steak

Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a blender or food processor and puree.

Rub the marinade all over the steak and marinate the meat in the refrigerator, covered, for at least an hour and up to 2 days.

When you’re ready to grill, heat the grill to medium heat, brush with oil, and cook the steak for 10 minutes, until it’s nice and charred on the outside and medium on the inside.

Rest the meat for 5 to 10 minutes; then eat. YUM