The Best Steak Fajitas: The Afterburner Method

Name: The Best Steak Fajitas: The Afterburner Method
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 220 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 2 pieces Orange (2 oranges); 2 pieces Lime (2 limes); 3 pieces Garlic (3 garlic cloves); 3 pieces Chipotle Chili in Adobo Sauce (3 canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce); 3 tbsp Cilantro (3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves); ½ tsp Cumin Powder (1/2 teaspoon ground cumin); 1 tsp Kosher Salt (1 teaspoon Morton Coarse Kosher Salt); ½ tsp Black Pepper (1/2 teaspoon fine-grind black pepper); 4 tbsp Vegetable Oil (3 tablespoons vegetable oil + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (+ more as needed)); 1 ½ lb Skirt Steak (1 1/2 pounds skirt steak (preferably outside skirt steak)); 2 pieces Bell Pepper (2 medium bell peppers (any color)); 1 piece Yellow Onion (1 large onion); 2 pieces Tomato (2 medium tomatoes); 6 pieces Tortilla (6 tortillas (your choice of flour or corn)); 1 piece Avocado (1 avocado)

The Best Steak Fajitas: The Afterburner Method - Dinner,Entree,Lunch,Main Course,Marinades (Mexican)

220 minMexican

Servings6

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Dairy Free
Egg Free

Ingredients

For 6 servings

Orange2 pieces · 2 oranges
Lime2 pieces · 2 limes
Garlic3 pieces · 3 garlic cloves
Chipotle Chili in Adobo Sauce3 pieces · 3 canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce
Cilantro3 tbsp · 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro leaves
Cumin Powder½ tsp · 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Kosher Salt1 tsp · 1 teaspoon Morton Coarse Kosher Salt
Black Pepper½ tsp · 1/2 teaspoon fine-grind black pepper
Vegetable Oil4 tbsp · 3 tablespoons vegetable oil + 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (+ more as needed)
Skirt Steak1 ½ lb · 1 1/2 pounds skirt steak (preferably outside skirt steak)
Bell Pepper2 pieces · 2 medium bell peppers (any color)
Yellow Onion1 piece · 1 large onion
Tomato2 pieces · 2 medium tomatoes
Tortilla6 pieces · 6 tortillas (your choice of flour or corn)
Avocado1 piece · 1 avocado

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Steps

1Make the marinade. Squeeze the oranges and pour 3/4 cup of the juice into the bowl of a food processor or blender. Squeeze the limes and add 3 tablespoons of the juice to the processor. Peel and press or mince the garlic. Finely chop the chipotles and the cilantro and add them along with the cumin, salt, black pepper, and oil. Puree everything to small bits—It doesn’t have to be perfectly smooth. Measure out 1/4 cup and put it in a small bowl in the fridge to use as a sauce. Pour the rest into a large bowl.
2Marinate the meat. Cut the meat with the grain, basically crosswise, into 6-inch lengths (the white lines in the raw skirt steak image). Put on some gloves, add the meat to the big bowl with the marinade, and massage it in. Let them get to know each other in the fridge for 1 to 3 hours.
3Prep. Slice the peppers in half, rip out the stems and seeds, and cut what’s left into 1/4-inch slices. Cut the top off the onion, peel the onion, cut it in half pole to pole, and then slice it into 1/4-inch half-moons. Cut the tomatoes in half and, over the trash, squeeze out the seeds and gel. Chop what is left into 1/4-inch chunks and put them in a bowl. (Don’t cut the avocado yet or it will turn brown.)
4Fire up. Put the charcoal chimney on top of the cooking grate on your grill. Fill the chimney halfway with briquets and light it.
5Cook the fajita vegetables. When the coals are white and flame is shooting out of the top like an afterburner, put the cast-iron skillet on the chimney, add the oil, spread it around, and add the bell peppers and onion. Cook just until they soften a bit, but leave some crunch, about 4 minutes. If they scorch a bit, that’s OK. Pour them into a bowl.
6Warm the tortillas. With a paper towel wipe the oil from the pan, being careful not to burn yourself. Working quickly place one tortilla at a time in the pan and heat them until they toast slightly on one side. Take them out and stack them on a plate and cover with foil to keep them warm.
7Cook the meat. Remove the pan and put a wire grate on the chimney. Remove the meat from the marinade, wipe off the excess marinade, put the meat on a plate, and head for the chimney. Grill one chunk at a time. Sear one side quickly, 1 minute is all, and then flip and sear the other side until it has good color and the interior is 125° to 130°F. Move the cooked meat to a cutting board. Cut each piece across grain (opposite the direction you cut in before) into 1/4-inch strips (the black lines in the skirt steak photo). Put them in a bowl.
8Slice the avocado. Carefully run a knife around the avocado cutting it in half from pole to pole. Twist the halves apart and with a spoon pop out the seed. Cut the halves again so you have 4 quarters. Scoop the meat of the fruit out of the skins, cut it into 1/4-inch slivers, and put them in a bowl.
9Serve. Now, set all the bowls on the table—meat, onions and peppers, tomatoes, and avocados—and don’t forget the sauce in the fridge. Let your guests assemble their fajitas as they wish.