how do you tenderize churrasco

Like so many of the best Puerto Rican dishes, churrasco — garlicky wood-fire-grilled steak served with chimichurri — starts by tenderizing a tougher cut of meat (skirt steak) with a flavorful marinade. Although its origins are Argentinian and Brazilian (the word churrasco encompassing grilled meats in both Spanish and Portuguese), variations on the dish are Latin American staples. This recipe kicks up a classic Puerto Rican marinade with a bit of adobo seasoning, and then served with wasakaka, an herbaceous sauce from the Dominican Republic using lime juice. The steak should be grilled over an open fire (the smoke is key), but a gas grill will do, as will a cast-iron skillet. Serve with adobo roasted potatoes, maduros, white rice or arroz mamposteao, plus fresh tomato and avocado slices.

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Very tasty, but also very salty. I would cut the salt by at least half for both the marinade and the sauce.

This is a far more versatile recipe than suggested. Wasakaka is good on any grilled meats. I even put some leftovers on fried potatoes and eggs this morning. Will work with flank steak, flatiron, skirt, any of the “cheaper” tougher cuts. I used hanger steak which I butterflied and grilled over a wood fire. Out of this world delicious!

Did you slice it against the grain when serving?

Dried oregano is fine, don’t add salt (adobo is salty enough)

Great tasting but I recommend reducing the salt in the marinade. It was way too salty which I rarely ever say!

Even the small skirt steak I bought was not cooked to rare in 1-3 minutes on a very hot grill. Obviously this varies a lot depending on the thickness and size of the cut and individual preference, but I would say 4 minutes per side will still produce a rare, juicy steak. The marinade is delicious as is the sauce. The next day, I mixed leftover sauce with more lime juice and olive oil to make a vinaigrette and used it as a dressing over thin cold slices of leftover beef and salad. Delicious.

Sorry, this is absolutely NOT anything but South American! Argentina, Chile, all the way. Puerto Rican? since when?

Agree that it was pretty salty. I would also cut back the salt the next time. And use Maldon instead of kosher.

If using skirt steak, the cooking time is only three minutes per side. This makes the sous vide superfluous. the searing is all it takes. Nice recipe.

Agree with what others said way too much salt and I love salt. I ended up doubling the recipe so that the salt wasn’t overpowering. With half the salt it was still too salty. Recommend using 1/3 salt and add more if needed to taste.

Delicious. The chimichurri was deliciously different with the lime juice. I marinated overnight and steak was incredibly tender. Taste the chimichurri- I added a little red wine vinegar to cut the lime flavor a little.

Wasakaka had avocado in it last time I saw it.

Make sure to research “inside” vs “outside” skirt steaks. Outside is great for churrasco but expensive, inside is cheaper and ok but chewier and less tasty

Delish! the wasakaka really makes the dish – helps change up the flavors.

“Tip: Skirt steak and tri-tip are very different cuts” – understatement of the century right here. Im sure the marinade is fine for tri-tip, but its insane to recommend substituting tri-tip for skirt steak and then advise readers to merely “flip it a few more times on the grill.” Considering that tri-tip is categorically a thicker, rounder and fattier cut than skirt steak, these directions will either result in an extremely undercooked tri-tip or a grease fire and shoe leather.

Made for Mills in Dec 2023 We preferred the wakasakka sauce over the chimichurri Careful of the salt Your grill didn’t get hotter than 300

I omitted the salt entirely, doubled the marinade for a 2.15 lb flank steak and let it marinte for a few hours. This was excellent- but I will knock back the adobe seasoning next time as it was still pretty salty.

Meh. Sauce too acidic and not well-rounded. Helped to serve with sweet corn on the cob, but there are better sauces out there.

You can also make your own adobo to control the saltiness of this marinade: 2 Tbsp each granulated garlic, dried oregano and turmeric 1 Tbsp each granulated onion and ground black pepper 1-2 tsp sweet or smoked paprika (smoked is really good!) 2-3 tsp cumin Salt to your desire (I add no salt to mine and just control the saltiness of the marinade when I make it) I got the recipe from delish.com & just varied it a bit. One other site used annatto instead of turmeric. I haven’t tried that yet

I love this app and use it often but like a lot of other recipes cut salt by half. NY Times Cooking is trying to give us all high blood pressure.

So much confusion around salting. The recipe states coarse kosher, if using the same volume of table salt or fine sea salt, you will be doubling or tripling the amount of salt you are adding. No salt is less or more salty than any other salt, but the grain size affects the volume. But like, also, stop measuring salt when you follow a recipe. Just eye it up! Taste, adjust as necessary.

The amount of salt, plus the amount of time in marinade (or refrigerate overnight if you have time) makes thinner cuts very salty, overly so. If using skirt or flank reduce (by half at least) both the time and amount of salt. Also the idea that 20 minutes of 6 – 8 hours in a marinade are compatible is ridiculous. leave overnight with far less salt and use a thicker cut if possible. Although flank is great for this it must be severely limited on salting.

Make this wasaka sauce in fridge up to 4 days Try to whip some with mayo and spread on chicken breasts or boneless pork chops replacing chimichanga

sorry, but this IS absolutely a staple in Puerto Rican home cooking…my mom made this for us regularly….and it is also eaten all over latin america…not just argentina and south america…

Was my chimichurri too thin because I made it in a Cuisinart, or because I measured the picked leaves, then chopped, my herbs? Tasty anyway.

If you substitute kosher salt with another salt make sure to use less. Kosher salt is less “salty.”

Just found this cut of meat at a market in Sarasota. Instead of masking all the delicious meat flavor we used only lime juice EVOO salt and pepper and NO other sauce topping. The meat was perfectly grilled and rested and juices served over a side mashed potatoes. Leftovers will be wrapped in tortillas tomorrow with fresh avocado. Too many folks over do. Get back to basics

I haven’t made the actual steak, but I did make up a batch of the wasakaka and it’s now in the regular rotation of garlicky green condiments in our fridge. Aside from some extra garlic, which I grated and added at the end to forestall bitter flavors, i made this pretty much as written, and it has been a huge hit. Delicious with so many things, but especially on meat!Private notes are only visible to you.

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PERFECT Grilled Skirt Steak (Churassco)

FAQ

How do you make skirt steak not chewy?

Is churrasco steak tough?

Should churrasco steak be sliced before grilling?

Let the Steak Rest: After grilling, allow the steak to rest for a few minutes before slicing. This helps retain the juices and keeps the meat tender. Thinly Slice the Steak: When serving, slice the churrasco steak against the grain for maximum tenderness.

How long does churrasco take to cook?

Churrasco is typically made with a long flat cut of skirt steak that is marinated until tender and grilled to juicy perfection. This recipe takes about 40 minutes to make, from start to finish, and comes together quite easily. Savory & Flavorful.

How do you eat churrasco steak?

Steak Tacos: Slice the grilled churrasco steak thinly and serve it in soft tortillas with chimichurri sauce, grilled onions, and avocado slices. Steak Skewers: Cut the steak into bite-sized pieces, marinate, and then skewer with vegetables before grilling. Serve with chimichurri sauce or cilantro garlic sauce for dipping.

Can you use chimichurri sauce on a churrasco steak?

Chimichurri sauce. Yes, this oil-based sauce made with fresh herbs, garlic, vinegar, olive oil, and spices works well as a marinade, dip, or dressing for other dishes, making it a versatile addition to a Churrasco steak. Skirt steak.