Low-Carb Fajitas

Craving Mexican food but following a low carb diet plan?  When I find myself in that situation I turn to this satisfying meal.  Even when I'm not intentionally following a low carb diet this meal falls into my top ten meal menus--it's that good.  This meal would also be great for a crowd too because you can keep adding items to the "buffet" like guacamole, salsa, sour cream, fresh cilantro.  Of course, you can add non-low carb items too like tortillas and chips.  I am giving you the basics here but there is plenty of room to get creative with this menu. Leftovers make for a delicious omelette!

On a side note, as I mentioned in the BBQ Chicken Salad post, my rule-of-thumb for a restaurant is that the food needs to be better than what I would make (or at least comparable) to what I would make at home --otherwise it is a huge letdown.  You would think that by living in the greater San Diego for the past 2 1/2 years I would have found an amazing fajita place by now.  I'm sad to say that I have not found such a place.  I will admit that I have a high bar.  The best fajitas that I have ever had in my life are made at Pappasito's in Houston, Texas.  Actually, that is the best Mexican restaurant that I have ever been to because they have the perfect trifecta: excellent fajitas, margaritas, and chips & salsa.  I ask you; how many times have you been to a Mexican and been let down by one of those three items?  Is it just me--is it that unrealistic?  Okay, I will admit that when it comes to the chips and salsa--it probably comes down to preference because there are so many different kinds and everyone has their favorite.  I like very thin and crisp with a finely minced salsa.  California has thick and course chips.  I guess I'm going to have to learn to make my own.  Enough of this of this line of thought! I'm not even eating chips right now.

Low Carb Fajitas (Phase 1)

1 Flank Steak

1 Tablespoon of Trade East Canadian Steak Seasoning

1 Tablespoon of Olive Oil

2 Green Peppers

2 Sweet Large Sweet Onions

Boston Bibb Lettuce or Butter Lettuce

Adolf's

1) Heat oven to 400 degrees.  Quarter the onions and separate pieces.  Core the peppers and cut into strips.  Place these items in a zip lock bag.  Drizzle olive oil, and put 1 teaspoon of the Canadian Steak Seasoning in the bag and shake. Place in a large sheet pan or casserole.  (What you bake in will effect the amount of time you need to caramelize the vegetables).

2) Bake approximately 35 minutes stirring once or twice to keep them from burning.

3) Stab the flank steak front and back with a fork several times, and sprinkle lightly with Adolf's (gasp -- yes, I still use this for a couple of items).

4) While waiting for onions and peppers to finish (unless your one of those lucky cooks to have more than one oven) use this time to prep all of the side dishes and garnishes like beans, cheese, lettuce, salsa, etc. After the onions and peppers are done place in a covered casserole dish, or a serving dish covered with tin foil to keep warm.

5) Turn up oven to broil.  Sprinkle one side of flank steak with 1 teaspoon of Canadian Steak Seasoning and broil 5 to 7 minutes.  Flip the steak over, sprinkle with remaining Canadian Steak seasoning and broil another 5 to 7 minutes to your liking using a thermometer if necessary.  Pull the steak out, place on a cutting board, cover with tin foil and let rest for another 5 to 7 minutes.  Slice thinly against the grain.

(Sorry again to all the west coast cooks that can't get to a Gordon Food Service location, a midwest establishment, for Trade East Canadian Steak Seasoning).  If you know someone in the midwest who can ship it to you it is worth the trouble.