This “San Diego-style” Mexican Carne Asada Torta is a flavorful sandwich made with tender carne asada served on soft Telera rolls and loaded with creamy guacamole, fresh pico de gallo, and a smidge of refried beans.
What is A Carne Asada Torta?
Tortas are a beloved street food in Mexico and will quickly become one of your favorite sandwiches! They’re large sandwiches filled with various types of meat, such as shredded carnitas (Torta Ahogada), beef barbacoa, pollo asada, chorizo, or carne asada. You can customize it with a range of toppings, making it as simple or as loaded as you like.
This carne asada recipe reflects what you’ll find in a San Diego taco shop, so you won’t see mayo, sliced tomatoes, or sliced lettuce. Instead, it features classic Carne Asada burrito components from the region: guacamole instead of sliced avocados, salsa fresca instead of sliced tomatoes, and a small amount of finely shredded lettuce rather than a lot of sliced lettuce.
It also means this Mexican torta sandwich is LOADED with chopped steak and guacamole. There’s no skimping on food or calories – if you’ve ever seen a California Burrito, you know how much filling goes into it. You can make six tortas from the recipe, but it’s designed to make four. Load ’em up!
For a smaller version, you can make Carne Asada Sliders.
The Carne Asada Marinade
You have two options for marinading the steak; both are fantastic options for this carne asada torta recipe, so pick whichever best fits your needs:
Carne Asada Marinade – this asada marinade is the basis of all my Carne Asada Recipes. I developed it more than 13 years ago to mirror the flavors of a San Diego taqueria. It was one of the first recipes for carne asada posted online. Head over and read all of the 5-star reviews from San Diego locals. It truly is unsurpassed.
Carne Asada Seasonings is a quick and easy dry mix of the seasonings used in my more elaborate marinade recipe.
Ingredients and Substitution Ideas
Here are the main ingredients to make Carne Asada Tortas, along with substitution ideas. For the full list of ingredients, see the recipe card below:
Beef Steak: My favorite cuts of meat to use when making carne asada are skirt steak, flank steak, or flap steak.
Best Rolls for Torta Recipes: Traditional Telera or Bolillo rolls are ideal. If you can’t find these in the store, you can opt for any hearty white bread, such as French rolls or Ciabatta bread. These make great options for Mexican torta bread.
Pico de Gallo: I cut up equal parts onion (white onions or red onions), cilantro, and juicy tomatoes, with a splash of lime juice, for a quick pico de gallo topping, but any store-bought brand works, too. You’ll want to drain the mixture a bit before adding it. If pico de gallo isn’t your thing, you could use your favorite hot sauce or salsa.
Guacamole: You can’t go wrong using your favorite store-bought or homemade guacamole in this Mexican sandwich. My go-to is this easy Guacamole recipe or Molcajete Guacamole. But to cut down on steps, you can always use creamy avocado slices instead.
Refried Beans: Nine times out of ten, I use canned refried beans. The amount used is minimal, and making refried beans from scratch is an all-day event I tend to avoid.
Lettuce: I detest lettuce on Mexican grub, unless it’s a Carne Asada Steak Salad, so I omit it altogether when ordering or making Mexican food. However, I included it in this recipe as most places do. It’s why you’ll see some photos with it and others without. Add or omit as you see fit.
Topping Ideas For Torta de Asada
Here are some popular taco topping ideas for Mexican Tortas:
How to Make A Mexican Torta
The below steps maximize your time while keeping all the elements as fresh as possible:
Marinate the Meat – I highly recommend marinating the meat for a full 24 hours before cooking. You can reduce this time, but 24 hours gives it the most flavor.
Make the Toppings – If you’re not using store-bought pico de gallo and/or guacamole, start by making these items.
Make the Carne Asada – you can grill the steak outside on a BBQ or use a grill pan inside to cook the meat. Either option works well.
Assemble The Torta de Carne Asada – While the steak is grilling, heat the oven and toast the rolls and beans. Once the steak is rested and diced, load the toasted roll with the meat, guacamole, and pico de gallo. Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Toppings – no two types of rolls are the same size. If using a large roll, such as the Telera roll, you’ll need more toppings than a smaller roll, such as a French roll. This recipe errs on the higher end, as I’d rather you have a baby bit left over than not enough.
- Oven Alternative – To avoid using the oven, you can toast the rolls in a skillet over medium-high heat and heat the beans in the microwave or stovetop.
- Cutting the Meat – To save time, you can cut the meat into thin strips instead of bite-size pieces.
- Quantity – These sandwiches are meant to be loaded with ingredients. If you see fit, you can divide the meat and toppings between 5-6 rolls instead of 4.
- Side Dish Ideas – Here are some Carne Asada Side Dish ideas.
Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
Make Ahead: The carne asada steak can be marinated and/or grilled up to 48 hours before. Just reheat on the stovetop over medium heat. The pico de gallo can be made up to 48 hours in advance. To avoid brown guacamole, I recommend waiting until you’re ready to cook the meat to make.
Storage: Store all the ingredients in separate containers in the refrigerator. You do not want to assemble and store, or the bread will get soggy.
More Carne Asada Recipes
If you have leftover carne asada, check out these other Mexican Recipes to use it up:
Carne Asada Torta
Servings: 4 sandwiches
Calories: 379kcal
Cost: $30
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Ingredients
CARNE ASADA STEAK (Note *1)
- 2 lbs. flank steak, skirt steak or flap steak
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar (*Note 1)
- ¼ cup water
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 2 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp orange juice
- 2 tbsp chopped cilantro
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- ¾ tbsp garlic salt
- ½ tbsp white pepper
- ½ tbsp cumin
- ½ tbsp chili powder
- ½ tbsp Mexican oregano
- ⅛ tsp ground cloves
- 1 whole orange, sliced
Instructions
MARINATE THE CARNE ASADA STEAK
GRILLING THE STEAK
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Remove the steak from the refrigerator an hour before cooking.
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Pre-heat grill to medium high.
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Place meat directly on greased grate for 6-8 minutes. (*Note 4) Flip and grill for an additional 6-8 minutes, until your desired doneness is reached. Let rest for 10 minutes before dicing into bite size chunks.
ASSEMBLE THE SANDWICH
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Pre-heat the oven to high broil. Cut the rolls in half and place facing up on a large baking sheet. Toast in the oven for 1-2 minutes until golden brown. Watch carefully so they don't burn.
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Set aside the tops of the rolls. Evenly divide the refried beans between the bottoms of the toasted rolls. Toast in the oven for 3-4 minutes, until the beans are warm throughout. Remove from the oven.
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Top each roll with carne asada, guacamole, pico de gallo and shredded lettuce. Place the top of the bread on top of the sandwich.
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Serve immediately and enjoy.
Notes
Note 2 – Any crusty bread will work. Good options: Telera Rolls, Bolillo bread, French bread, or Ciabatta bread.
Note 3 – You many not need all of the toppings if utilizing smaller rolls. This is portioned out for the large and traditional Telera rolls.
Note 4. This time range is to cook the meat medium to medium-well as this makes for the best texture and firmness, and is how it’s served at San Diego taco shops. We grill our carne asada meat until it has an internal temperature of 150-155°F. After resting it reaches 155-160°F.
Nutrition
Calories: 379kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 28g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 76mg | Sodium: 929mg | Potassium: 1049mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 2235IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 93mg | Iron: 3mg
