Steak Fajitas Recipe

You will love this easy-to-make full-flavored steak fajitas recipe with roasted peppers and onions that are served in a warm tortilla shell for the perfect weeknight meal. This is one of our family’s favorite things to eat.

We are huge Mexican food fans in our house and eat it as often as possible. If you’re similar and want to try some new Latin dishes, try my Birria Tacos or Mexican Corn Elote.

Steak Fajitas

Steak fajitas are classic West Texas and Northern Mexican dishes consisting of marinated and roasted beef that is thinly sliced and served with roasted peppers and onions. It is commonly served on a flour tortilla and is often accompanied by salsa, guacamole, rice, and re-fried beans.

This style of fajitas is the same one you see being served at Mexican restaurants on the hot cast-iron plate. These are very simple to prepare and can be customized to your liking, including the marinade. Now you can bring your favorite restaurant steak fajitas right to your kitchen with this delicious recipe.

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Steak – It’s traditional to use either flank steak or skirt steak for this.
• Spices – I used my Mexican Spice Blend for this.
• Acid – A combination of lemon and lime zest and juice will help tenderize and flavor the meat.
• Oil – You can use olive or avocado oil.
• Tortillas – Flour tortillas are the standard tortilla that is used in fajitas.
• Peppers – I like to use a combination of red and yellow bell peppers along with poblano peppers. You can use all red or yellow peppers. In addition, you can use green peppers but I find their flavors to be inferior to red or yellow.
• Onions – A yellow, white, sweet, or red onion can be used.

How to Make Steak Fajitas from Scratch

In a bowl, whisk together the lime zest, lime juice, lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, and 4-5 tablespoons of the Mexican spice blend until combined. Be sure to taste it to make sure it is very flavorful.

Next, transfer the marinade to a plastic bag along with the flank or skirt steak and mix until thoroughly combined. Place in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours.

After marinating, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large 12” cast-iron, stainless steel, or non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.

Do not wait for the oil to heat up. Immediately add in the steak and cook it for 3 minutes untouched.

Next, turn the heat down to medium and move it around the pan for 1 minute or until browned.

Flip the steak over and cook it for 3 to 4 minutes to achieve a medium-rare internal temperature.

Set the steak aside and squeeze the juice of ½ lime over it. Let it rest for 3 to 4 minutes.

Discard the oil from the pan and return it to the cooktop over high heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

Once smoking, add in the peppers and onions and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly browned but still firm.

Season the peppers and onions with salt, pepper, and the juice of ½ lime.

Slice the steak thinly on a bias and against the grain.

Serve the steak alongside the roasted peppers and onions, warm flour tortillas, and optional garnishes of guacamole, pico de Gallo, and sour cream.

Make-Ahead and Storage

Make-Ahead: This is meant to be eaten as soon as it is done cooking. If you prefer that the flank steak is more on the well-done side of things, you can keep it warm in a pan covered and in the oven at 200° for up to 30 minutes before serving.

How to Store: Cover and keep it in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. The steak will freeze well, but the peppers and onions will not. Keep the steak covered and in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.

How to Reheat: Add a small amount of oil to a large frying pan over high heat. As soon as it begins to smoke, lightly add in the steak, peppers, and onions and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot. When reheating steak cooked to a specific internal temperature, it will continue cooking and push it past the point of your original desired temperature.

Chef Notes + Tips

• Feel free to cook the steak to your desired internal temperature.
• If you like spice, add a seeded jalapeño to the marinade.
• The longer the steak marinades, the better.
• Get all the current beef prices at US Foods.
• Try a marinade consisting of ½ fresh diced yellow onion, 3 finely minced garlic cloves, 1 finely minced jalapeño, juice and zest of 2 limes, 1 tablespoon of coarse salt, and ½ cup of olive or avocado oil.  
• I keep the steak whole while cooking it so that I can regulate the internal temperature.
• The reason I don’t heat up the pan before cooking the steak is to control the heat, ensuring the spices don’t scorch the steak while cooking it.

