The Best Steak Fajitas
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The absolute BEST Steak Fajitas you’ve ever had! This is my take on the Tex-Mex steak fajitas. Marinated for hours in lime juice, garlic, and cumin — so good you’ll never use another recipe again!
Holy Guacamole!
And I’m not just saying that because steak fajitas NEED guacamole. I’m saying it because you need these homemade fajitas. And I actually can’t believe it took me this long to make them for us. I mean, beef fajitas are a classic, and quite possibly the most delicious thing we’ve eaten around here. Hands down. Like EVER. So it’s totally my food blogging responsibility to bring these to you right now because they couldn’t possibly taste better than they do right now.
These fajitas were gobbled up quicker than anything I’ve ever made before – that’s saying a lot because I feel like I’m ALWAYS cooking. And these make A LOT, enough to feed 4-5 people! We enjoyed them in tortillas the first day and turned them into Chipotle-style fajitas bowls for lunch the next day, and we still had some leftovers! And nope, I’m not even complaining about them. I’ll definitely be making these over and over again on repeat.
Watch how to make the best steak fajitas video (57 sec.):
You’ve probably made steak fajitas with store-bought fajitas seasoning a million times before. But I’m kind of reinventing this a little because my recipe is less focused on spices and more focused on overall ingredients that marinate, tenderize, and flavor the fajita meat. Because no one likes fajitas that are bland. What’s the point in that?
But this marinade! Oh my Lanta! It is unlike anything you’ve ever tasted before. I was never convinced you could make restaurant-style steak fajitas at home and make them taste better, but this totally does it. They are absolutely are the BEST steak fajitas of your life. The ingredients are simple and straight forward. Also, this isn’t a Harry Potter potions class – you don’t need anything super fancy to make the best fajitas of your life. There is one ingredient in particular that I use that isn’t a typical ingredient one sees in a fajita recipe but give it a try, I promise you, it’s a GAME CHANGER.
I like to use a colorful array of veggies for my fajitas.
You can do with the regular red and green peppers if you’d like, but I love the color and the flavor that yellow and orange peppers add to this recipe. I’m one of those people that eat with my eyes first. I also like to add in a BIG poblano pepper. Remove all the ribs and seeds, so the spice is gone. We just want the nice smokiness of the poblano sizzled with the onions and bell peppers — the flavor is out of this world. I can’t believe I had been making fajitas without poblanos for so long before this. I almost feel like I cheated myself out of the best fajitas.
And the secret ingredient in my steak fajitas is…
Okay, let’s do a quick walkthrough on the ingredients and how you’re going to make the marinade for the fajitas. Without any further suspense let me share with you the ONE ingredient that makes my steak fajitas better than the rest — PINEAPPLE JUICE. Um, yup. You read that right. Pineapple juice, the stuff that comes in a small/large cans in the juice aisle. I use the stuff that is 100% juice with no additional sugars added.
If you’re wondering what the function of pineapple juice is for fajitas, allow me to explain. Store-bought fajita seasonings usually contain enzymes that help tenderize the meat. So to mimic that same tenderization without any weird ingredients, we use pineapple juice. There are people that argue that fresh pineapple juice (that hasn’t been heated) works best. But honestly, for our recipe, canned pineapple juice works just fine! No need to grab a fresh pineapple and make fresh juice, unless you’d like to that is.
What else do you need to make the best steak fajitas:
The other ingredients are simple! A little lime juice, some Worcestershire sauce (this is Tex-Mex style fajitas after all!), garlic, chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, a little olive oil, chopped cilantro, and a little salt and pepper. That is it! No cornstarch or sugar or a million other ingredients. These are simple, flavorful steak fajitas that shine on their own. You don’t need to put a million ingredients in them to taste good.
How to make the best steak fajitas:
Now the instructions – combine the ingredients for the marinade and let marinate. It’s that simple. I like to let fajita meat marinate for at least 4 hours and ideally sometimes, overnight. The longer you let them sit, the tastier they are.
I made these indoors on a large cast iron skillet. You can grill the meat out on the grill in the summertime if you’d like. I know we definitely will once it stops raining here EVERY SINGLE DAY and once we purchase a grill. In the meantime, the cast iron skillet is making them just perfectly. ?? I use one large skillet to sear the meat, and while the meat is resting, I add in another tablespoon of oil and allow the veggies to sauté. I love the little bits of the charred marinade to coat the peppers and onions. If you don’t want that, use a separate skillet to make the veggies. Make sure to season them with a hint of salt and pepper.
Be prepared to make this meal on a weekly rotation served both inside warm homemade flour tortillas and over a bed of cilantro lime rice.
Make it a Sunday tradition, because I have a feeling that this recipe is going to get ten thumbs up.
If you like this recipe, you might also like:
- Homemade Carne Asada
- The Best Chicken Fajitas
- Shrimp Enchiladas in Poblano Cream Sauce
- Crispy Cheesy Chicken Taquitos
The BEST Steak Fajitas
The absolute BEST Steak Fajitas you've ever had! This is my take on the tex-mex steak fajitas. Marinated for hours in lime juice, garlic, and cumin -- so good you'll never use another recipe again!
Ingredients
Steak Marinade:
- ⅓ cup lime juice
- ¼ cup pineapple juice (no sugar added)
- 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 2 teaspoon EACH: ground cumin AND chili powder (or more to taste)
- 1 teaspoon EACH: kosher salt AND smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon EACH: black pepper AND red pepper flakes (or more to taste)
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
Fajitas:
- 1 ½ - 2 pounds skirt or flank steak
- 1 tablespoon oil (high heat)
- 2 medium white onions, sliced
- 1 large poblano, ribs and seeds removed then sliced
- 2-3 bell peppers, thinly sliced (any color you please!)
