These are the best steak tacos! These tender, grilled flank steak tacos are robustly flavored, tender, juicy, and topped with refreshing avocado salsa.
I'll show you step-by-step how to make amazing steak tacos that are ready in about 45 minutes. With a simple spice blend you'll add great flavor to the meat.
Making steak tacos has never been easier—there's no marinating time needed, and if you have a gas grill or grill pan, the steak will be cooked in less than 15 minutes.
I love serving these tacos for a weekend BBQ with friends or as a special weeknight meal for the family (hello, taco Tuesday). We're huge fans of the Mexican and Tex-Mex restaurants in our area and often go out or get delivery tacos, but sometimes you just want to make your own - especially if you've got an outdoor grill!
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Ingredients
Here are the simple ingredients you'll need to make the best flank steak tacos!
- Flank Steak - An inexpensive and flavorful cut of meat that slices easily, making it perfect for tacos!
- Seasoning Blend - you'll make a robust steak taco seasoning mixture with paprika, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, oregano, onion powder, and black pepper.
- Avocado Salsa - this refreshing topping includes fresh avocado, diced red onion, chopped fresh cilantro, lime juice, extra virgin olive oil, and salt.
- Small Tortillas - you'll need 8 small flour tortillas (4 ½ inch width); sometimes these are labeled 'street tacos', and they usually come in a package of 20 to 24 tortillas.
- Optional Toppings - crumbled queso fresco, sliced jalapeños, or more lime juice
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Heat a grill to medium-high heat (375 degrees F) or a grill pan over medium high heat.
Combine the paprika, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, ½ teaspoon of sea salt, dried oregano, and black pepper in a small bowl. Stir to combine.
Brush both sides of the flank steak with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Then sprinkle the seasoning mixture on both sides and pat it in so it sticks.
Grill the steak for 4 to 5 minutes per side until it is medium doneness (and reaches an internal temperature of 135 to 145 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer).
Remove the steak from the grill. Let steak rest on a cutting board for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
Meanwhile, combine the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, diced onions, chopped cilantro, diced avocado, and lime juice in a bowl. Stir to combine.
Heat the flour tortillas on the grill, over a gas stove, or in a frying pan so they are toasty and crisped.
Slice the flank steak into ¼-inch thin strips. If the strips are too large for the tortillas, cut them in half.
Place the steak strips in the warm tortillas and top with the onion avocado mixture. Serve with lime wedges.
Tips for Making this Recipe
Cooking Tips - Clean your grill grates with a stiff brush while you are preheating it. If your grates are older or you are worried about the meat sticking, use tongs and a paper towel to coat the grates in some vegetable oil right before you add the meat.
Ingredient Tips - When purchasing flank steak, try to find a piece that has a uniform thickness, this will ensure even cooking time when grilling.
Recommended Cooking Temperature - I know you might be tempted to cook the steak to rare or medium rare, but when making tacos I actually prefer the meat cooked to medium. It makes for tender steak that's easier to bite into when eating a taco.
Substitutions & Variations
- Meat - while this recipe calls for flank steak, you can just as easily use skirt steak for these as well! Use the same amount, but because skirt steak is a bit thinner, you may only need to grill it for 3 to 4 minutes per side.
- Tortillas - feel free to use small corn tortillas for this recipe as well!
- Toppings - if you'd prefer not to use avocado and red onions, you can top the tacos with pico de gallo or salsa. Swap the queso fresco out for crumbled cotija cheese or even feta cheese.
Storage
You can save leftover steak for up to 3 days in the refrigerator in an airtight container.
I recommend making the avocado onion mixture right before serving, you can save it in the refrigerator but the avocados will brown after a few hours in the fridge.
What to Serve with Tacos
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Flank Steak Tacos
These delicious flank steak tacos are grilled to tender, juicy perfection. They'll be your new favorite steak taco recipe!
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon Paprika
- ½ teaspoon Ground Cumin
- ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ½ teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Sea Salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon Dried Oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
- 1 pound Flank Steak
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil, divided
- 1 Small Red Onion, finely diced
- ⅓ cup Chopped Cilantro
- 1 Ripe Avocado, diced
- 1 tablespoon Lime Juice
- 8 Small Flour Tortillas
- Optional toppings - crumbled queso fresco, sliced jalapeños, or more lime juice
Instructions
- Heat a grill to medium high heat (375 degrees F) or a grill pan over medium high heat.
- Combine the paprika, cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, ½ teaspoon of sea salt, dried oregano, and black pepper in a small bowl. Stir to combine.
- Brush both sides of the flank steak with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Then sprinkle the seasoning mixture on both sides and pat it in so it sticks.
- Grill the steak for 4 to 5 minutes per side until it is medium doneness (and reaches an internal temperature of 135 to 145 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer).
- Remove the steak from the grill and allow it to rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.
- Meanwhile, combine the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, diced onions, chopped cilantro, diced avocado, and lime juice in a bowl. Stir to combine.
- Heat the flour tortillas on the grill, over a gas stove, or in a frying pan so they are toasty and crisped.
- Slice the flank steak into ¼-inch strips. If the strips are too large for the tortillas, cut them in half.
- Place the steak strips in the tortillas and top with the onion avocado mixture. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
4Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 691Total Fat: 31gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 90mgSodium: 1076mgCarbohydrates: 62gFiber: 7gSugar: 1gProtein: 41g
