How do you cook steak fajita's without the meat being too tough?!
Answers: I want to cook them in a skillet if possible, but I don't want them too chewy. I would rather them taste like something you could get at a mexican restaurant! Thanks!
Cook on high heat and don't leave it in too long.
steam in a little beer.
i would personally steam the meat, steaming is a very underused practice which i used on most anything.
it'll also cut your skillet time in half in your meats already cooked. Just remember to fry up your veggies just like normal just add the meat last to give it a good coating of all that grilled veggie goodness!
Cook the meat separately, then slice while it's still hot. Put it all together at the last minute before you serve.
Fry very quickly and not beyond medium cooked.
Skirt steak works great as a fajita steak, especially when marinated and cut across the grain. Because the steak is so tough you would never serve it as a whole steak, but when you slice it thinly across the grain you effectively mechanically tenderize the steak, and because the grains are quite course, it becomes relatively tender and chewable.
The skirt steak is a heavily used muscle, and as such it posses great beefy flavor; and because it is also rarely even as thick as an inch in diameter, it takes to marinades very well. One problem with using marinades to tenderize for many cuts is that a marinade only really tenderizes the outer ? inch or so of the meat, but because the skirt steak is so thin, this isn’t really a problem.
For best results, marinate the steak overnight (or for at least 6 hours) a zip lock bag is a great receptacle for both marinade and steak, and allows for even coverage over the entire portion of the steak. A common fajita marinade will make use of soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, salt and olive oil, but individual and regional variations are the rule and not the exception.
Dry the meat very well before grilling (to get a nice brown crust) and because the steak is relatively thin, you'll need to cook it uncovered and over very high heat. A couple of minutes per side should be sufficient for medium rare. Always let rest for at least five minutes, lest all the flavorful juices should run out.
Try marinating your steak first (better overnight), in the following ingredients. Do not slice your steak first. Slice it after you have grilled or cooked in your skillet (let it rest first and cut against the grain). This is for a 1 1/2 pound skirt steak.
2 Tbs. fresh lime juice
6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 bottle of beer, (I used Corona but any regular beer is fine)
1 1/2 tsp. chile powder
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. oregano leaves
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded, and minced
3/4 tsp. sea salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 Tbs. fresh cilantro, chopped, (optional)