Optional:
- guacamole, salsa, cilantro leaves, salsa verde, sour cream, black beans, rice, tortillas, cilantro-lime rice, sautéed corn, tomatoes, lettuce, shredded cheese, etc.
Instructions
- STEAK MARINADE: Combine the ingredients for the marinade in a large shallow bowl. Give it a taste and check for seasonings, adjust to preference. Coat the steak with the marinade and let sit covered in the refrigerator for at least 2-4 hours and ideally overnight. Remove from the refrigerator 30 minute prior to cooking.
- Set a large cast iron skillet or pan over high heat and let heat up for a couple of minutes. Add the steak to the pan and fry on each side for about 3-5 minutes or longer if you'd like it more done. Feel for desired firmness. The 3 minutes/side will yield a medium rare doneness. If the pan becomes too hot, reduce the heat to medium high. Remove the steak from the pan and allow to rest for several minutes tented with a piece of foil. Slice the meat against the grain into thin slices. I like to do so on an angle so the meat slices are tender and thin.
- FAJITA VEGGIES: Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan over high heat, add in the onions, poblano, and bell peppers. Let the veggies begin to sizzle and toss as necessary, cook for a total of 2-3 minutes or longer if you prefer them softer, season with a pinch of salt and pepper. If your pan is small, cook the veggies in a few batches so they don't steam.
- ASSEMBLY: Serve them in tortillas or on rice bowls topped with your favorite toppings!
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230 Comments on “The Best Steak Fajitas”
Looks awesome! Just wondering, do you marinate the veggies as well?
I didn’t Kim, but you can if you’d like!
Can you use this marinade for chicken as well?
Sure can! But I wouldn’t marinate for more than 2-3 hours.
I marinated chicken overnight and it was great.
A wonderful blend of ingredients and you were right the family would be asking for more. I used chicken only because beef is far too expensive. I tried the recipe on a Tuesday and it fed us two days. My son was to have a friend over on the weekend and guess what … he wanted that for supper! With the left over I made a Fajita Pizza. Wow now there is something to try! Thank you 🙂
I made this for myself and the guy I’m dating, and we were both blown away! I had another fajita recipe that I thought was good, but this one is awesome. My guy actually said he was full, but he didn’t want to stop eating because it was so good! Haha! I didn’t change a thing, and this is definitely a keeper. Found it on Pinterest. Thank you so much!!
About how long can you leave the meat in the marinade?
I’d say 14 hours max.
Could I freeze the marinated meat for a later time?
Hi Karla! I haven’t tried freezing the marinated steak before but I think it should be fine. I would freeze it immediately after combining the ingredients (skipping the marinating time completely). And just thaw it in the refrigerator for 12-14 hours prior to cooking!
2 questions- Could you cook the steak on a charcoal grill instead of a cast iron skillet? Wasn’t sure if that’d change the flavor or dry it out since the marinade will drip off the meat. Can you taste the pineapple from the juice after it’s cooked? My husband loathes the taste of pineapple but I want to see if I can use it without him knowing lol
Hi Tristen! Yes, you can certainly cook it on a charcoal grill — in fact, it might even be better that way! You’ll just have to keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t overcook. We really couldn’t taste the pineapple after cooking. It just kinda enhances all the other flavors and leaves the meat super tender. It won’t be sweet or smell like pineapple or anything like that. Hope you get away with it! 😉
What is the marinade supposed to taste like before cooking? Mine is sort of bitter and I’m wondering did I do something wrong or does that cook out of it?
From what I remember, I think it was a little bitter. Probably because of the cumin. But rest assured, it’ll taste great once you cook the fajitas 🙂
Okay, thank you!! Can’t wait to see how it turns out
will the cilantro from the marinade burn in the cast iron skillet when cooking the steak??
I didn’t really have a problem with it, but if you’re worried Denise, you can simply add a handful of cilantro (without chopping it) into the container with the steak and the marinade. That way you still get that cilantro flavor!
So thankful to have found this recipe! I made an adapted version with buffalo skirt steak and it turned out amazing.
Is this spicy? Sadly, my kids can’t handle even mild heat. Can I omit the chili and red pepper flakes without compromising taste? Thanks
We didn’t find it to be spicy for our taste. You can still make this recipe without the chili powder/pepper flakes, it’ll still be BIG on flavor! 🙂
This is a keeper! Simple ingredients and great results. The only mistake I made was not giving the steak enough time to marinate. I only had one hour, but the flavor was still there. Will make this again and pass it on to my friends.
Stupid question – I want to buy a cast iron skillet –is there a size/brand you would recommend? Thanks 🙂
Hi Taz! If you navigate over to the shop menu (at the top of page) you’ll find a link to the cast iron skillet I have and love 🙂
Marzia, I made this for my family tonight and it was DELICIOUS!! I marinaded the flank steak before i left for work, grilled it, added a little of the marinade to the pan with the veggies and served in tortillas. You are correct, the marinade is perfection!! This is definitely on my “make over and over” list, thank you!!
Can you substitute the pineapple juice with apple juice?
Hi Kristie, apple juice will work it terms of flavor but it won’t help tenderize the meat. The pineapple juice actually plays a two part roll in this recipe.
I am going to make this tonight. I am going to use sirloin steak so how long would you suggest to marinade it for?
