Harissa Steak Tacos
Updated November 11, 2025
- Ready In
- 45 min
- Rating
- Comments
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Ingredients
For the Tacos
¼ cup harissa paste
¼ cup orange juice
4 garlic cloves, finely grated
Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)
2 pounds hanger steak, cut into 4 equal-sized steaks (to use skirt or flank steak, see Tip)
Vegetable oil, for the pan
Small corn or flour tortillas, warmed
For Serving
2 mini cucumbers, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, finely diced
Sour cream
Cilantro leaves and tender stems
Flaky sea salt
Lime wedges
Preparation
- Step 1
In a medium bowl, combine harissa paste, orange juice, garlic and 2 teaspoons salt. Add steaks and toss to coat. Marinate for 15 minutes, or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Step 2
Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Add enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet. Add the steaks and cook, flipping every few minutes, until steak reaches your desired doneness — for medium-rare, this will take 8 to 12 minutes (an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center will read 130 degrees). Transfer steaks to a cutting board to rest while you prepare the toppings and warm the tortillas.
- Step 3
Slice steak against the grain. Divide among tortillas and top with cucumbers, red onion, sour cream, cilantro and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing over.
Since flank and skirt steak are thinner cuts, they won’t fit into the pan in a single batch. If you’d like to cook them in batches, you may need to rinse and wipe out the pan between batches since the harissa tends to stick to the pan. Another option is to grill the steaks: Oil clean grill grates and set the grill to high. Once very hot, grill the steaks over direct heat until well browned, 3 to 5 minutes per side. Let rest for 5 minutes, then slice against the grain.
Private Notes
Comments
We prepared this mostly as written using flank steak and it was delicious. Only adjustment was to quick pickle the red onions at the same time as marinating the steak, which is an adjustment I recommend to anyone cooking this.
This was my first time using Hangar steak, and the jury is still out on it. It is VERY tender, and although you cook it to medium rare or medium, the inside stays pink, so don’t be fooled. The marinade was not as flavorful as I imagined it would be and lacking in flavor. Hangar steak is expensive and I would use flank or skirt next time. I would also marinate longer, and it needs something. Any comments and suggestions would be appreciated! For an expensive meal, it was disappointing, and I’m rarely disappointed with NYT recipes.
Meh, this didn’t really do anything for me. I used harissa from the jar vs tube, which I understand is much more
This was delicious. I marinated the skirt steak approximately two hours with meat from Breakaway Farms, simply the best meat on the East Coast if not East of the Mississippi. I used fresh organic ingredients and sour cream from the local dairy. I will make this again! Can’t wait!
Delicious! Made with Breakaway Farms skirt steak!
This was just OK. I couldn’t taste anything from the orange juice in the marinade and just a bit of the heat from the harissa ( real Tunisian harissa in the tube) This is missing something.