Charcoal-Grilled Beef Fajitas
By America's Test KitchenPublished on August 22, 2007
Yield
Serves 6 to 8
Ingredients
Before You Begin
For this recipe, all the coals are banked on one side of the grill to create an especially hot fire. The ingredients go on the grill in order as the fire dies down: steak over a hot fire, vegetables over a medium fire, and tortillas around the edge of the medium to low fire just to warm them. Alternately, the tortillas can be stacked, wrapped in a clean, damp dish towel and warmed in a microwave oven for about 3 minutes at full power; keep them wrapped until serving time. Cover the grilled but unsliced flank steak with foil for the 10 minutes or so it takes to cook the vegetables and warm the tortillas. Serve the fajitas with salsa and guacamole (see related recipes).
Instructions
- Light large chimney starter filled with hardwood charcoal (6 quarts) and allow to burn until all charcoal is covered with layer of fine gray ash, about 20 minutes. Build modified two-level fire by stacking all of coals on one side of grill. Set cooking rack in place, cover grill with lid, and let rack heat up, about 5 minutes. Use grill brush to scrape cooking rack clean. Grill is ready when fire is hot.
- Generously sprinkle both sides of steak with lime juice and salt and pepper to taste. Grill steak over coals until well seared and dark brown on one side, 5 to 7 minutes. Using tongs, flip steak; continue grilling until interior of meat is slightly less done than you want it to be when you eat it, 2 to 5 minutes more for rare or medium-rare (depending on heat of fire and thickness of steak).
- Transfer meat to cutting board; cover loosely with foil and let rest for 10 minutes.
- While meat rests and charcoal fire has died down to medium, grill onions and peppers, turning occasionally, until onions are lightly charred, about 6 minutes, and peppers are streaked with dark grill marks, about 10 minutes. Remove vegetables from grill and cut into long, thin strips; set aside. Arrange tortillas around edge of grill; heat until just warmed, about 20 seconds per side. (Take care not to dry out tortillas or they will become brittle; wrap tortillas in towel to keep warm and then place them in basket.)
- Slice steak very thin on bias against grain; adjust seasonings with additional salt and pepper. Arrange sliced meat and vegetables on large platter; serve immediately with tortillas, passing salsa and guacamole separately.
Yield
Serves 6 to 8Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Our best grilled fajita recipe consists simply of char-grilled beef, smoky sweet peppers, and onions in a chewy tortilla. We chose flank steak for its availability and price, and preferred salt, pepper, and a little lime juice to a more complicated marinade. Perfecting our grilled fajita recipe was a matter of timing: While the steak rested, we had ample time to grill the onions and peppers—after cutting them large enough so they couldn't fall through the grates. To complete the dish, we toasted the tortillas over the dying fire—they required only 20 seconds a side.
Before You Begin
For this recipe, all the coals are banked on one side of the grill to create an especially hot fire. The ingredients go on the grill in order as the fire dies down: steak over a hot fire, vegetables over a medium fire, and tortillas around the edge of the medium to low fire just to warm them. Alternately, the tortillas can be stacked, wrapped in a clean, damp dish towel and warmed in a microwave oven for about 3 minutes at full power; keep them wrapped until serving time. Cover the grilled but unsliced flank steak with foil for the 10 minutes or so it takes to cook the vegetables and warm the tortillas. Serve the fajitas with salsa and guacamole (see related recipes).
Instructions
- Light large chimney starter filled with hardwood charcoal (6 quarts) and allow to burn until all charcoal is covered with layer of fine gray ash, about 20 minutes. Build modified two-level fire by stacking all of coals on one side of grill. Set cooking rack in place, cover grill with lid, and let rack heat up, about 5 minutes. Use grill brush to scrape cooking rack clean. Grill is ready when fire is hot.
- Generously sprinkle both sides of steak with lime juice and salt and pepper to taste. Grill steak over coals until well seared and dark brown on one side, 5 to 7 minutes. Using tongs, flip steak; continue grilling until interior of meat is slightly less done than you want it to be when you eat it, 2 to 5 minutes more for rare or medium-rare (depending on heat of fire and thickness of steak).
- Transfer meat to cutting board; cover loosely with foil and let rest for 10 minutes.
- While meat rests and charcoal fire has died down to medium, grill onions and peppers, turning occasionally, until onions are lightly charred, about 6 minutes, and peppers are streaked with dark grill marks, about 10 minutes. Remove vegetables from grill and cut into long, thin strips; set aside. Arrange tortillas around edge of grill; heat until just warmed, about 20 seconds per side. (Take care not to dry out tortillas or they will become brittle; wrap tortillas in towel to keep warm and then place them in basket.)
- Slice steak very thin on bias against grain; adjust seasonings with additional salt and pepper. Arrange sliced meat and vegetables on large platter; serve immediately with tortillas, passing salsa and guacamole separately.
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