Also, how much marinade should I use to cook steaks in or do I just remove the steaks from the marinade and then cook them without any extra. How much marinade should I use to cook the veggies in?
I’d marinate sirloin for roughly the same time (2-4 hours at least). I removed the steak from the marinade when cooking so that it has a nice sear on the outside. Also, I didn’t add any marinade to the veggies, just cooked them in the same pan to pick up all the flavory bits left behind by the steak. You can let them sit in the steak marinade while the steak cooks or just drizzle 1-2 tablespoons of the marinade over the veggies (while cooking) if you want them to have that same flavor. Hope you enjoy it! 🙂
Thank you so much. I am sure this will be absolutely delicious.
I used your marinade and loved it, but instead of cooking it on the stovetop I just threw everything in my cast iron skillet and put it right in the oven. Cook at 400° for 16 minutes, stirring once halfway through and you’ve got perfectly done fajitas!
I am liking the idea of this oven method…did you slice the meat before or after cooking?
I absolutely love this recipe. The marinade is delicious! I have a two burner electric stove that works not so good. So it toke forever to cook. Especially for the amount I have to make for my family size. I was wondering if you have made this in the crockpot before?
Happy to hear you loved it! Haven’t tried in the the crockpot before, but I’d love to hear how it goes if you decide to Ariana! Thanks for taking the time to comment 🙂
My husband couldn’t stop raving about these fahitas bought a very thin sliced ribeye steak and it was the bomb !!! Very easy and super sonic delicious ?
Made both chicken and beef (sirloin from Costco) and marinated each in a separate bag for 7 hours and cooked all in cast iron skillets, best fajitas I have ever had. I will only make this recipe from now on.
I would like to try this recipe for a family that I am making a meal for, but one of the family members has an allergy or some health issue with pineapple. Can you recommend another juice or acid to use in the marinade instead that will not compromise the flavor?
Orange juice would be a good alternative. You may want to let the meat marinate for at least 6 hours though (pineapple tenderizes the meat so it can be used as quickly as 2 hours, orange juice won’t do that). Hope everyone enjoys it! 🙂
Made these for dinner tonight. Could possibly be the best fajitas I have ever eaten. Store did not have flank or skirt steak, so. I used sirloin steak. Did not have pineapple juice so I used orange juice. I let it marinate overnight (it really marinated for about 20 hours) and during the day. Was not spicy and husband loved them. Will make these again. Yummy!!!!! Thanks for the recipe.
Absolutely, hands down, the BEST fajitas I have ever made. I used skirt steak and marinated for about 5 or so hours. The meat was melt-in-your-mouth tender. Beautiful clean flavors. My only regret was that my supermarket was out of poblanos, but there will most definitely be a next time, so I’m anxious to see how the poblanos peppers are in this recipe. As the meat was resting, I cooked the veggies in the same skillet and splashed some of the marinade in for flavor. Even the picky 4 year old ate some, and the fiancee went back for seconds. Thank you for a DELICIOUS recipe.
Does the 3 tablespoons of olive oil go in with the other ingredients to make the marinade or is it just 1 tablespoon for the marinade, 1 for the steak and 1 for the veggies?
It’s listed separately. So you’ll need the 3 tablespoons for the marinade portion and the last tablespoon (listed under ‘fajitas’) is for the veggies. If you feel the steak will stick to the skillet, you can add a small drizzle before cooking it.
My san antonio college labmate had me over one weekend and got to see a large family version. Using canned pineapples chunks liquid and canned grapefruit juice. Drained Pineapples where used in a sheet pan version of upside down cake. Beef started afternoon Saturday, drained then dry spices added Sunday before Mass, after Church grilled at nearby park.
I’ve got the steak marinating and the veggies prepped. I couldn’t find poblanos at my grocery store so I subbed a couple of Anaheim peppers hoping it won’t be too spicy. I haven’t cooked with much except bell peppers and jalapenos, so we’ll see!
I’m excited to try this recipe and the steak is marinating now. I bought the pre-cut sirloin from the store. Will that change the cooking time since they are already sliced? Thanks!
Hi Emy! Yes, pre-cut sirloin will have a different cooking time than the whole skirt or flank steak. Unfortunately, it’s difficult for me to say how long it’ll take as I’ve only tested the recipe as written. I’d just monitor for doneness (to preference) after the first 2-3 minutes.
DELICIOUS! Just the right amount of spice. And I used the same cast iron skillet (which still had some of the marinade flavor) to heat the flour tortillas.
Hi! I don’t have low sugar or sugar free pineapple juice. Will just regular work?
Thank you,
Kim
Regular juice will work!
Made this tonight and it was a hit with my family! Even my husband who can be picky about recipes that I find. I marinated the meat over night and it was so good!!! I used flank steak and grilled it. The flavor was incredible! For those who worried about spice, this was not spicy at all. I eased up a bit on the red pepper flakes and didn’t have cumin, but other than that I followed the recipe. I did use fresh lime juice as well. This is definitely a keeper!!
Was wondering if there is a reason the peppers and onions didn’t get into the wonderful marinade also? I am getting ready to start marinading the meat for dinner tomorrow and thought it would be great to have it all chopped and sliced and together soaking up all the marinades flavors.
I personally enjoy the natural flavor of the peppers and onions, so I opted to leave them as is. I believe there’s a note that mentions you can allow the veggies to soak up the marinade flavors while you cook the steak if you’d like them to have that same flavor. Not too sure how well the veggies would hold up because of all the acid in the marinade if you were to marinate them overnight.
