Easy Marinated Sirloin Steak

Memorial Day. The fourth since Luis Jr. enlisted. The holiday has weight now that it didn't have before — the weight of a mother who has a child in uniform, the weight of knowing that the flags and the parades and the "thank you for your service" apply to my son, my baby, the boy who carried flour sacks and ate four plates of carne asada and brought me coffee at 5 AM. The patriotism is personal now. The flag is personal. Everything is personal when your child is the reason the flag flies.

We went to the park — Ascarate, the tradition. Luis Jr. came in civilian clothes with Andrea. The football was thrown. The conchas were eaten (day-old, as always — the tradition of day-old conchas dipped in coffee that Rosa established and I maintain and Sofia rolls her eyes at because Sofia thinks we should bring fresh ones and I say stale ones dipped in coffee are better and Rosa agrees with me from wherever she is). The family was present. All seven of us. In one park. Under one sky. Eating stale conchas. Alive.

Diego brought his weather station data — three years of El Paso weather, compiled into a report with graphs. He is presenting it at STEM camp this summer as a "longitudinal study." He is eleven in July. He uses the phrase "longitudinal study." He is my child and I don't understand half of what he says, but the half I understand is brilliant, and the half I don't understand is probably also brilliant, and the brilliance is not from me or Luis — it is from somewhere else, from the same place Camila's voice comes from, the place where gifts live before they find a body to inhabit.

I made tortas for the park — bolillo bread from the bakery, stuffed with carne asada and beans and avocado, the Memorial Day lunch. The tortas are the same every year because the park is the same and the family is the same and the only thing that changes is the size of the family, which grows with each Andrea, each Camila's-new-friend, each year that adds another person to the blanket. The blanket is getting crowded. The blanket is where love sits down and eats tortas and pretends the world is smaller than it is.

The tortas don’t make themselves — they start the night before, when I put the steak in the marinade and let the refrigerator do the slow, quiet work while the house sleeps. This marinated sirloin is what goes into the bolillo, what makes the whole park smell like our blanket when Luis slices it at the cooler lid, what makes Diego look up from his weather data long enough to say he’s hungry. I’ve made fancier things, but I’ve never made anything more important than this steak, sliced thin, layered with beans and avocado on bread from the bakery, handed to a son in civilian clothes on a day that is heavier than it looks.

Prep Time: 15 minutes (plus 4–24 hours marinating) | Cook Time: 12 minutes | Total Time: 30 minutes active | Servings: 6

Ingredients

2 lbs sirloin steak (about 1 inch thick)
1/3 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped (for serving)

Instructions

Make the marinade. Whisk together soy sauce, olive oil, lime juice, garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper, oregano, and red pepper flakes in a bowl or large zip-lock bag until combined.
Marinate the steak. Add the sirloin to the marinade, turning to coat all sides. Seal and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight for the deepest flavor. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking to bring to room temperature.
Heat the grill or pan. Preheat an outdoor grill or cast-iron skillet over high heat. Lightly oil the grates or pan surface.
Cook the steak. Remove the steak from the marinade and shake off excess. Grill or sear 5–6 minutes per side for medium (internal temperature 145°F), or adjust to your preferred doneness. Avoid moving the steak so a proper sear forms.
Rest before slicing. Transfer the steak to a cutting board and let it rest, loosely tented with foil, for at least 5 minutes. This keeps the juices inside the meat.
Slice thin and serve. Cut against the grain into thin strips. Scatter cilantro over the top. Serve in bolillo rolls with refried beans, sliced avocado, and your choice of salsa for tortas, or alongside rice and grilled vegetables.

Nutrition (per serving)

Easy Marinated Sirloin Steak — The Carne Asada Inside Every Memorial Day Torta