I made some fajitas the other day for dinner with some dear friends and I was quite pleased with how they turned out. The word succulent came to mind when I bit into the steak ones. I think I’ve tried making fajitas once before but never tried again after that one failed attempt. I really like fajitas though and decided it was time to give it another try. And I’m glad I did!
Only problem again is that I didn’t keep track of the recipe exactly and I didn’t snap any pictures of them but here’s the basic idea of how to make some yourself.
What you need: Chicken, Steak, Green pepper, Red pepper, Onion. Butter, Salt, Pepper, Garlic powder, Basil, Lime juice or a lime, and BBQ sauce….I think that’s it…oh some tortillas, sour cream, salsa, and shredded cheese.
Here’s what you do: Go to the your local meat butcher and ask him to slice a pound or two of sirloin steak into slices for fajitas. Ask him to do this with 4-6 chicken breasts also. This saved MUCH time and I almost hugged the butcher and his wife for doing this prep work for me.
At home, put your steak strips and chicken strips in 2 seperate bowls (or containers with lids), For the steak strips: Add 1/4 cup of lime juice or the juice of 1 whole lime (whichever you have handy) to the steak. Then sprinkle on dried basil, garlic powder, salt, pepper and a little bit of cumin too if you like (if you prefer a more detailed recipe, this is the one I cheated from). Mix this all around with the steak and close the lid or put it in a baggie to marinate for an hour or overnight or 5 minutes if you are reading this at 5 p.m. 🙂 The longer it marinates the juicier the steak will be. After it’s marinated, fry the steak in some oil until it’s cooked through. (again, don’t look at me to tell you how long this will take). Set the steak aside in a covered dish.
For the chicken, put it in a bowl and then add enough BBQ sauce to cover the chicken, sprinkle on some salt and cook the chicken in a frying pan of oil for as long as it takes to cook through. I recommend stirring it often because it’s fun. Set it aside in a covered dish when it’s done.
Next, cut up your peppers and onion into strips. Warm up some more oil (or use the reserved steak fat if you didn’t wash it already), add some minced garlic and then skillet up the peppers and onions together until they are cooked the way you like ’em. When your nose starts swelling and you have to wipe drool of your chin it’s a good indication that the peppers/onions are done and ready for immediate consumption.
Ok so now everything is cooked. Set out the plates, napkins, forks on your counter. Next goes a plate of warmed tortillas followed by the meats with serving spoons. Then arrange your fillings-the sour cream, salsa, shredded cheese, maybe some guacamole or cut up avocado…lettuce and cut-up tomatoes. My friend made a delicious southwest salad and dressing that went excellently with the fajitas, I’ll see if I can track down that recipe too.
So now it’s all ready. Invite everyone to go through the assembly-line and make their own fajitas (except for kids who are too young and/or incapable of such talent).
Eat and enjoy!