These were excellent! I let them marinade for over 24 hours. This will be my new go to faijtas marinade!
Hi-
I didn’t pay attention and used lemon juice instead. Is that a big deal?
I don’t see if being terrible or anything like that, just a little different! Limes are sweeter than lemons so you can add 1/2 teaspoon of sugar to help balance if you’d like 🙂
I had never used smoked paprika before and was a little leary of its strong smokey smell so I just used a slightly rounded half teaspoon. Also, I like things on the hot side so I used a full teaspoon of red pepper flakes. These were by far the best steak fajitas I have ever made. I attribute the difference to the smokey paprika and the Worcestershire sauce. They were even more flavorful the next day. I used flank steak and yes the pineapple juice did help in tenderizing it. Thank you for a great steak fajita recipe!
Happy to hear you enjoyed the fajitas, Luanne! 🙂
Oh my…my there little lady… I love grilling, and cooking stuff like this.
I’ve NEVER made better fajitas in my life… now everyone wants the marinade recipe…
Should I give it to them?? lol
Thank YOU for this share!
Can you marinade pre-cut fajita steak for this?
Yes, but you won’t need to marinate it for too long as it’ll soak up the flavors quicker.
Amazing! Absolutely loved this recipe
So GOOD!!! My entire family loved it. I cooked it in a crockpot on high for 5 hours (4 pds steak strips). This will be one of my go to recipes from now on!
Hi! Did you put all the ingredients (steak and veggies) in the crockpot? Did you change anything?
In place of the pineapple juice I tried orange juice and it was delicious
How much is a serving based on your nutritional facts?
Just made them. They were awesome, best I’ve ever made. Thank you for sharing!
Making it and preparing it now. Meat is marinating now
Can’t wait!!! Love fajitas!!!
Do you happen to know if any good substitutes for Worcestershire sauce? I haven’t been able to find one with clean ingredients that I can eat and would love to make this recipe! Just not sure if it will be the same without the sauce added. Thanks!
Hey Allison! I did a google search and found that you can make your own if you’d like! You’ll just need equal parts tamarind paste, soy sauce (or GF tamari), and white vinegar so in our case, it would be 2 teaspoons of each of these. Tamarind paste is usually sold in the international aisle of most grocery stores and you should be able to find it easily. Hope you enjoy the fajitas! 🙂
Yup, you’re right. I don’t think I’ll ever use another recipe for steak fajitas. This was fantastic.
Any recommendations for substituting the pineapple juice? My little one is allergic.
You can replace it with orange juice, others have tried that and have reported that it worked out well 🙂
Made these fajitas tonight for dinner and they were by far the best I have ever made. I couldn’t find flank or skirt steak at our supermarket so I used top round steak. Yummmm. This recipe will become a regular in our home. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
This is a very nice recipe – good flavour and a much healthier alternative to the packaged mixes for fajitas. I actually used this on some leftover steak – marinated for a few hours and reheated. Used the small amount of leftover marinade to coat the onions & peppers before cooking. Will definitely be using this recipe from now on.
Yes these were the BEST I’ve ever made and possibly eaten!! We loved it! I used flank steak and marinated for 24 hours! I used a fresh pinapple, blended it and strained out the puree’ for another use. so good!
Fabulous marinade. I have made this many times. I trying it with chicken tonight.
This recipe has become a family favorite! I have also made the recipe with chicken and it was really good.
I made this dish for a Friday meal; following the recipe, it turned out good! But Saturday I kicked it up a notch I added brown sugar. Accent. Seasoning salt, I doubled batched it, along with chicken breast, and shrimp, Jalapeno’s, oh it is fire. Love this recipe.
I love this recipe! I’ve made it twice – marinated once overnight (amazing) and the other time just for a couple hours (still amazing). I have a question though – I’m pretty new to my cast iron skillet and both times I made this the marinade hardened into a black gunk that was impossible to clean off the pan. I kept the meat and veggies on a minimal amount of time – the steak was rare and the veggies were tender but definitely not burnt, but I still got the burnt-on marinade! Is this happening to other people or am I doing something wrong with either the recipe or my pan maintenance? I love the grilled taste I get from my cast iron since I live in an apartment so can’t grill – I’d love any advice y’all have!
How new is your cast iron skillet? You may need to season it before you use it. I prefer to cook bacon in mine to season it, just cook an entire thing of bacon nonstop. You can use the bacon for breakfast burritos or something else. This allows the bacon grease to really soak into the cast iron. Never ever wash your skillet with anything other than water, and you shouldn’t have any more issues with stickiness.
This was SO good!! Only thing I did different was we grilled the meat and with the veggies we grilled them up in a grill pan.
It was fantastic! My 11yr old who is a picky eater came back for seconds. That’s saying something, lol.
I’m so adding this into the weekly rotation! Thank you for the best fajitas, way better then any restaurant.
My husband love it and I did too….!!! awasome
I had some cooked shrimp that I tossed into the marinade separately from the steak…This was amazing..Even better heated up on sheet pan in hot oven the next day..Sharing this with everyone!
I saw where you told someone to not marinate for longer than 14 hours; but before reading this, I mixed my marinade last night at 11:00 p.m. and didn’t cook everything until 6:00 p.m. tonight, so 19 hours. I didn’t have any pineapple juice, but the flank steak was very tender and the fajitas were the best I’ve ever eaten. I can’t imagine how these could be better than they were tonight, but I will use pineapple juice the next time. By the way, I like spicy, so I used 1 tablespoon of red pepper flakes and increased the paprika to 2 tsp. I also had sliced the flank steak into strips before marinating. Thank you for a wonderful recipe!
