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Steak Skewers With Peruvian-Style Marinade… So Good!

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You’ve got to try these Peruvian-style steak skewers for your next barbecue! Tender sirloin tidbits, lightly charred and bursting with flavor, smothered with a zesty pepper sauce and placed on a bed of fried potato slices… it’s just a party waiting to happen!

Skewers, known as pinchos in Latin cooking, are fun party food and the stuff of epic summer barbecues. Serve these as tapas or as a main course. Feeding a large crowd? You can add some chicken skewers to the mix and you have yourself quite the feast!

Peruvian Lomo Saltado Marinade

What makes these skewers so delicious is the marinade that’s inspired by a very popular Peruvian dish, called Lomo Saltado (stir fried sirloin). The traditional Peruvian stir fry is made with filet mignon or sirloin strips with onions, tomatoes and french fries served over white rice. You’re probably thinking, “rice and french fries?” The first time my daughter and I tried this dish we thought the potatoes were unnecessary, but these spuds soak up all the sauce and become an integral part of this dish!

Now let’s talk about the sauce… the ingredients in traditional Lomo Saltado include soy sauce, ginger, aji amarillo (Peruvian yellow peppers) and vinegar, which are all included in my marinade. My version also includes fried potato slices because it’s a delivery vehicle for the saucy goodness. The potatoes soak up all the juices from the skewers, which is similar to the french fries soaking up the stir fry sauce. You can also make white rice on the side, if you want the full experience.

Top Your Steak Skewers with Zesty Aji Sauce

But the marinade is just the beginning! The mix of tamari sauce and aji amarillo in the marinade really intensifies the umami goodness of these steak skewers. But as good as it is on its own, you can kick it up a notch by topping your steak skewers with a tangy table sauce made with peppers, parsley, vinegar and onions.

This is similar to the ají de la casa sauce served with skewers at a local Peruvian restaurant me and the kids love, Pisco y Nazca. I haven’t cracked the code on all that is in this sauce, but my version gives the steak skewers that same intense, tangy, peppery flavor that makes me want to drink up the sauce.

Peruvian peppers are the main ingredient in this sauce, but I didn’t have fresh ones on hand, so I improvised with jalapeño and Fresno peppers instead. The other ingredients include garlic, shallots, olive oil, red wine vinegar, tomatoes, and lots of finely chopped parsley. You can also use it as a marinade, like I did in my Peruvian-style chicken skewers.

BBQ Good Times

There’s just something so fun about hanging out in your patio or backyard grillin’ and chllin’ with friends! While the skewers are cooking you can enjoy a little sangria or mojitos with tapas. In Miami, we can do this year-round, but we tend to avoid the summer months (too hot to handle!).

I hope you give these steak skewers a try for you next backyard party. Then, tell me all about it!

Steak Skewers With Peruvian-Style Marinade

Author: Sandi Abbott
Prep Time: 9
Cook Time: 45
Total Time: 54 minutes
Category: dinner
Method: grilling
Cuisine: Peruvian

Print Recipe

Description

Try these steak skewers made with sirloin, lightly charred and topped with a zesty pepper sauce and placed on a bed of fried potato slices.

Ingredients

Scale

4 lbs top sirloin

2 tablespoons crushed garlic

½ cup olive oil

½ cup tamari (or use low-sodium soy sauce)

⅓ cup red wine vinegar

1 inch piece of ginger (about 1 tablespoon grated)

1 tablespoon aji amarillo paste

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon salt

1 tablespoon oregano

Wooden bamboo skewers

Aji Sauce

1 cup olive oil

¼ cup red wine vinegar

¼ cup cherry tomatoes, salted and roughly chopped

½ bushel flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, with stems removed

½ Fresno pepper, finely diced and seeded (you can use more if you like spicy)

½ Jalapeño pepper, finely diced and seeded

1 shallot, finely diced

2 tablespoons crushed garlic, (that’s about one head of garlic, maybe more depending on the size)

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Make the Aji Sauce

Roughly chop the cherry tomatoes, sprinkle with salt and drain on paper towels. While the tomatoes are draining, pull out a mixing bowl so you can throw in the ingredients as you prep them.

