Since moving to San Diego over 5 years ago I have fallen in love with many things like the beach, my boyfriend Jarod, and of course amazing Mexican food. In honor of #NationalTacoDay I thought it was only fitting that I share this recipe for San Diego Tacos.
What are San Diego Tacos you ask? Well, if you’ve ever visited or live in sunny Southern California you may have tried our famous California Burritos. Which Jarod discovered on a trip to Las Vegas was a weird thing to request when not in California. Interestingly enough, California Burritos originated in San Diego. Which doesn’t surprise me since San Diego is well known for several things like our world famous Zoo, perfect weather and of course Mexican Food.
California burritos are a delicious combination of carne asada, fries, guacamole, cheese, salsa, and sour cream. So I decided to take inspiration from most of those ingredients to craft my own recipe for some delicious San Diego Tacos.
I made the guacamole, pico de gallo and fries from scratch because I wanted to go all out for this one. However I’ll be adding the recipes for those at a later time so be sure to sign up for my mailing list so you can check back for when those are added.
San Diego Taco Recipe
*Serves 3-4*
Ingredients:
French Fries (Fresh Or Frozen Baked According To Packaging)
1 ½ lbs. Carne Asada Meat
1 10 oz. Can Red Chile Sauce
1 Tsp. Cumin
1 Tsp. Chili Powder
1 Tsp. Garlic Salt
Flour Tortillas
Cotija Cheese
2 Limes
Directions:
- Make your fries first according to the package directions. I made mine from scratch so they took about 35 minutes in the oven. This is plenty of time to make your pico de gallo and guacamole from scratch if you want.
- When the fries are almost ready start cooking your carne asada meat. Since I don’t own an outdoor grill I use my skillet grill pan. Preheat your pan to medium heat. Place the carne asada in the pan and pour the can of red chile sauce on top along with the extra seasoning. If it’s thinly sliced like mine was it won’t take more than 8-10 minutes to cook. Be sure to flip the meat after 4 minutes to make sure it cooks evenly. Don’t over cook the meat! Carne asada becomes really dry if overcooked so cut a slice to see how it looks if you’re not sure. If there is a little pink that’s ok.
- Once the meat is done set it aside on a cutting board and let it rest while you cook up your tortillas. It’s up to you how you would like to heat them up but personally I set them on top of one of my gas stove burners letting it toast up for about 10-15 seconds on each side. Use tongs to flip. I do not recommend this if you are using an electric stove top. If you do have an electric stove you can try this same method but using an un-greased skillet. Please keep an eye on them! You don’t want to burn your house down!
- When your tortillas are ready set them aside while you slice up your carne asada into thin strips.
- Scoop the meat, fries, and other toppings onto your warm tortillas. Top with fresh squeezed lime juice and crumbled cotija cheese.
I’m really happy that you are trying out my San Diego Taco Recipe. Would love to see how they turn out for you! Be sure to tag me on Instagram @natashasfoodadventures or use my hashtag #natashasfoodadventures.
Tay
Natasha