Steak Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce

  • By Jackie Sun
  • January 4, 2015

Steak Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce | Weeknight Meal #recipe via @CookSmartsWe don’t need to do any spreadsheets or major analyzing to know that a few of our members’ favorite things or most requested items are:

  • Steak
  • Tacos
  • Chimichurri sauce

So we decided to make one awesome weeknight dinner by combining all of these into one meal – Steak Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce. Not only is it taco night (which, in our opinion, should happen once a week!), but meat eaters get their meat fix with a nice steak, and you can whip up a fresh and tangy sauce that you thought you would never make in your own kitchen.

“Everyone loved this one. I had to make chimichurri sauce from scratch because we couldn’t find it anywhere. I may never try to buy it – it’s easy to make, and the fresh parsley makes it so great.”
-Julie

We love to take shortcuts whenever we can, but making your own chimichurri sauce is the shortcut to buying some from the store. It sounds unbelievable, but here’s the thing – Have you ever had the problem of having too much parsley and / or cilantro in the fridge? Recipes usually call for a few sprigs at a time, and then you’re left with a bunch of fresh herbs that are just waiting to go bad.

Our recipe for chimichurri is so easy to make and uses up these leftover herbs and ingredients you probably have in your pantry and fridge, it actually takes a lot faster than driving to the store to pick some up.
Steak Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce | Weeknight Meal #recipe via @CookSmarts Here’s the deal:

Step one: Never fear your fresh herbs going to waste. We have an easy and great way to store them so that they last longer. Check out this video below:

Step two: When you have 5 to 10 minutes to spare (perhaps as your steak is marinating), you can use up that leftover cilantro and parsley, toss them into a food processor with garlic, shallots, capers, red wine vinegar, lime juice, salt, and oil, and let the food processor do all the work.

Step three: Enjoy your chimichurri sauce fresh, or freeze. This sauce freezes beautifully, and you can have a fresh, flavorful sauce for any meal at any time. (Especially if you freeze in small portions, so that it’s easier to thaw.)

“Combination of flavors from the vinaigrette / marinade and the chimichurri were out of this world. Hubby said it was the best Cook Smarts meal yet!!”
-Liane

Chimichurri goes great with meat, but we also love it on veggies and tofu. And because this sauce is so good (and we have enjoyed it on many things, like as a sandwich spread or in omelets or to add flavor to a soup), we even honored it as one of our 5 Sauces You Can Use On Everything. (That’s how awesome this sauce is.)

So without further ado, let’s get taco night started!

For More Smarts:

  • You can make chimichurri sauce whenever you have some leftover parsley and / or cilantro. The proportions don’t have to be perfect – it will still be delicious!
  • Vinaigrettes can be used as marinades, which is why we used one to marinate the steak in this recipe. Make it a complete and balanced meal by doubling the vinaigrette and using it on this Citrus Avocado Salad to enjoy with your tacos.

Prepping Smarts:

The most important thing while prepping meat? Tenderizing it! Don’t miss this step, as it really helps get all the flavors of the marinade into every bite. Here’s how:

Equipment Smarts:

A food processor or blender makes it very easy to make chimichurri sauce (as well as other blended sauces and more), which is why we think it’s a great investment.

Buy this Cuisinart Food Processor from Amazon.comNinja Professional Blender from Amazon.comWe’re all about grilling steaks outdoors, but since it’s not summer yet (and it’s too cold to cook outside), we use a grill pan to get the similar effect.

All Clad Grill PanFor more kitchen and equipment and tool smarts, visit our ‘Essential Kitchen Cookware and Tools’

Steak Tacos with Chimichurri Sauce
Author: Jess Dang
Prep time: 45 mins
Cook time: 10 mins
Total time: 55 mins
Serves: 4
Quick and easy weeknight tacos get an awesome flavor kick from chimichurri sauce. This sauce is so good, you’ll definitely want to make more to use on everything!
Ingredients
  • Ingredients
  • Asian Vinaigrette
  • Garlic – 2 cloves, crushed
  • Soy sauce – 2 1/4 tsp
  • Rice vinegar – 2 1/4 tsp
  • Toasted sesame oil – 1/2 tsp
  • Brown sugar – 1/2 tsp
  • Cooking oil – 2 1/2 tbsp
  • Steak Tacos
  • Flank or skirt steak – 1 1/4 lb
  • Roma tomatoes – 2, diced
  • Cooking oil – for brushing
  • Tortillas – 8
  • Chimichurri Sauce
  • Parsley – 1/2 bunch, bottom stems chopped off
  • Cilantro – 1/4 bunch, bottom stems chopped off
  • Garlic – 1 clove
  • Shallots (small) – 1/2 bulb
  • Capers – 1/2 tbsp
  • Red wine vinegar – 1/2 tbsp
  • Lime – 1, juice of
  • Salt – 3/4 tsp
  • Cooking oil – 1/3 cup (add more as needed)
Instructions
Prep
  1. Prepare marinade / vinaigrette – Crush garlic. Whisk with soy sauce, rice vinegar, toasted sesame oil, brown sugar, and cooking oil. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
  2. Marinate steak – Cover steak in the Asian vinaigrette. Tenderize with a fork. Marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day. Just remember to take it out 30 minutes before cooking. (Can be done up to 1 day ahead)
  3. Make chimichurri sauce – In a blender or a food processor, combine parsley, cilantro, garlic, shallot, capers, red wine vinegar, lime juice, salt, and oil. Add more oil if it’s too thick. Season to taste with salt or more lime juice. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
  4. Tomatoes – Prep as directed.
Make
  1. Heat up a grill pan over high heat. Brush with some cooking oil. Once pan is super hot, place steak onto pan and sear on both sides for ~3 minutes. Remove from pan, cover with foil and let rest. For a more well-done steak, turn down heat and cook for a few more minutes.
  2. Heat up tortillas according to package instructions.
  3. Slice steak into bite sized pieces.
  4. Have everyone assemble their own tacos with steak, chimichurri sauce, and tomatoes. Enjoy!
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