More Beef Recipes

• Reverse Sear Steak
• Cowboy Burger
• T-Bone Steak
• Carne Asada
• Braciole

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Steak Fajitas Recipe

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5 from 15 votes

You will love this easy-to-make steak fajitas recipe with peppers and onions that are served in a tortilla for the perfect weeknight meal.

Servings: 4

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

15 minutes minutes

Ingredients 

US CustomaryMetric

• zest and juice of lime, about 1 ½ tablespoons
• zest and juice of 1 lemon, about 2 tablespoons
• 9 tablespoons olive oil
• 5 tablespoons Mexican spice blend recipe
• 1 ½ pounds flank or skirt steak
• 2 seeded and thinly sliced small red bell peppers
• 2 seeded and thinly sliced small yellow bell peppers
• 2 seeded and thinly sliced small poblano peppers
• 1 peeled and thinly sliced yellow onion
• coarse salt and cracked pepper to taste
• freshly squeezed lime juice to taste
• 8 flour tortillas

Instructions

• In a bowl, whisk together the lime zest, lime juice, lemon zest, lemon juice, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, and 4-5 tablespoons of the Mexican spice blend until combined. Be sure to taste it to make sure it is very flavorful.
• Next, transfer the marinade to a plastic bag along with the flank or skirt steak and mix until thoroughly combined. Place in the refrigerator for 24-48 hours.
• After marinating, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to a large 12” cast-iron, stainless steel, or non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Do not wait for the oil to heat up. Immediately add in the steak and cook it for 3 minutes untouched.
• Next, turn the heat down to medium and move it around the pan for 1 minute or until browned.
• Flip the steak over and cook it for 3 to 4 minutes to achieve a medium-rare internal temperature.
• Set the steak aside and squeeze the juice of ½ lime over it. Let it rest for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Discard the oil from the pan, return it to the cooktop over high heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
• Once smoking, add the peppers and onions and sauté for 3 to 4 minutes or until lightly browned but still firm.
• Season the peppers and onions with salt, pepper, and the juice of ½ lime.
• Slice the steak thinly on a bias and against the grain.
• Serve the steak alongside the roasted peppers and onions, warm flour tortillas, and optional garnishes.

Notes

Make-Ahead: This is meant to be eaten as soon as it is done cooking. If you prefer that the flank steak is more on the well-done side of things, you can keep it warm in a pan covered and in the oven at 200° for up to 30 minutes before serving.

How to Store: Cover and keep it in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days. The steak will freeze well, but the peppers and onions will not. Keep the steak covered and in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw it in the refrigerator for 1 day before reheating.

How to Reheat: Add a small amount of oil to a large frying pan over high heat. As soon as it begins to smoke, lightly add in the steak, peppers, and onions and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until hot. When reheating steak cooked to a specific internal temperature, it will continue cooking and push it past the point of your original desired temperature.

Feel free to cook the steak to your desired internal temperature.

If you like spice, add a seeded jalapeño to the marinade.

The longer the steak marinades, the better.

Get all the current beef prices at US Foods.

Try a marinade consisting of ½ fresh diced yellow onion, 3 finely minced garlic cloves, 1 finely minced jalapeño, juice and zest of 2 limes, 1 tablespoon of coarse salt, and ½ cup of olive or avocado oil.  

I keep the steak whole while cooking it so that I can regulate the internal temperature.

The reason I don’t heat up the pan before cooking the steak is to control the heat, ensuring the spices don’t scorch the steak while cooking it.

Nutrition

Calories: 799kcalCarbohydrates: 55gProtein: 45gFat: 46gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 28gCholesterol: 102mgSodium: 543mgPotassium: 1284mgFiber: 13gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 2517IUVitamin C: 236mgCalcium: 442mgIron: 13mg

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mexican

Author: Chef Billy Parisi