Steak Fajitas
This past week my girlfriend and her fiancé came over for a birthday celebratory dinner and, when I gave her some meal options, she immediately jumped at the idea of a steak fajita night. While researching the history of fajitas, I learned that it is truly a TexMex food: an adaptation of Mexican dishes made by Texas cooks. According to foodtimeline.org, the first print date of “fajitas” was in 1971. The word derives from the Spanish word “faja”, translating to “girdle” or “strip” and referring to the original cut of meat (skirt steak) that was used in this dish. For a food that so many people love, steak, I find a lot of us are intimidated by the act of cooking it. Sure, having a grill is pretty damn sweet and makes the entire process way more simple, but after living in NYC for almost 6 years and relying solely on my cast-iron skillet, I think I may enjoy the end result more than a grilled steak. Surprisingly (or not, depending on who you ask), I find a cast iron steak to have more flavor. To help those of you intimidated by the task, I’m dumbing it down with a super at-home easy to follow tutorial of how I make my steak so crisped on the outside with that perfect medium rare middle.
Ingredients (serves 4):
Steak (~2 pounds) – I used boneless ribeye in this recipe and video, but NY strip steak, skirt steak, or flank steak would work as well
Bell pepper (2)
Yellow onion (1)
Avocado (4)
Tomato (1)
Jalapeño (2)
Lime (1)
Refried beans (1 can)
Greek yogurt or sour cream (1 cup)
Flour or corn tortillas (~12 for 2-3 per person)
Cheese of your choice (1/2 cup – shredded)
Hot sauce of your choice
Ghee
Olive oil
Avocado oil
Chili lime seasoning
Red pepper flakes
Cayenne pepper
Salt
Pepper
Directions:
Prepare the guacamole by mashing the 4 avocados and combining them with 1 chopped tomato, 1 chopped jalapeño, 1 tablespoon of olive oil, the juice of ½ lime, 1 teaspoon of chili lime seasoning, and salt & pepper. Set aside
Remove the steaks from the fridge and allow them to reach room temperature (~10-15 minutes)
Cut the onion and bell peppers into ¼ inch slivers
On a hot skillet, add 1 teaspoon of avocado oil and then add the onions and peppers
Season this mixture with ½ teaspoon of cayenne pepper, ½ teaspoon of red pepper flakes, and salt & pepper and sauté for ~10 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened and slightly charred on the exterior
*Steps 6-12 are demonstrated in the below YouTube video*
Pat the steaks dry with a paper towel and then season generously with salt & pepper
Place a cast iron skillet, or multiple depending on how large and how many steaks you are cooking at one time, over medium-high heat and allow to get hot for ~3 minutes
Add 1 tablespoon of ghee and allow to melt
Place the steak down on the skillet, making sure it is hot enough to release a nice sizzling sound (meaning your steak will have a nice seared exterior)
After ~3-5 minutes, flip the steak on to the other side
After an additional ~3-5 minutes of cooking the steak’s other side, continuously flip over until the steak has reached your preferred temperature. I use the oh-so-intelligent hand trick to figure out when my steak has reached the medium rare temperature that I enjoy
Once finished cooking, allow the steak to rest for ~5-10 minutes before slicing
While the steak is resting, scoop out the refried beans and greek yogurt or sour cream into their respective bowls
Thinly chop the other jalapeño and place in a serving bowl
If you’d like, char the tortillas on the open flame of your stovetop, flipping over every ~30 seconds until they have a nice crisp and are warmed
Slice the steak and serve on top of the sautéed peppers and onions
Set up a fajita bar with the charred tortillas, guacamole, refried beans, skillet of sautéed veggies & steak, chopped jalapeño, shredded cheese, and greek yogurt/sour cream and get assembling!
Allergen Information:
Soy Free
Nut Free
Gluten Free (depending on tortilla used)