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Homemade Carne Cecina Recipe
Mexican cecina is different from Spanish cecina. In Spain, cecina is smoked, air-dried meat. It is usually made with horsemeat or beef. In Mexico, cecina can be beef, which is marinated, or pork, which is pounded thin and coated with chili paste. The Mexican town of Yecapixtla is famed for its beef cecina recipe. This recipe uses guajillo chilies, which are actually dried mirasol chilies. You can find these at Latin American grocery stores and if you want to make an authentic tasting cecina recipe, it is important to use the right type of chilies.
This is a pork cecina recipe and the pork tenderloins come out tender, juicy, and full of flavor. If you are looking for new ideas for pork, making a Mexican cecina recipe with it is a great idea and everybody will enjoy it.
This carne cecina recipe is not hard to make and the pork is pounded thin and seasoned with an oregano, chili, oil and vinegar paste and then left to marinate overnight. It is then grilled and served with guacamole and lime wedges. This delicious snack is authentically Mexican and it is wonderful at a buffet or at dinner or any time you want to eat a traditional Mexican recipe, which is simple to make and tastes heavenly.
How to Make Cecina
Ingredients -
2 guajillo chilies, no stems, or seeds
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus extra to coat the pan
1 tablespoon white vinegar
2 pork tenderloins, 1 lb each
1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
8 green onions
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 lime, cut into 4 wedges
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 cup guacamole, to serve
Preparation:
Bring the water to a boil in a cast iron skillet, and then toast the chilies for a couple of minutes over a low to moderate heat, until they are fragrant.
Keep shaking the pan so they do not burn.
Transfer the chilies to a bowl and cover them with boiling water.
Let them soak for about 15 minutes or until they are soft.
Slice each tenderloin down the length and open them up.
Lay them flat.
Pound the pork tenderloin between sheets of plastic, using the smooth side of a mallet, until the meat is ¼ inch thick.
Combine the vinegar, chilies, oregano, salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons of oil in a blender to make a paste.
Rub this paste over the pork, on both sides.
Cover it with plastic wrap and chill overnight in the refrigerator.
Preheat a ridged grill pan or a grill, brushing the grates with oil.
Scrape the excess paste off the pork and grill the meat for 2 minutes on each side.
Let the meat rest for a couple of minutes then slice it in to ¼ inch pieces.
Grill the green onions while the meat is resting, then serve the cecina with the grilled green onions and a dollop of guacamole.
(Serves 4)
Photo Description:
You can see by looking at the picture just how mouthwateringly succulent and juicy this carne cecina recipe is. The fried green onions and guacamole are a wonderful garnish because of the color contrast but also because the avocado and green onion flavors go so nicely with the meat. Cecina is a firm Mexican favorite and it is so easy to make it yourself at home. You will need to start it the day before you want to serve it, because cecina needs to marinate overnight, to infuse it with delicious flavor.
