Steak (or Chicken) Fajitas


I’m a huge fan of Mexican food, and can eat a boatload of chips and salsa. However, my true love really lies with tacos and fajitas. Here’s a quick & delicious recipe which I made last week that is sure to please. This would be equally as tasty as a vegetarian dish by omitting the meat and substituting black beans.

Delicious Steak Fajitas

Ingredients

  • 3/4 lb top sirloin steak
  • 1 onion, cut lengthwise & cut into strips
  • 2 small sweet peppers of your choice (green, red, or yellow), cut into strips
  • 4 tbsp. olive oil
  • 2 tbsp. lime juice
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp. chili powder
  • 1 tsp. cumin
  • 1/4 tsp. hot pepper flakes
  • 1 tsp. black pepper
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 8 flour tortillas

Steak Fajitas In The Pan

Directions

  1. Slice steak into thin strips.
  2. In bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons olive oil, lime juice, garlic, chili powder, cumin, hot pepper flakes, black pepper & salt.
  3. Add beef strips and stir to coat, set aside.
  4. Wrap tortillas in foil and place in 350° oven for 5-10 minutes or until heated through.
  5. In large nonstick skillet over medium high heat, heat remaining tablespoons of olive oil.
  6. Add onions & peppers stirring for 3-4 minutes, until softened; transfer to a bowl and set aside.
  7. Add beef to skillet, cook, stirring for 3-4 minutes or until they lose their red color.
  8. Return onions and peppers to skillet; stir for about one minute.
  9. To serve, spoon a portion of the beef mixture down the center of each tortilla, top with your desired toppings (salsa, shredded cheese, guacamole, sour cream, etc.), fold bottom of tortilla up over filling, and fold the sides in, overlapping.

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Steak Marinade


If you’re searching for an extremely tasty and easy marinade for your steak, look no further! A couple of weeks ago, I posted a recipe by Paula Deen for another marinade which is really good, but may just like this one a little bit more. I made this last week to use on some tri-tip and it was amazing, and just whipped up some more to marinate a Rib-Eye… can’t wait to cook it up for dinner!!

Marinade in the blender

Ingredients

  • 1/2 small onion, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (or red wine)
  • 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 tsp. dried
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon-style prepared mustard
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tbsp. brown sugar (optional)
  • 2 (1 lb) steaks

Note: For my dinner tonight, I only had one rib-eye (approx. 1 lb.), so used about half of the marinade and froze the remaining to use another time.

Makes almost a cup

Directions

  1. Put all ingredients (except steaks) in a blender (or food processor), and blend until smooth.
  2. Place steaks in a large, resealable plastic bag.
  3. Pour marinade over steaks, seal and refrigerate for about 3 hours.
  4. Take steaks out from fridge and let them come to room temperature (30 min-1 hr.) *
  5. Remove steaks from bag, discarding remaining marinade.
  6. Cook on a preheated grill brushed with oil on high, for about 7 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness is achieved, or place in a skillet, over medium-high heat for same amount of time as above. (I cooked my tri-tip on top of the stove).

* It is always best to cook meat from, or near, room temperature. This will help the meat cook consistently across the interior by reducing the amount of time that it takes to cook the meat. But… I have cooked them after just a few minutes of sitting out, and they’ve come out delicious. 

Marinated tri-tip steaks

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New York Strip Steak (with Tarragon Melting Sauce)


When I’m in the mood for steak, I usually pick up beef tenderloin or tri tip, but the Smart & Final near my house only carries NY strips so I will occasionally grab one if I don’t feel like heading over to Trader Joe’s or Von’s (that’s rare, but it does happen). About a week ago, I got a NY Strip and was looking at various recipes to try something different, and came across one from Paula Deen that tickled my fancy, so decided to give it a whirl. The marinade is easy and quite tasty, and I plan to use it the next time I make a filet. As for the melting sauce, it was a nice compliment to the steak. In the event you didn’t know, I’m into sauces big-time, so was eager to taste this one. The recipe for it does yield a lot, even though I’ve already cut it in half…twice, and I only use a very small amount since it is butter-based (we know Paul Deen likes her butter), but it’s also great on baked potatoes and warm rolls.

NY Strip w/Tarragon Melting Sauce and Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup olive oil, plus oil for skillet
  • 2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
  • 3 (1-inch thick) boneless New York strip steaks
  • Tarragon Melting Sauce, recipe follows

Directions

  1. In a heavy-duty resealable plastic bag, combine oil, lemon juice, garlic, Worcestershire and pepper. (I like to press a little salt & ground pepper onto the steaks before marinating).
  2. Add steaks to bag. Press the air out of the bag, and seal tightly. Turn the bag several times to distribute the marinade; place the bag in a bowl and refrigerate 30 minutes, turning bag occasionally.
  3. Heat a large oiled skillet over medium-high heat.
  4. Remove steaks from marinade, discarding marinade.
  5. Place steaks in hot skillet; cook 4 to 5 minutes on each side or to the desired degree of doneness.
  6. Remove steaks to a serving plate, and keep warm.
  7. Top each steak with a teaspoon (or desired amount) of Tarragon Melting Sauce.

Tarragon Melting Sauce

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/2 tbsp. green onion, minced 
  • 1/4 tbsp. fresh tarragon leaves, minced (or 1/4 tsp. dried tarragon) – you could substitute rosemary
  • 1/4 tbsp. fresh parsley leaves, chopped (or 1/4 tsp. dried parsley)
  • 1/4 cup light or nonfat sour cream
  • 1/4 tsp. lemon zest
  • 1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
  • Pinch of salt

Directions

  1. In a bowl, add all ingredients together and mix until smooth. Cover, and refrigerate.

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