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Northern-Style Grilled Beef (Carne Asada)

Name: Northern-Style Grilled Beef (Carne Asada)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 12 Spring onion; 4 cloves Garlic; 6 Serrano chillies; 18 Flour tortillas; 30 ml Olive oil; 1 tsp Black pepper; to taste Salt gruesa; 4 Limes; 1.5 kg Arrachera (entraña) o diezmillo

45 min (30 prep + 15 cook) Medium 6 servings Sonora

Edmond Bojalil

Recetas Mexas

Published: 11 Mar 2026 · Updated: 19 Mar 2026

Charcoal-grilled beef with flour tortillas and northern-style sides.

About this recipe

Northern-style carne asada is a fundamental culinary tradition of northern Mexico, especially Sonora, Nuevo Leon, and Chihuahua. It consists of high-quality beef cuts (skirt steak, chuck, or short ribs) briefly marinated in lime juice, garlic, and spices, then grilled directly over mesquite charcoal at high heat. The result is meat with a charred, crispy exterior but juicy and pink inside. It is served with handmade flour tortillas, grilled spring onions, blistered chiles, guacamole, charro beans, and molcajete salsa. Northern-style carne asada is not just a dish but a social event: families gather on weekends around the grill in gatherings that can last all day, with cold beer and norteno music in the background.

History & Origin

The carne asada tradition in northern Mexico dates back to colonial times, when the great cattle ranches of Sonora and Chihuahua developed a culinary culture centered on beef. Unlike central and southern Mexico where pork and corn dominated, the north adopted beef and wheat as dietary staples. Mesquite, a tree abundant in the Sonoran desert, became the preferred fuel for the smoky flavor it imparts. In Hermosillo and Monterrey, carne asada is a sacred institution; per capita beef consumption in the north is estimated to be three times higher than in the south. The "Sunday carne asada" tradition is so ingrained that there is even a northern saying: "There is no problem a carne asada cannot fix." Sonora is internationally recognized for the quality of its cattle, fed on desert grasslands, which gives the meat a distinctive flavor.

Estimated cost

£38.00

Total cost

£6.33

Per serving

* Approximate prices based on UK supermarkets

Nutritional information per serving

420

Calories

36g

Protein

28g

Carbohydrates

20g

Fat

Fibre

510mg

Sodium

* Approximate values. May vary depending on ingredients used.

Method

1
Take out the meat of the refrigerador 30 minutes before of cocinar. Marinate with lime juice, garlic chopped, olive oil, pepper and salt thick. No marines more of 30 minutes for that the lime not "cocine" the meat.
💡 La arrachera tiene a membrana plateada that conviene retirar before of marinar.
2
Enciende the carbón (preferably mesquite) and espera a that the brasas they are to the red vivo with a layer of ceniza gris. La grill should estar very hot.
💡 If you don't have mesquite, usa carbón vegetal natural; evita briquetas with químicos.
3
Place the meat directamente on the brasas over high heat. Cook 4-5 minutes for lado for término half. No the muevas ni the presiones while cook.
💡 Solo flip a vez; voltear repetidamente dry the meat.
4
While asa the meat, place the onions cambray and the serrano chillies in the grill. Las onions necesitan 3-4 minutes for lado; the chillies only until it ampollan.
5
Remove the meat of the grill and leave it reposar 5 minutes on a tabla. Esto permite that the jugos redistribuyan.
💡 Cut the arrachera in contra of the fibre for máxima ternura.
6
Cut the meat into strips or trozos and serve on a tabla of madera with the flour warm tortillas, onions asadas, chillies toreados, guacamole and sauce.