Test Kitchen tips: Contain your carving juices

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Next time you’re cutting up a juicy roast or freshly-grilled steak (like the carne asada above), place your cutting board inside of a larger rimmed baking sheet to contain all of those juices.

It’s a perfect alternative if you don’t have a fancy carving board with a juice trench, which neatly contains any liquids so they don’t mess up your counter-top and floor. It’s also great for containing a potential mess when you’re cutting up poultry and fish.

Cutting boards and baking sheets vary in size by brand. If you have a large cutting board, you should be able to find a suitably larger baking sheet at any restaurant supply store; ‘half-size’ (18 x 13-inch) sheets should fit most standard cutting boards and typically run around $10; ‘full-size’ (18 x 26-inch) sheets will fit most large boards and should cost just a few dollars more.

If you have any kitchen tips or questions you’d like me to explore, leave a comment below or shoot me an email at noelle.carter@latimes.com.

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Photo credit: Sarah Al-Abdulrahim

Carne asada Total time: 1 hour, 10 minutes plus overnight marinating time

Servings: 16

Note: From Joseph Martin, executive chef, Levy Restaurants at Dodger Stadium. At the stadium, the carne asada is served with corn tortillas, pico de gallo, tomatillo sauce, chopped onions, chopped cilantro, grilled whole serrano chiles and slices of lime.

4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, roughly chopped

1 tablespoon minced garlic

3/4 cup chopped onions

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/2 cup tomato purée

1/2 cup fresh lime juice

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 cup canola or vegetable oil

2 1/2 pounds skirt steak

1. In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the chipotle, garlic, onions, cumin, green onions, cilantro, parsley, tomato purée, lime juice, salt, pepper and oil.

2. Rub the marinade all over the skirt steak, then place the steak in a large, resealable plastic bag with the marinade and refrigerate overnight.

3. Remove the bag from the refrigerator one hour before grilling to allow the steak to come to room temperature. .

4. Heat a grill over medium-high heat. Grill the steak about 2 to 3 minutes per side for medium rare. Set the steak aside until cool enough to handle, then cut it into a half-inch dice or slice it against the grain into 1-inch slices. Serve immediately.

Each serving: 151 calories; 14 grams protein; 1 gram carbohydrate; 0 fiber; 10 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 32 mg. cholesterol; 157 mg. sodium.