Sunday, April 12, 2009

Steak Fajitas

As part of the culinary classes, we occasionally do food sales (mostly just cookie sales!!). The kids chose a menu of fajitas, chips and cheese, and sopapillas, so I needed to find the right recipes that students and teachers would like. I chose this fajita marinade recipe for its ease and seemingly mass appeal. The original source is Simply Recipes. The result was tender steak pieces with a hint of lime. I really loved the veggies!


Steak Fajitas

Ingredients:
1 lb of flank steak or skirt steak

1 large yellow onion, peeled and sliced with the grain, not against the grain as one would normally slice an onion. (Slice first in half, and then slice off sections a half inch wide at widest point.)

2 large bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, de-ribbed, sliced lengthwise into half-inch wide strips

Marinade:
Juice of 1 lime
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 fresh JalapeƱo pepper, seeded, ribs removed, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, including stems


Directions:
Mix all marinade ingredients.
Set the steak in the marinade and let it sit at least an hour, the longer the better. (except the lime juice--if you are marinating longer than an hour, put the lime juice in the last hour or so)
Heat to high heat a large cast iron pan or griddle.
Add a teaspoon of olive oil to the pan.
Add the steak, frying on each side for 3 minutes, or to desired doneness. Three minutes per side will yield approximately medium rare doneness for an average cut of flank steak. (If pan starts to smoke too much, reduce the heat to medium high. We want the steak browned, not burned.)Remove from pan and let sit for 5 minutes.
Reduce the pan heat to medium high.
Add a little more oil to the pan if necessary.
Add the onions and bell peppers.
Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, until the onions are slightly translucent.
Slice the meat against the grain into thin slices.
If you slice the meat at a slanted angle, you will be able to get your slices pretty thin. (Flank steak is flavorful but can be a little tough, so thin slices will really help make it easier to eat.)Serve immediately with shredded cheese, salsa, shredded iceberg lettuce, sour cream, guacamole and warm flour tortillas.
Serves 4.
Source: Simply Recipes

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