Love this recipe, one of the things my picky husand will eat! I cut up the steak before hand and use mushrooms instead of onions being the hubby hates onions. I marinate the veggies in with the steak for at least 6 hours. We like it spicy also so we use more chilli pepper and red pepper flakes!
Delicious! I shared your link for this recipe on my blog 🙂 Thanks for posting!
Um yeah….. you cannot beat this recipe! Taco who?????
Could i use chipotle powder instead of smoked paprika?
Yes, chipotle powder would be a good substitute but keep in mind that it may make the fajitas a little spicier!
I have made it for my family and friends. Everyone has loved it!
Definately the BEST fajitas ever!
My husband and I love them!
I do a small twist though, I add pinapple chunks and also shrimp.
The other twist is that I prefer to broil my food, so I put it all (even the peppers and onions) on a sheet pan in the broiler for about 8 min. (Flipping the meat half way through)… and like I said, this recipie is so delish!
Thank you for taking time to post this recipe. I appreciate you and your effort.
I tried this recipe tonight. I will not make this again because I keep only the best tasting recipes and this one is just average. Not worth the time and the effort. Some of the store bought fajita rubs are better in my opinion.
These truly were the best Fajitas I have ever had. We did a mix of chicken & beef. I just finished dinner and sI can’t wait to have them again! Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe.
Awesome recipe! My family loved it and we will use it again. The only problem was the steak was tough. Not sure how to make it tender! I’d appreciate any help with that. Next time I’ll use it for the chicken too. Has anyone used this in the crock pot?
Thanks for your help.
Made this tonight and it was good, should have marinated it longer. My question is that we used a cast iron skillet and there was some smoke but the smoke was almost toxic, burned my throat and made me sneeze and cough (no I don’t cook well or often, I’m sure it was all my fault).
If they were smoking then the heat is way too high, especially indoors.
Absolutely crazy good
You’ve just turned a Canadian into a Latino
Thanks
It was my first time making a fajita. I used tenderloin steak. It was sooooooo good! Husband really enjoyed it! Would definitely make again! Thank you for the recipe!
Is there a reason it calls for no sugar added pineapple juice? I cannot find that. Will it be too sweet if I use regular?
This has been my favorite fajita marinade for awhile! It’s so delicious and the pineapple juice is simply genius. I recently started Whole30 and had every aspiration to make some homemade worcestershire so we could have these fajitas. Got lazy and decided to use coconut aminos instead. It’s absolutely perfect! Just thought I would share for other Whole30ers out there.
These truly are the BEST fajitas!! Love them! I’ve made them many many times and it’s always my go-to recipe for when company is coming over, I want to impress, have something kid friendly, and easy. Great recipe!
Excellent! I used Lemon instead of Lime and didn’t have any Cilantro on hand, and it was still wonderful. Will be adding this to my favorites! Thank you for sharing.
I have never made steak fajitas before – I don’t eat red meat, but my son was begging me to make these for him. I thought the ingredient list looked flavorful so off i went and bought a flank steak (which I have never cooked before) and made this tonite. My 2 sons devoured 2 pounds of meat in less than 10 minutes. This was awesome. We grilled the meat over charcoal – 3/3 min direct 1/1 indirect – perfect medium rare. This is a keeper.
Just made these for the first time and they are AWESOME! You can bet they will be in the regular rotation at our house.
Quick question. I have read that beef shouldn’t be marinated for more than two hours if your are using lime or lemon juice. The recipe you posted calls for marinating the meat longer than two hours. What am I missing?
What you’re missing is that skirt steak and flank steak are WAY tougher than other cuts of beef. Trust the recipe. It’s sublime.
Wow! Easy and fun for the whole family. Loved it so much, we will have it again for supper really soon.
So easy and so delish! I made these beef fajitas for dinner tonight, and the flavor was incredible. I think next time I’ll throw some jalapeños in the marinate, as I love spicy, but overall, the dish was magnificent! Yum ?
Could i cook the steak in a normal non stick calphalon pan?
Yes, that will work, but it just may not develop as nice of a sear because the pan won’t get as hot as cast iron!
Wow, these were so authentic tasting. Due to limited resources of our current crisis, I subbed crushed pineapple for the amount of juice and it was still so delicious. I cooked my veggies in the cast iron skillet on top of the grill and the steak right next to the pan. I even grilled the corn tortillas. Thanks, I will definitely post up next time.
I cut the steak before cooking it! Can I still pan sear it? I don’t want it to be tough. Thanks!
Hi — It is May 20 – 2020 — it appears that the written recipe is missing — it looks like there was a link [recipe] on top of the nutritional information but there is no recipe… could you fix this? The reviews are excellent and I would like to try it 🙂
Sorry about that, Rachel! We’re making some changes behind the scenes and somehow the recipe fell off. It’s up now!
Made this last night but i used a diced habanero instead of a poblano. My fiance and brother were in food heaven. I also loved it. Fantastic recipe thank you.
Yum – I’m sure that added a nice bit of heat! Thank you for taking the time to come back and comment, Shannon!
What can I substitute for pineapple juice? I can’t do pineapple.
You could try orange juice, the flavor might be a little different though!
This marinade is a game changer! It is worth the time it took to marinade, steak was tender and delicious. This is a Keeper!
That’s awesome! So glad to hear that!
Fantastic! Looking forward to having them again. Absolutely delicious 5 star recipe!
So happy to hear you enjoyed them, Jo! Thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a comment 🙂
Best marinade ever!
