Best Beef Fajitas

Beef fajitas are very popular down here in South Texas.  A lot of people love beef fajitas more than they love steak.  I am one of them.  When you grill the beef fajitas right they taste better than a steak, any day of the week.  I am not a big fan of ordering beef fajitas at a restaurant because it is night and day difference when grilling them yourself over mesquite than getting them in the restaurant. Most restaurants do not grill beef fits over mesquite or any kind of wood for that matter.  Most of them are grilled on a cast iron pan over very high heat never having that great mesquite flavor added to them.

So, what exactly is a beef fajita?  The beef fajita is actually a Beef Skirt Steak.   The Beef Skirt cut of meat comes from the "Plate" portion of the cow.  Fajitas are usually about 12 inches long by about 4-5 inches wide.  The fajitas are also a tough cut of meat.  Most people like to grill beef fajitas over high heat.  You don't have to.  I have heard a lot of barbecuers in the past say that you have to grill the fajitas over high heat so they can grill quick.  Yes, that is partially true.  I have barbecued some of my best fajitas  for at least an hour.   Beef fajitas are just like any other cut of meat you can grill them hot and quick or barbecue them nice and slow.

Ingredients:

 

Ø      2 Slabs Beef Skirt (Fajitas)

Ø      1 Lemon (Cut in Half)

Ø      4-5 Garlic Cloves (Minced)

Ø      1 Serrano Pepper (Seeded)

Ø      1 Yellow Onion (Sliced)

Ø      1 Green Bell Pepper (Sliced)

Ø      1 (Optional) Red Bell Pepper (Sliced)

Ø      Fresh Ground Black Pepper

Ø      Your Favorite Rub

Ø      Fresh Cilantro (Chopped)

Ø      Italian Dressing

Prepping The Beef Fajitas

When you go to the grocery store or the butcher shop make sure you pick out some good slabs of beef fajitas.  I always choose a slab that does not have too much fat on them.  When you go to the butcher shop you can ask the butcher yo trim the fat to your liking.  Beef fajitas always tend to have a higher amount of fat when you buy them from the grocery store.  That is not a problem.  Just make sure you have a sharp knife at home and carefully trim the fat yourself.  It is very easy.  

There are two ways beef fajitas can be bought. There are tenderized and untenderized beef fajitas.  When I say tenderized I do not mean meat tenderizer.  Tenderized is when a metal or wood tenderizer is pounded on the beef fajitas.  When this happens you can see little hole like indentions in the meat.  The tenderizer also thins out the beef as well.  

I personally like untenderized beef fajitas.  You will notice that beef fajitas for the most part are thick cuts of beef.  I sometimes cut my beef fajitas in half so they will be thinner.  I have also butterflied them too.  Either way they still come out with the same flavor.


Directions

Once you choose the slab of beef fajitas you want you can begin prepping them for flavor.  Get a dish big enough to contain the fajitas.  Get your lemon and cut it in half.  Squeeze the lemon and let the lemon juice spill over the fajitas.  Work the lemon juice in the fajitas on both sides.  Next take your minced garlic and rub it on both sides of the fajitas as well.  I then take my pepper grinder a grind fresh black pepper on both sides of the fajitas.  Now you can add your favorite dry rub to your beef fajitas.  Pour the rub generously on the fajitas on both sides and work it in with your hands.  Pour the Italian dressing over both sides of the beef fajitas.  Not too much, just enough to be worked in on both sides.  Italian dressing has a powerful flavor and you do not want to overpower the other ingredients.  Last, combine the sliced yellow onions, green and red bell peppers, minced serrano pepper, and cilantro (optional) in a resealable bag with the beef fajitas.  

Put the bag of fajitas in the refrigerator for 6 hours (at least, no more than 24 hours).  The acid from the lemon juice and italian dressing will soften (tenderize) your beef fajitas.  I usually leave them in for a few hours and turn them every half hour so the fajitas can mix well.  Do not be afraid to shake the bag up so you can have even distribution of flavor to your fajitas.  

Ready To Grill

Once you feel your fajitas have marinaded long enough they are ready for the grill.  Remember, you are going to have more flavor if you grill with hardwood (ie. mesquite).  Make sure the coals are glowing orange and have a little ash over them.  Now, you can add your beef fajitas.  Make sure to use a good set of tongs.  Never use a fork or any other sharp untensil that will puncture the beef fajitas.  This will cause you to lose a lot of juices from the beef and cause the beef to fry out.  Grill the fajitas to your desired doneness.  Make sure you watch the fire closely when you are grilling the fajitas.  Watch for flare ups, because it will happen.  As you can see in the picture I had a flareup.  Do not panic when this happens.  Either shift the fajitas to another side of the grill or put the lid down and cover.  This is not a big deal.  Beef fajitas always have a lot of fat on one side purposely.  As you can see in the top right picture the fajitas were fine.  The flare up did not ruin the beef fajitas.  You can even see  the mice mesquite smoke doing its job, which is flavoring the fajitas.  When your fajitas are done let them set for 5-10 minutes before cutting.  

Ready To Serve


Once you have taken the beef fajitas off the grill and have let them set for 5-10 minutes you can slice them.  When you slice the fajitas make sure you slice them against the grain.  It will be easier to bite into this way.  I always serve my beef fajitas on a hot corn tortilla.  You can use a flour tortilla if you would like. 
I like to add grilled onions,bell peppers, cheddar cheese, and a little bit of hot sauce.  You can add whatever you like.  Down here in South Texas people like to add fresh avacado.   These beef fajitas tacos always go well with a nice "cold beverage" of your choice.  

I always eat my beef fajita tacos with a side of spanish rice and borracho beans.  When I do not feel like making sides I will just eat about three fajita tacos by themselves.  Just make sure when you serve your fajita tacos they are served hot.  They are a lot better hot than they are warm.