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Make these tender juicy easy skirt steak fajitas that are even better than your favorite Mexican restaurant. Cooked quickly in cast iron to give it a beautiful char and served with sizzling onions and bell peppers and fresh tortillas.
Easy Skirt Steak Fajitas
Juicy and delicious skirt steak fajitas, made totally from scratch with homemade seasoning using tender skirt steak make a simple, quick and easy dinner for the whole family.
Even my kids love these steak fajitas and ask for them all the time, which is rare in a food these days!
This is a really quick and easy recipe, and the ingredients are kept simple and straight forward. It's perfect for searing in cast iron or grilling in the summer!
What's the Secret to Amazing Flavorful Steak Fajitas?
There are three things that make steak fajitas amazing.
1. The marinade. For fajitas, it's important that the marinade has lime juice in it, for that signature tangy flavor. I recommend marinating your steak for at least 2 hours, or overnight. However, I know we can forget or be in a time crunch. In that case, try to marinate for at least 30 minutes to still get the flavors into that meat!
2. The cooking and cutting of the steak. Cooking steak is probably one of the easiest things you'll ever do. You just need a hot surface, and to flip it after about 3 minutes. Cook the steak as a whole piece of meat and then cut it to keep it juicy.
When you cut the meat, be sure you're cutting against the grain. Meat has long fiber-looking tissue. When you shred meat or a roast falls apart, it almost always happens with the grain.
To make tender fajitas, you want to cut it the opposite way, against the grain for a truly melt-in-your-mouth bite of juicy tender steak.
3. The absolutely necessary finishing touch on every fajita should be a final squirt of lime juice when the steak is done cooking. It makes the dish. I'm not kidding.
You can do this yourself, right in the skillet, and then give everything a little toss. Or you can serve your fajitas or toppings bar with lime wedges to let everyone add as much lime as they want.
What Kind of Steak Do You Use for Fajitas?
Skirt and flank steak are the two most popular choices for fajitas. In this recipe (pictures and video), I've used skirt steak. It's probably the more traditional of the two, and it's also very forgiving, staying very tender, even if it's over-cooked a bit.
Flank steak is a slightly leaner cut of meat and is best cooked on the rarer side, but it also works great in fajitas as long as you're super aware of cook times!
What to Serve with Steak Fajitas
This recipe already has a veggie side, as it includes bell peppers and onions. It's one of the reasons that skirt steak fajitas make such a quick and easy dinner!
Serve them up with some fresh made flour tortillas or corn tortillas for your carb, and you're all set! Of course, you can also store bought tortillas, but I prefer my fresh recipes when I have the time to make them!
If you're looking for a low carb option for fajitas, you can use lettuce leaves as a wrap or serve it straight on a bed of greens. Delicious both ways!
If you're looking for a little more filling, we love this copycat Chipotle Cilantro Lime Rice. It's fresh and zesty. Plus, it's super easy to make and goes perfectly with fajitas!
Don't forget the toppings! Try guacamole or plain sliced avocado, sour cream, pico de gallo, fresh jalapenos, and cheese!
How should you cook your steak?
Medium-rare is recommended. The 3-4 minutes on each side, as in the recipe, is probably closer to the medium than rare. I, personally, love my steak as rare as can be, but still cooked (also seen in the video).
But of course, you're the cook! So cook to your personal preferences. Increase the cook time for a more well-done steak, or decrease it for rare.
More Recipes You'll Love
- Easy Chicken Fajitas - try the chicken version too!!
- Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken - Tex-Mex on the grill!
- Skillet Southwest Smothered Chicken - one of my hubby's favorites!
- Restaurant Style Salsa - don't forget the salsa!...
- Homemade Tortilla Chips - and chips!
Easy Skirt Steak Fajitas
Make these tender juicy easy skirt steak fajitas that are even better than your favorite Mexican restaurant. Cooked quickly in cast iron to give it a beautiful char and served with sizzling onions and bell peppers and fresh tortillas.
5 from 22 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: American, Mexican, Tex-Mex
Keyword: Skirt Steak Fajitas, Steak Fajitas
Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes minutes
Marinating Time: 30 minutes minutes
Total Time: 1 hour hour
Servings: 4
Calories: 370kcal
Author: Michelle
Ingredients
- 1.5 pounds skirt steak
- 1 batch homemade fajita seasoning
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 2 tablespoons olive oil (divided)
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
- 1 large red or yellow bell pepper, sliced
- 1 large onion, sliced
- Additional lime wedges for serving
- Fresh chopped cilantro for garnish
US Customary - Metric
Instructions
Combine fajita seasoning, lime juice, 1 tablespoon olive oil, and worcestershire in a large plastic zip bag. Reserve 1 tablespoon of this mixture in a small jar or baggy, and set aside. Add steak to large baggy, and zip closed. Shake to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large hot skillet over medium heat. Add bell pepper, onion, and reserved marinade. Cook about 2-4 minutes, until tender but not mushy.
Remove veggies to a separate bowl. Set aside.
Raise heat to medium-high.
Place steak in the skillet. Cook for 3-4 minutes on each side.
Remove from heat. Let steak rest for 10 minutes before slicing thinly.
To serve, add veggies and steak back to skillet. Serve with flour or corn tortillas, and your favorite toppings, such as sour cream, cheese, guacamole, pico de gallo, fresh jalapenos, and hot sauce.
Notes
- Homemade Fajita Seasoning is highly recommended for this recipe! Although you can substitute a seasoning packet, it's like 1000 times better if you make your own, and SO EASY too. Here's my favorite homemade fajita seasoning recipe. Use the whole batch for the marinade in this recipe!
- Prick your skirt steak with a fork multiple times before marinating. This will allow the marinade to really soak into the meat and give it so much extra tangy flavor.
- The perfect finishing touch on all fajitas is a final squirt of fresh lime juice.
- Grilling Instructions: Follow the marinade instructions in step 1. When ready to cook, add veggies, olive oil, and reserved marinade to a large piece of foil. Wrap it up like a packet. Then place both the veggie packet and marinated steak on a hot grill over medium heat. Follow the same cooking and serving instructions as in step 5-7 of the recipe.
- Storage: Store covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Nutrition facts are for one-quarter (¼) of the fajitas, which is about 4 ounces cooked steak and a quarter of the veggies. Does NOT include tortillas or toppings.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 370kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 37g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 107mg | Sodium: 773mg | Potassium: 702mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 1850IU | Vitamin C: 42.8mg | Calcium: 37mg | Iron: 4.6mg
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UPDATE INFO: Originally published May 2019. Updated and republished May 2020.