I’m so glad you think so, Sarah! Appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment!
These were the best fajitas I have ever made. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Love hearing that! Appreciate you circling back to leave a comment, JoAnn 🙂
This is my GO TO Steak Fajita recipe. This marinade is such a game changer… It really is THE BEST! Pineapple Juice makes all the difference. Thank you for sharing it. My family and I absolutely LOVE IT.
So happy to hear that, Krystal! I concur, that pineapple juice really makes it! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment 🙂
Easy hack was to substitute 2 Tblspoons of Taco seasoning for the the dry seasonings(chili, cumin paprika etc…) and then add salt pepper along with all other ingredients!! ! Easy peasy!
Easy and delicious! Will never buy pre-marinaded meat again!
So happy to hear that 🙂
Delicious! I made cilantro lime rice and guacamole to complete the meal. I also used NY stip steaks and sliced them then before marinating.
I want to know if I can marinate the meat and portion in zip lock bags?
I plan on cutting the meat before cooking.
Will I have to cook it before I freeze it or could I freeze it raw?
Does it taste like pineapple?
Nope, it doesn’t!
I’m excited by this one. Have sodium issues, but LOVE fajitas. This looks low in sodium, but just in case, how would I modify this to keep the flavor but lose the salty (if it is)? Will this work for other meats? Fish? Pork? Chicken? Deer? Lamb? Suggestions?
I made these today and OMG, best ever! I used carne picada meat and I also grilled pineapple chunks, then added pepper flakes! The sweet n Spicey combo was so good my family ate every last bit!!!! Thanks for sharing recipe!!
What cut of steak did you use?
This fajita marinade is the only you need! Sooooo delicious. I only used the juice of one decent lemon and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Definitely printing this recipe!
can i usepetite sirloin steak ?
The perfect marinade! Used on beef and chicken. Grilled the meat and sautéed the vegetables in cast iron skillet snd deglazed with the leftover marinade. Delicious!
We made this tonight and it was delicious!
Delicious! Used the meat I had (sirloin tip roast cut into steaks). Will def make again! Thank you!
How would this work with chicken instead of beef? Made it with beef and it was Fantastic! Thanks
Hi Amy! Here’s a recipe for the chicken version of this 🙂
Thank you so much! I’m making the steak ones again for tomorrow night – so deicious!!
Needed way more than 3 min per side to get to medium rare and was I supposed to put oil in the pan before the meat? The directions say add the remaining oil (before the veggies) but it never said to add any to begin with aside from the marinade. Also doesn’t say to slice the peppers or onion. Good but kinda incomplete recipe.
Tip for the first comment, preheat cast iron for at least 10 minutes….dont add oil. You will get great color and flavor on the steak. Plus the steak is thin so 3 mins per side should come out perfect.
This marinade recipe was outstanding! We used elk and will definitely be making this again. Thanks for a great recipe.
The absolute best fajitas I have ever made! I marinated overnight….and it made the flank steak fork tender!
Hey there! We meal prepped this for the week and we are so excited to eat it! I sampled a bit beforehand.
I was searching for nutritional info on the marinade. Do you have that info available?
I love this recipe! We use it on the regular at our house. I never have fresh pineapple juice so I just take a spoon of frozen concentrate and some water to make 1/4 cup instead. Thanks for the great recipe! NUTRITIONAL INFO: I figured this out using My Fitness Pal. Makes 6 servings Amount Per Serving Calories 534 Total Fat 36 g Cholesterol 107 mg Sodium 374 mg Total Carbohydrate 14 g Dietary Fiber 3 g Sugars 5 g Protein 43 g
My boyfriend gave me the biggest compliment by saying they were the best steak fajitas he has had, including at restaurants. This is significant since we do live in Tucson, AZ.
Great marinade! Cut it in half for a smaller portion, worked great!
Will make it again.
I’ve tried so many different marinades and finally found the ONE. The flank steak was so tender and delicious!
Making it again for Super Bowl Sunday. This time on the grill….I smoked the house out doing it on the cast iron on the stove..lol
Thank you for an awesome recipe.
I’ve made these fajitas a number of times and have not disappointed. But I do have one question: do I add some of the leftover marinade to the veggies as they’re cooking to add flavor or is the burnt portions on the bottom of the cast iron pan enough?
It’s totally your call, Cora! Sometimes I let the veggies sit in the marinade while I’m cooking the steak. Other times, I drizzle a bit of the marinade over the veggies as they cook. No wrong answer here! 🙂
Just found this. Now my husband wants this or your chicken fajitas 3 x a week. I make my own flour tortillas and guacamole. I will be making this again tonight.
My sons Birthday today so made this for him at his house, I used skirt steak and all the ingredients as written including the poblano pepper, i had to cook this on a glass top in a cast iron pan, he only had a fan under the microwave above the stove, i knew this was gona be smoky as hell, had to open all the windows and doors to get the smoke out but it was well worth it the meat was so tender, and the fajitas were delicious, i did preheat the cast iron pan for 15 minutes, DID NOTadd any oil to the pan before i put the meat in, the marinade has oil in it , also while cooking the meat added the marinade to the vegetables, this was delicious and im definitely going to make again but probably on my blackstone grill at my house or a regular charcoal grill, for dinner tonight i give this a 5 star rating, best recipe ive tried in a long time, thank you
I’ve made this a few times, and it’s really good! Does anyone have a suggestion about how long to marinate if the steak is cut up before cooking? I was thinking maybe just the 2 hours, but I wasn’t sure if that would be too long?
