Chicken Fajitas

 

Hello readers,

     Today I will share with you a famous Mexican Cuisine "Chicken Fajitas", before sharing the recipe would like to share the history behind the dish, did you know "fajitas" were invented in 1930s in "Rio Grande Valley of Texas", where the Mexican cowboys vaqueros were given strip steaks as a part of their pay since their patrons considered this cut to be thrown away. In Spanish, the word 'Fajita' means little belt or skirt, which refers to the skirt steak, a specific cut of beef used for this dish. "Sonny Falcon" the fajitas king a meat market manager based in 'Kyle' just in 'Austin'1969 probably was the first one to start selling fajitas were un-marinated and unseasoned. This recipe was adopted from culinaryhouston.com and follows the original recipe by Mama Ninga Laurenzo invented in 1973. Hope you like the historical background of the cuisine! Today I'm using chicken skirt steaks instead of beef, so let's start making "Chicken Fajitas"!

Ingredients:-

1. Chicken skirt steaks- 4( not more than 3/4 inch thick).thigh & breast pieces.

2. Warm flour tortillas-8(8 inch- flour/corn tortillas).

3. Orange -1 large ( zested).

4. Lemon zest- 2 tsp.

5. Lemon juice- 1/2 cup.

6. Pineapple juice-1/4 cup.

7. Soy sauce- 1/2 cup.

8. Garlic- 3 cloves (minced).

9. Black Pepper- 2 tsp ( Grounded freshly).

10. Dried chilies-2( crushed).

11. Dried oregano- 1-1/2 tsp.

12. Canola oil- 4 tbsp.

13. Brown sugar- 1/4 cup.

14. Cumin seeds- 2 tsp( grounded).

15. Chili powder- 1 tbsp.

16. Large bell peppers-3( green, red, yellow-1 each) 1/2-inch wide julienne.

17.Green onion- 4 (1/2 inch sliced).

18. White Onion- 1(1/2- inch slices)

For Toppings:-(can choose as your choice)

1. Cilantro.

2. Sour cream.

3. Salsa 

4. Lemon butter.

Preparation Method:-

Step 1- Take a large bowl and add all ingredients ( orange zest,lemon zest, pineapple juice, lemon juice,soy sauce, black pepper,chili powder, Garlic mince, brown sugar, grounded cumin, dried oregano, crushed dry chilies, canola oil(2 tbsp) combine all ingredients well by whisking and take out 1/2 portion of marination set aside.

Step 2- Trim the fat and cut the meat skirts crosswise into 6 inch long pieces.

Step 3- Now marinate the chicken pieces into the remaining mixture in the bowl and after marination transfer the marinated chicken into a plastic zipper or air tight container and keep it in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours. 

Step 4- Place the sliced onion, bell peppers, green onions in a bowl and add 1/2 portion of marination with these ingredients mix well and keep in the refrigerator for 1 hour.

Step 5- After meat has been marinated discard the excess marinade and place the meat on a large plate.

Step 6- Place the meat over preheated and well oil grill perfectly over charcoal. Make sure the meat is covered and flip it every minute until it is well charred.

Step 7- Once chicken pieces cooked well place them on a large plate, cover with foil and let them rest for 10-15 minutes.

Step 8- Now place a large cast-iron griddle over the grill and preheat it for 3 minutes, add onion, pepper mixture and cook for about 10 minutes, so the vegetables are tender & slightly charred.

Step 9- Mix the vegetables with the juice released from the meat, slice the steaks thinly and arrange on a serving plate with vegetables.

Step 10- Serve with hot tortillas and toppings of your choice.

image credit: source