Carne asada features great flavors for Cinco de Mayo

The more time the sirloin tips bathe in this recipe’s punchy marinade of lime juice, Worcestershire sauce and garlic, the better.

So while we call for marinating the meat for about two hours, don’t hesitate to toss it in as you head out to work in the morning. You’ll be rewarded when you get home and crank up the grill.

To save time, you could substitute a mango or other fruity jarred salsa for the one made as part of this recipe.

But if you can spare the little time and effort needed to make it fresh, the results are well worth it.

Our salsa is a chunky hodge-podge of bell pepper, tomatillos, avocado, mango, tomato and red onion, with a bit of heat from a chipotle chili in adobo sauce.

Carne asada with confetti salsa

For the meat:

2pounds sirloin tips

2tablespoons lime juice

1teaspoon salt

2tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2tablespoons olive oil

1teaspoon ground black pepper

2cloves garlic, smashed

For the salsa:

1yellow bell pepper, cored and diced

3tomatillos, diced

1avocado, pitted and diced

1mango, pitted and diced

1large tomato, seeded and diced

1/2small red onion, diced

1chipotle in adobo sauce, minced

1/2-1 tablespoon adobo sauce (depending on desired heat)

1garlic clove, minced

3tablespoons lime juice

1/4cup chopped cilantro

Salt and ground black pepper

In a large zip-close bag, combine the sirloin tips, lime juice, salt, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, black pepper and garlic cloves. Shake to coat the meat. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Meanwhile, in a large bowl combine the bell pepper, tomatillos, avocado, mango, tomato, red onion, chipotle, adobo sauce, garlic, lime juice and cilantro. Stir well, then season with salt and black pepper.

Refrigerate until 30 minutes before serving. Let warm to room temperature before serving.

When ready to cook the steak, heat a grill to high.

Drain the meat, discarding the marinade. Use paper towels to pat the meat dry. Sear on the grill, about 4 minutes per side for medium-rare. Serve with the confetti salsa.

Makes 6 servings. Per serving: 390 calories; 200 calories from fat (51 percent of total calories); 23 g fat (6 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 110 mg cholesterol; 16 g carbohydrate; 33 g protein; 4 g fiber; 790 mg sodium.