I made it exactly according to the recipe except I used a round steak that the butcher had run through his tenderizer machine. I let it marinate for 2 1/2 hrs. It tasted wonderful. It was the best fajitas that I’ve ever cooked. And so EASY.
Fantastic marinade!!!
This is the only way I prepare steak fajitas for my family since finding the recipe.
Although, on occasion I add two pounds of shrimp to the leftover marinade, cook and serve along side the steak.. EVEN BETTER
Hi,
Thank you for the great recipe.
Do you have any substitute ideas for pineapple juice?
Thank you.
I honestly don’t usually write comments for cooking posts like these, I’ll usually just read the recipes, make the dish and move on. But, this recipe…is…too amazing to just move past! I made steak fajitas before and was always dissatisfied with how dry the meat turned out so I felt like I just couldn’t do it, but this was a game changer! First I want to say that using the pineapple juice is genius, it has created some of the most tender pieces of steak I’ve ever made, and I cooked the steak well done! I was making a giant batch so I cut up about four pounds of steak and marinated overnight. (I also doubled the recipe in general for the marinade except I only used 1.5 times the pineapple juice). The steak that came out was absolutely delicious! It reminded me of a more tender version of Chipotle’s carne asada. I served it up with guacamole, corn salsa and other fixins and my family really loved it. They were especially hyping up how tender the steak was. Absolutely 1000% would recommend making!
These were so good! I used striploin but otherwise followed the recipe and they were a big hit! Had a nice black bean salad on the side.
This is an excellent fajita recipe
Absolute best fajita marinade I have ever tried, and I’ve tried plenty.
Great recipe! If you want to avoid a smoke filled house when using a cast iron pan, use grapeseed oil to season and cook with. It has a high smoke point.
Thank you!! These are the BEST fajitas ever! My husband rated them at a perfect 10. I didn’t have the 4 hours minimum for marinating, only 2 hrs and they were impregnated with flavor. I can’t even imagine how more scrumptious they can get with overnight marinating! Again, thank you these were absolutely amazing!
Trying this marinade tonight, the only thing I did different was added more garlic and I used smoked paprika!! It smells ahmazing and I’m super stoked to try it. Fingers crossed the kids love it but I’m sure they will because they love all things Mexican. I picked this marinade because all the delightful reviews!!
Delicious!
What if you don’t have pineapple juice ? Orange Juice?
Awesome marinade!! Delicious even the my orange juice I had on hand. Next time I will try the pineapple.
This is quite possibly the BEST steak I have ever had. Topped off with fresh salsa and quacamole…yum! I also added cilantro lime rice, black beans, and shredded cheese. These are amazing. Give them a try…you won’t be sorry!
New to the flat Blackstone scene – But, my goodness this recipe was awesome. Well worth the prep. HUGE compliments from all on these amazing Fajitas!! Thank you for the great recipe
Fantastic! Introduced hubby to fajitas and did he ever LOVE them! I am marinading another steak to fix them again tonite! Ole!
Off. The. Charts!!!
That marinade really is to die for. Used it on a skirt steak cooked on a grill over charcoal. Bravissimo!!! Couldn’t have been better!!! Think I just ruined myself for restaurant fajitas.
Oh well, same thing happened with ribs anyway ;<)
You are absolutely right, these are the best fajitas I ever had! I had a lot of marinade left so I simmered it a bit and folded it into the cut steak. Just delicious
It is so yummy. I grilled the flank steak. I did not put poblano because of my small grandchildren.
I highly recommend this recipe. Thank you.
Absolutely delicious! New favourite recipe! We served it with cubed avo, flour wraps, black beans mashed with salt and lime juice, grated cheese, crème fraiche and lime. Will definitely make again.
Can I marinate this overnight? I saw a comment that said no more than 12-14 hours but I was hoping that 24 hrs would be ok. ???? This recipe sounds amazing!
Best fajita recipe ever!
Thank you for listing the ingredients this way;
It makes sense to use the same measuring spoon for all ingredients that use the same amount.
Oh my GOODNESS!!! I have tried so many fajita recipes but this one is the show stopper!! It truly is the best!
Excellent marinade. I purchased “stir fry/fajita” cut beef from the meat section at my grocery and I marinaded it overnight. My teenage boys gobbled it up and we’re disappointed I didn’t make more. Will be adding this to our meal rotations for sure.
Scrumptious! Will definitely be making this again. Had sirloin on hand, so used that, but will use skirt or flank steak next time. Had this recipe saved to try for ages & I’m so happy with the way it turned out. Thank you, Marzia for this fabulous recipe!
We loved these fajitas! My husband is a super foodie and had his marinade that he always raved about! Well, he was out of town and I made them on the day he was coming home and he LOVED them! I cooked them on the grill, but not ALL the way as I knew they were going to warm in their juices in the oven for a while until he got home. I marinaded the meat in straight pineapple first for a bout 2 hours (to make sure it was tender) and then switched the meat to the marinade. I used sirloin strips as they had no skirt steak out here in the country where I now live!
The best steak fajitas. This is my new go to recipe. Thank you for sharing this recipe
Looks great. I’m making this for tomorrow !
This was really great! Will make again for a group.
Outstanding recipe for fajitas. I marinated skirt steak, then grilled over charcoal. Let rest for 5-10 minutes then slice against the grain into strips. Delicious!!
My favorite pinned recipe ever!
Figured I should probably comment finally.
I make it all the time and the family loves it. Usually do a strip steak. We skip the cilantro and still amazing.
Also works great with chicken.
Thank you.
