Grilled Skirt Steak with Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salsa

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A Perfect Party Dish for Casual Summer Entertaining

This Mexican-style main dish is perfect for parties. Skirt steak should be purchased in long strips, rather than rolled up, for this recipe. This particular cut of beef is used frequently in Latin cooking. It is inexpensive with an amazing amount of flavor. Lime juice is the main ingredient in the marinade that gives the meat a citrus flavor and also tenderizes it. As the meat cooks on the grill, it becomes slightly caramelized with delicious layers of flavor.

Make sure to have a grill pan with holes that will keep the onion slices from falling through the grates. The key to the salsa is making sure that everything is chopped the same size. I like to sprinkle some salsa over the carved meat and then offer my guests more as a side dish.

The tortillas can be warmed right on the barbecue for 30 seconds on each side or on a gas burner, using tongs to turn them. Keep the tortillas warm by wrapping them in heavy napkins and placing them in a basket.

Start with your favorite guacamole and raw vegetables and chips. A simple vegetable rice is a nice accompaniment. Nothing goes better with this meal than ice-cold Mexican beer. For dessert, try summer sorbets with butter cookies.

Grilled Skirt Steak with Corn, Avocado and Tomato Salsa

Serves 6

Marinade:

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup fresh lime juice (about 8 limes)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 small onion, thinly sliced

Salt and fresh black pepper

2 pounds skirt steak

Salsa:

1/2 cup fresh corn kernels, about 1 ear of corn

1 large tomato, peeled, seeded, and finely chopped

1 ripe medium avocado, peeled, pitted, and finely chopped

2 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

1 jalapeno chili, seeded, finely chopped (or 1 tablespoon store-bought spicy green salsa or to taste)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

12 medium corn tortillas, warmed

1. Place all the marinade ingredients in a large nonaluminum mixing bowl and whisk until combined. Taste for seasoning. Place the skirt steak in the mixing bowl, being sure to flatten it out and turn it well to coat all sides with marinade. Marinate for 2 to 4 hours covered in the refrigerator.

2. Meanwhile, mix all the salsa ingredients to combine in a medium mixing bowl. Take care to keep the avocado in pieces by mixing carefully. Taste for seasoning.

3. Prepare a barbecue for medium-heat grilling. Remove the steak and the onion slices from the marinade and grill 3 inches from the heat for 4 to 6 minutes on each side for medium-rare. Use a grill pan with holes to grill the onion slices, so they don't fall through the grill, and grill until they are lightly charred and soft.

4. Place the steak and onions on a carving platter and thinly slice the meat on the diagonal. Spoon some of the salsa on top of the sliced meat and serve the remaining salsa and the warmed tortillas on the side.

Advance Preparation:

Can be prepared up to 4 hours ahead through step 2 and refrigerated.

 

Diane Rossen Worthington is an authority on new American cooking. She is the author of 18 cookbooks (click here), including "Seriously Simple Holidays: Recipes and Ideas to Celebrate the Season," and also a James Beard award-winning radio show host.

 

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Copyright © 2011, Diane Rossen Worthington. Distributed by Tribune Media Services Inc.