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Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Chicken Fajitas with Pepper and Onions

When fajitas became all the rage, I tolerated it.  Fajitas were made from  skirt steaks and, most often, did not have the connective tissue cleaned properly, from the meat.  Then for some reason, no one cared to look at the grain of the meat, so instead of slicing the meat across
 the grain it was sliced with the grain. The marinade usually included something the host thought was Mexican flavored and beer. That makes for a very tough taco.  I was the one that had the tortilla filled with salsa, peppers and onions and dreaded hearing the words, "We're having fajitas".  But then someone had the bright idea to make a seasoning and it was pretty good, but there was still the problem of beer drinkers slicing the skirt steak into strips.  Finally, there was chicken fajitas.  For those who do not care for the dark meat of chicken, this is a great way to adjust the flavor.  (As a note, I grew up on a farm and we raised our own beef, pork, and chicken. The skirt steak was used for ground beef. If I make beef fajitas today, I use sirloin.)
This marinade works great because it breaks down the fibers in the meat.  It also lends a wonderful flavor to the meat.  Try to have the meat marinate overnight. This recipe is for 3 pounds of meat.  In this case, it is chicken, but it works well on beef.  I have never had the desire to make pork fajitas so I can not tell you how good or bad it is.

3 pounds of boneless Chicken or Beef
1/2 cup of White Vinegar
1/4 cup of Oil, I used Sepay Groves Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon of minced Garlic
1/2 teaspoon of ground Cumin
Salt and Pepper
1 Onion, sliced
1 Red Bell Pepper, sliced
1 Green Bell Pepper, sliced

I do not like thick chunks of meat, so I fillet the chicken breasts in half.  If you like thick slices of meat, leave it. It is totally up to you.
Mix the vinegar, oil, garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper together and pour over chicken or beef.  Let it marinate for 8 to 24 hours.
Heat griddle or grill to 375 to 400 degrees.  Carefully place meat on the griddle or grill and LEAVE IT ALONE until you can easily lift it from the surface.  If the meat sticks, it has not been allowed to sear.  Let it cook until it has browned evenly, or as even as it can, and then flip it over.  You need to make sure that chicken is thoroughly cooked.  The way to check for boneless chicken, is to bend the meat.  Cooked chicken will fold easily and break apart.  You will be able to see the grain.  Once all of the meat is cooked.  Remove and cover.  Place in a warm oven and cook the peppers and onion on the same surface. Cook to desired tenderness.  My family and friends like them a little crisp, but once again, it is totally up to you.  Roll the chicken with peppers, onions, and Mango Salsa in a flour tortilla.

Enjoy!

Deloris
ps: Mango Salsa is tomorrow's post

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