Continuing the early season grilling, I made fajitas tonight. Still holding off on long smoking for now but maybe soon if the weather cooperates.
I use flank steak for my fajitas, about 2 lbs for the 5 of us, and then sprinkle on a bunch of spices:
- salt
- pepper
- cumin
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- smoked paprika
- smoked chili flakes
I just eyeball it. While the grill is heating up I slice some peppers and onions and season those with S+P and a little vegetable oil and throw those in a sheet pan. When the grill is hot I put the steak and the veggies on for 20 minutes around 450°, turning once halfway through. You can prep tortillas or other toppings while it cooks.
Then slice up the steak and eat!
This works really well as a midweek meal because it's decently fast and there's so little work. I think it would work in a regular oven too, you just wouldn't get the smoke on it. I think from starting the grill to eating was 30, maybe 40 minutes and a big chunk of that wasn't even doing anything, just waiting for the grill to finish.
It's decently cheap, too. I got 2 lbs of flank steak, which comfortably served our 5-person polycule, plus the tortillas and salsa and all that, for around $35, with most of the cost being the meat. That's $7 a person, which is cheaper than a restaurant, about as fast, and without much more hassle. I'll take that.
Cheaper cuts of meat would serve a similar purpose. You could do tri-tip or steak tips (regional availability) or chicken breast, which would definitely reduce the cost. Or forego the meat entirely for vegetarian, although I have a hunch that some seitan could work well here? Never tried it though.
Anyway, grilling is fun :)