Beef Wasabi Tacos

We tested out a new recipe and I had to share. These tacos were delicious; I just can't say enough about them. I got the recipe from Better Homes & Gardens and, of course, altered it a bit.

First, we seem to be having a ton of pork dishes on our menus lately (maybe we should be seriously thinking about raising pigs) and so I decided that I would substitute beef in these tacos. Other than that, I didn't really change much - though I have some ideas to improve on this already good recipe for next time.

Here's the recipe as I made it:

1 1/2 lbs top sirloin steak, cut into cubes
1/2 cup hoisin sauce
8 raw flour tortillas, cooked just before serving
2 tsp. wasabi paste
4 tbsp water
4 tbsp canola oil
1 tsp white rice vinegar
3/4 tsp sugar
3-4 cups of napa cabbage, chopped
2 large carrots, shredded
1/2 English cucumber, sliced thin lengthwise
1/3 bunch cilantro

1. Cut the top sirloin into chunks and put them into a Ziploc bag with the hoisin sauce and let them marinate for an hour and a half.
2. While the beef is marinating, prep the cabbage, carrots, cucumber and cilantro.

3. Once marinated, skewer the beef chunks onto 6" skewers (enough for about 4 chunks of beef).

4. Place on a rack on top of a foil-lined baking sheet (much less mess later) and broil for 8 minutes, flipping skewers every two minutes.

5. In a Mix & Pour or a small bowl, combine the wasabi paste, water, canola oil, rice vinegar, and sugar. Whisk together until combined.

6. Place a non-stick pan on medium heat. Once warm cook raw tortillas until just light brown and bubbly.

7. Serve by placing veggies and a skewer of beef on top of a tortilla. Drizzle wasabi sauce over the filling, fold and eat!

These really were delicious and the wasabi sauce was not too hot for my kiddos or the hubs. They are reminiscent of a sort of Latin fusion paired with the Banh Mi sandwiches that I love at the Saigon Deli in the International District in Seattle. P.S. If you haven't ever tried a Banh Mi sandwich you MUST try them. They are outrageously inexpensive and are to-die-for good. My favorite is the barbecue pork. They have a special mayonnaise, pickled vegetables, cilantro and fresh jalapenos. Wowee, my mouth is watering just thinking about them!

We all really liked them as tacos, but this is what I plan to do with this recipe next:
I want to try using the carne asada cut beef you can find at the supermarket and marinate it in the hoisin sauce overnight. Next, I will leave the water out of the wasabi sauce and instead use mayonnaise to thicken it up. Hopefully by some miracle I will be able to find a really good baguette to put it all on. Oh, and the jalapenos, at least on mine I'll add fresh sliced jalapenos.

I seriously can't wait to morph this recipe even more!