Beef flautas, taquitos or dorados…love them all. A simple, but classic Mexican recipe. When I was young, shredding the beef was not my favorite job, but I was able to taste test as I went along, lol!! When we prepared these at home, there would always be a freshly blended tomatillo avocado salsa and a side of rice. You will often see flautas/taquitos topped or garnished with as little or as two toppings or much as 6 toppings. My favorite garnishes were, and still are the tomatillo avocado salsa and crumbled Mexican cheese. . I just cannot enjoy taquitos without that salsa or at least some guacamole. This was and still is one of my go to recipes to prepare for parties, game night or just because. They can be prepared ahead of time and can also be frozen for a future meal or snack.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 pound flank steak or skirt steak
- Water
- Salt
- 16 to 18 corn tortillas
- toothpicks
- Canola or vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
Directions
- In a medium pot, cover the beef with water and season with a couple teaspoons of salt. Poach for 45minutes to 1 hour or until meat is tender. Remove from water and shred while meat is still warm, set aside.
- Wrap 6 tortillas with paper towels and place onto plate. Steam in the microwave for 40 to 50 seconds. They will be HOT, so be careful. This method works well if you have decent corn tortillas. Some brands fall apart. If that is the case, I would suggest warming the tortillas on a comal or griddle instead of steaming them or lightly fry them just until soft.
- Take about 2 tablespoons of beef and fill the tortilla on the side closest to you. Roll as tight as you can and secure with toothpick at the seam. I prefer to get all my taquitos filled and rolled before I start frying.
- In a medium skillet or fry pan, preheat 2 1/2 cups of oil for 5 to 7 minutes at medium heat. Fry 5 to 6 taquitos at a time, but don't overcrowd the pan. Fry for a few minutes per side or until crispy.
- Line a bowl with paper towels and transfer the taquitos in a standing position into bowl to drain. Serve with salsa. Yields up to 18 taquitos/flautas, depending on how much filling you add to each. Serve with your favorite salsa , crumbled Mexican cheese, crema and a side of Mexican rice.
Served with Tomatillo Avocado Salsa. Click onto picture to see full recipe on site.
Tips~ After steaming the tortillas, if you find that they rip when you are trying to fill and roll them, cook them on the comal(griddle) and store in a tortilla warmer for a minute. Tortillas warmed this way tende to tear less.
After you fill and roll the flautas, let them sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. This will dry out the tortillas slightly and yield a super crispy flautas.
I like to serve them simply, with a side of Mexican Rice. Click onto picture to see full recipe on site. Adding any vegetables to your rice is optional. Mom would add peas and corrots when available.
My husband loves a chunky guacamole or salsa verde on his flautas!
Here is a variation of a fresh green salsa.
For Chile Verde Salsa
6 roasted and peeled Anaheim or New Mexico peppers
2 jalapeños
2 tomatillos
1/4 cup cilantro
juice of 1 to 2 key limes
Salt to taste
Roughly chop the chile verde, jalapeños, tomatillos and cilantro. Transfer to blender, add lime juice and salt to taste. Pulse to blend until desired consistency, cover and set aside.
Tips~ Taquitos can be made ahead of time and them warmed in a 350 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Freezer friendly as well.
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