Equipment
Ingredients
Steak and Marinade
- 600 g skirt steak, trimmed of excess silver skin
- 45 ml lime juice, freshly squeezed
- 45 ml orange juice, freshly squeezed
- 30 ml olive oil
- 3 garlic, minced
- 5 g ground cumin
- 10 g kosher salt
Vegetables
- 1 red bell pepper, cored and sliced into strips
- 1 green bell pepper, cored and sliced into strips
- 1 white onion, sliced into half-moons
- 15 ml neutral oil
Fiery Hot Sauce
- 3 roma tomatoes, whole
- 2 jalapeno peppers, whole
- 2 garlic, unpeeled cloves
- 3 g kosher salt
Serving
- 8 flour tortillas, 8-inch size
- 15 g fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
- 4 lime wedges
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 674 kcal
- Protein
- 41 g
- Carbohydrates
- 56 g
- Fat
- 33 g
- Fiber
- 7 g
- Sugar
- 12 g
- Sodium
- 1964 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 9 g
- Trans Fat
- 1 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 14 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 4 g
- Cholesterol
- 96 mg
- Potassium
- 1009 mg
- Calcium
- 181 mg
- Iron
- 7.3 mg
- Magnesium
- 81 mg
- Phosphorus
- 461 mg
- Zinc
- 10.3 mg
- Vitamin A
- 89 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 117 mg
- Vitamin D
- 0.1 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 2.6 mg
- Vitamin K
- 31 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 1.1 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 3.8 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.60 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.74 mg
- Niacin
- 12.4 mg
- Folate
- 118 mcg
- Water
- 275 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
In a mixing bowl, combine lime juice, orange juice, olive oil, minced garlic, cumin, and salt. Add the skirt steak, turning to coat completely. Let marinate at room temperature for up to 2 hours.
Preheat a dry cast iron skillet over high heat. Add the whole tomatoes, jalapenos, and unpeeled garlic cloves. Char on all sides until the skins are blackened and blistered, about 10 minutes. Remove from the skillet.
Peel the charred garlic cloves and discard the skins. Remove the stems from the jalapenos. Place the garlic, jalapenos, charred tomatoes, and salt into a blender. Blend until smooth to form the hot sauce. Set aside.
Wipe the cast iron skillet clean, add neutral oil, and heat over medium-high. Add the sliced bell peppers and white onion. Sear tossing occasionally until blistered on the edges but still slightly crunchy, about 6 minutes. Transfer vegetables to a plate.
Increase the skillet heat to high, aiming for 260°C/500°F. Remove steak from the marinade, shaking off excess, and thoroughly pat dry with paper towels. Sear the steak for 3 to 4 minutes per side to develop a dark crust. Ensure a safe minimum internal temperature of 54°C/130°F for medium-rare.
Transfer the seared steak to a clean cutting board. Let it rest for 10 minutes. This allows the muscle fibers to relax and retain their juices. After resting, slice the meat thinly against the grain, holding the knife at a slight angle.
Briefly warm the flour tortillas in the residual heat of the cast iron skillet or over an open flame until pliable. Serve the sliced steak and charred vegetables on the tortillas. Drizzle generously with the fiery hot sauce and garnish with chopped cilantro and lime wedges.
Chef's Notes
- Patting the steak dry before searing is an absolutely critical step. Any moisture left on the surface will steam the meat, completely preventing the Maillard reaction needed for a flavorful crust.
- Skirt steak has very long, distinct muscle fibers. You must slice it against the grain to ensure a tender bite. Slicing on a slight bias (holding your knife at a 45-degree angle to the cutting board) makes the slices even wider and more tender.
- When blistering the jalapenos for the hot sauce, keeping the stems attached gives you a convenient handle for turning them in the hot skillet. Just remember to twist them off before blending.
- To maximize flavor extraction and promote even cooking, allow the marinating steak to sit at room temperature for the final 30 minutes before it goes into the pan.
Storage
Refrigerator: 72 hours — Store hot sauce, tortillas, and fillings in separate airtight containers.
Freezer: 1 month — Meat and hot sauce freeze well; vegetables will become mushy if frozen.
Reheating: Reheat steak gently in a skillet over medium heat just until warmed through to avoid overcooking.
Troubleshooting
Steak is tough and difficult to chew.
Cause: The skirt steak was sliced parallel to the muscle fibers (with the grain) rather than perpendicular to them.
Fix: Take the incorrectly sliced strips and chop them into smaller, bite-sized pieces to minimize the length of the fibers.
Prevention: Always identify the direction of the long muscle fibers before cutting, and slice directly across them to shorten the strands.
Steak steamed in the pan instead of developing a crust.
Cause: The steak was too wet from the marinade, or the pan was not hot enough before adding the meat.
Fix: Cannot be fixed once cooked, but you can pour off excess liquid from the pan and toss the meat briefly in remaining fat.
Prevention: Thoroughly pat the steak dry with paper towels before cooking and allow the pan to preheat until lightly smoking.
Cultural Context
Fajitas trace their origins to the 1930s among Mexican ranch workers in Texas, who often received lesser-desired, tough cuts of beef like skirt steak as part of their compensation. They developed a brilliant method of tenderizing the meat through acidic citrus marinades and precise cross-grain slicing, cooking it over open campfires and serving it tucked into fresh flour tortillas. Today, this iconic Tex-Mex dish is celebrated globally for its dramatic sizzling presentation and vibrant, savory profile.
