It recently dawned on me that I haven’t strayed much from Italian food when choosing recipes to share. Don’t get nervous, I can never get too far, it’s my favorite. But to mix it up a little, my roommates and I went with my favorite Mexican meal… Fajitas! It’s largely unknown, but there are actually a ton of varieties of fajitas to try. Some restaurants (Chili’s, Chuck’s Margarita Grill), offer many different spins on the traditional by using Cajun or chipotle recipes, and I’m going to give you my personal twist on the classic, so you can make it at school or at home instead of going out. It’s a barbecue chicken fajita, and you can use as many or as little of the ingredients you like to customize your dish!
You’ll need:
- Boneless, skinless chicken breast: for three people we used 4 good-sized pieces
- Barbecue sauce: pick your favorite, here’s mine
- One pack of flour tortillas: the small fajita size (Perhaps more if you’re serving for more people)
- Black pepper
- cayenne pepper (Can’t have good fajitas without a little spice!)
- oregano (dried works better here)
- Cilantro leaves (fresh)
- Shredded cheese (Mexican blend)
- Scallions, chopped
- Red onions cut into small slices
- Salsa
- About half a head of garlic (3 or four cloves), chopped into very small pieces
- One lime, cut in half
- One sliced tomato (I prefer this recipe without, but of course prepare it as you like)
Directions:
- Wash and dry the chicken breasts (that have already been defrosted) and get rid of all the fatty edges if you see any
- Rub the chicken in barbecue sauce, covering every inch and then sprinkle with black pepper, oregano and a dash of cayenne pepper, and small pieces of garlic. Do this to both sides of the chicken breasts
- Drizzle olive oil over a pan and throw them in over medium-high heat (If you have a grill, by all means use it. Those of us away at school will make do).
- Let the chicken cook here for a while, occasionally adding more barbecue sauce to the pan and more oregano and garlic powder if you have some to make sure it doesn’t lose its flavor.
- While the chicken is cooking, wash and slice up all your vegetables. Have your roommates or friends help you here too, so you can keep an eye on the chicken. Slice up the red onion, scallions, tomato and cilantro leaves (slice the leaves off the stem).
- Put all of these toppings in small bowls separately (along with salsa and shredded cheese). I find that making a buffet line works best with fajitas so people can add or skip toppings as they choose.
- When the chicken if fully cooked (always make sure you cut through with a knife to make sure it’s not pink), slice it up into strips and place the plate of chicken next to your toppings line.
- Here’s a trick for the tortillas: many people eat them as is, and some put them in the oven to heat them up, but if you leave the stove top that you cooked the chicken on, with someone ready with a plate in hand, simply place the tortilla on the hot stove top and after a couple seconds flip it over, and you’re left with a warm, slightly charred tortilla (see the picture of the finish product). You just have to be sure that someone is ready to eat it, because otherwise it gets cold fast.
- Make sure you don’t leave that stove on, and you’re ready to load your fajita with all the toppings. When you’ve added all the toppings, squeeze the fresh lime over the entire fajita, and roll it up. Remember these tortillas are small, so don’t overstuff!
If you don’t have all of these ingredients, don’t sweat it. You can make great fajitas without going all out. It’s not that important to get scallions if you have red onion, and any type of cheese will work. But if you have time to pick some things up (and these aren’t expensive- cilantro leaves I got for a little more than a dollar, a lime for 79 cents, etc.) then definitely do, because for this recipe all the ingredients really go a long way, especially the cilantro and lime.
For a great Mexican meal, serve with chips and salsa (Looking to make your own salsa? Try this easy recipe from the Food Network), and preferably a Corona or margarita (Gotta use the leftover limes for something, right?). Disfrute! (If my memory of spanish vocab serves me correctly, that means enjoy?). If you’re feeling creative and come up with something new or you already have your own recipe, I’d love to hear your favorite twists on the classic fajita recipe!
Here’s a few links to some great ideas and unique dishes incorporating fajitas recipes:
The Food Network’s ‘All about Fajitas’ collection including fajita salads, soups and paninis:
DO NOT miss Paula Deen’s Gold Medal Sizzling Fajitas
Conquer the College Kitchen 