Wash the parsley and dry with paper towels to remove excess water. Then remove the stems and finely chop. To remove the stems, you can use an herb stem stripper or just pinch the stem as you pull on the leaves with your other hand. Finely chop the parsley and add to the mixing bowl.

Cut the Fresno and jalapeño peppers in half lengthwise, remove the seeds and finely chop half of each one. Save the rest for later. Throw the diced peppers into the mixing bowl. Make sure to wash your hands after you’ve handled the peppers and do not touch your eyes!

Marinade & Skewers

Mix all the other ingredients in a mixing bowl.

Place the steak chunks in a shallow glass dish or a ziploc bag and cover with the marinade.

Marinate the steak for four hours or overnight. If the steaks are not fully submerged, make sure to turn them halfway through the marinating time.

Soak the skewers in water for at least two hours before grilling.

Grill the Steak

Cut the steak into 2 inch cubes.

Set the grill to the highest heat and let it preheat for at least ten minutes, preferably twenty. Place the skewers in the center. Cook until the meat gets nice and caramelized, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook the other side until it’s caramelized. This should take about five to eight minutes, but times will vary based on your grill, so use the times provided as a guide.

Notes

Plating Deliciousness: I love to serve these skewers on a bed of fried potato slices. Place 3-4 potato slices in a row and top with one skewer. Spoon the aji sauce on top and you’re good to go. I usually serve these on a cutting board or long serving platter. It’s quite impressive!

Serving Suggestions: Serve these skewers with a tossed salad or grilled veggies.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 8

Keywords: pinchos, steak skewers, beef skewers, steak pinchos

Fried Potato Slices Are Golden Delicious And Simple To Make

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These fried potato slices are the perfect complement to so many dishes! I like to serve them with Peruvian-Style Chicken Skewers. In fact, I got the idea from one of my favorite Peruvian restaurants in Miami, Pisco y Nazca. They serve their chicken anticuchos (Peruvian-style skewers) atop fried potato slices. These little potato medallions soak up all the flavor of the chicken skewers, it’s a perfect pairing!

Yukon Gold potatoes are the best for this dish because they have a delicious balance of soft and creamy on the inside and crunchy on the outside. I peel the potatoes and then slice them into half-inch rounds. These potato medallions taste best pan-fried (doesn’t everything?). But you can just as easily make them in the air fryer or roast them in the oven which makes these potatoes easy to cook in the background while you prepare other things.

How To Prep The Potato Slices

The potatoes in this recipe are twice-cooked. First, you boil the potatoes and then you fry them. The trick to getting the best crunchy exterior is to add a little baking soda to the boiling water. This helps break down the outside of the potato and makes for a crunchier crust. I learned this trick from Serious Eats, they really get into the science of it all.

Once the potatoes are softened, transfer them to a tray lined with paper towels. The instructions change from this point on, depending on how you plan to finish cooking the potatoes.

For the pan-fried version, you’ll need to heat about ¼ cup of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season the potatoes with salt, pepper and Italian seasoning and add to the skillet. Spoon hot oil from the pan over the top, while the bottom cooks. To make it easier to scoop the oil, it helps to tilt the pan just slightly so the oil pools on one side. Once the bottom is crispy and brown, turn the slices over and cook them on the other side. This traditional French technique helps the top of the potatoes cook evenly and incorporates more flavor into the final dish.

Using this French technique transported me back to my childhood, with my mom making her fried eggs for breakfast in the same fashion. I never knew Cuban cooking had such worldwide roots! I thought it was just the Cuban way to fry eggs (so clueless!).

The pan-fried potatoes turn out evenly crispy and buttery soft on the inside. But, if you’d rather not fry, I get you. You can coat the slices in vegetable oil and cook them in the air fryer. They are not quite as good as the pan-fried version, but a very close second. To be honest, when I make these on my own, I like to use the air fryer because it’s easier and uses less oil. But if I’ve got help in the kitchen, we pan-fry.

Fun And Versatile Potato Medallions

You can have lots of fun with these little fried potato slices! Consider them as a canvas for all sorts of fun toppings, like picadillo, chorizo and cheese, or Argentine sausage, onions and chimichurri sauce. Or try them with my Peruvian Chicken Skewers. You’ll love them!