This was great! Left out the red pepper flakes due to some sensitive palates in our house. Still tons of flavor. I put a little bit of the marinade aside and marinated the peppers and onions a bit before cooking them.
Delicious tasty goodness! Even the non steak eaters in the house love it. Awesome recipe, thanks for putting it up online.
Just made this marinade up. Steak resting in the refrigerator. Comments look promising! Can’t wait to make the fajitas later.
Made this tonight! SPOT ON! The only thing different is I grilled the steaks….they marinated for almost 24 hrs. I will definitely make it again. I am my own worst critic, and I was, along with my wife, greatly impressed!!! Thanks so much for the recipe!
Hi – just a little confused with the oil portions. 3 tablespoons of olive oil for the marinade and then is it 1 tablespoon of high heat oil (canola?) butter I cook the steak and then another 1 for the veggies?
The fajitas ingredient section only references 1 tablespoon but the instructions in step 3 read to use the remaining tablespoon of oil….nowhere above that does it reference the first tablespoon of oil.
I don’t normally leave ratings, but this was very good! I even used tenderized steak, and didn’t have cilantro on hand,
and it still turned out well.
Five stars for this gem Followed recipe exactly except for the meat and I used a tomahawk I had. The marinade is the Best and it tasted great. Thank-You!
Indeed, The Best! Now one of our favorite meals.
Delicious. Thru together marinade real quick, i did not have the pineapple juice but followed otherwise. I marinated chicken and beef. Kids, husband and 80 yr old mom loved!!
Excellent marinade! Made a minor change and added a combo of chipotle, chili, and Ancho chili powders. Added Meat Church fajita seasoning to the veggies and cooked on my flat top. My personal best to date. Thanks for the awesome recipe!
Made the marinade exactly as posted. I found a small can of crushed pineapple for $1.35 will give you more than 1/4 cup of juice. I used a meat tenderizer hammer on the flank, just a little. It came out very good, and tender, guess that pineapple juice really works.
In all honesty I really didn’t care for this. I just didn’t like the way the marinade tasted. I feel like traditional Mexican fajitas are better. For all the work and expense I put into it, it was disappointing.
This is absolutely a fantastic marinade for fajitas!!! We all decided this recipe is definitely a keeper — THANK YOU!
The flavor is DELICIOUS!!! I marinated the skirt steak overnight, as directed, then grilled, and cut on the cross-grain. The meat is delicious, but tough. I was thinking of using meat tenderizer, in addition to the marinade. Any suggestions?
I see on another post, that they tenderized the steak physically. Next time I will do that, then marinate over night. Any other suggestions are welcome.
So I just said everything that was listed but the only thing that I wasn’t able to find was sugarless pineapple juice is that gonna be a problem I hope not because I already marinated it with it and all the rest of the things u listed
Oh and I added a lil more pineapple juice than u listed is that gonna ruin it? Lol
Great recipe as is!First fajitas that I’ve made better than a restaurant.
Amazing flavor. I seasoned the vegetables with the same seasonings minus pineapple and lime juice. Put them in a pot on the stove with a lid stirring occasionally until soft. My whole house smells like a Mexican restaurant. So good!
Great taste. The whole family loved it
Finally got around to making these, now sorry, after having a great meal that I hesitated! Great, easy recipe! Thank you!
Amazing!! Made this tonight. Followed the recipe exactly. Marinated some sirloin steak overnight. Wonderful marinade, great taste, which turned into great fajitas! Already deleted my other couple fajita bookmarks cause I know I’ll stick with this one. Can’t wait to try it on chicken/shrimp/whatever.
Just made these for lunch–absolutely loved them! Will use this recipe from now on.
Excellent marinade! First time, I made it with a flank steak and it was delicious! Second time, I marinaded some deer meat and cooked it in a slow cooker. It’s so flavorful and tender. I’ll definitely keep this recipe. Thank you so much!
We served these for a Saturday night dinner & they were a huge hit!!! Best steak fajitas we’ve ever had, anywhere! Followed recipe to the letter. Served w/ tortillas & simple guacamole. W/ a WF 365 frontera or habanero salsa. Delish. Making again tonight! Hint: buy pineapple juice from Trader Joe’s. Not from concentrate & very affordable.
Made this last night and it was really yummy. I made as written and the steak (flank) was so tender ( I’m NOT good at cooking steaks on a cast iron, so it’s not due to me lol) and the marinade flavoring was phenomenal and really soaked throughout the entire meat.
I made these last night for the family, and wow! Excellent! I think the pineapple juice was the key factor. One thing I changed up was roasting the veggies on the stove fire and then quickly frying them together.
Where is your tortilla recipe?
Right here 🙂
Would it be ok to put the marinade in a blender to blend up the cilantro better? Even mix Acid and oil together better?
Thank you for such a delicious recipe! For me it really was the best flavour profile I have had for beef fajitas and fulfilled the promise of the meat fully embraced by the seasonings! The marinade definitely penetrated the beef and it was such a treat.
Now with full transparency, I will be making this recipe again very soon. “Yes”, because it is that delicious, but more because the beef was so tasty, it kept being ‘picked’ at and was devoured before I had the vegetables and condiments ready! I think that says it all! LOL!
I will for sure be taking a good look through your site now for other tempting dishes to make! (I have just recently ‘discovered’ your site!)
With Warmest Wishes from the Canadian Prairies; a perfect time to try this on the outside grill!
Fantastic recipe! I did find that the lime was a bit prominent (used flank steak for the first attempt), but overall very delicious and juicy. I followed the recipe exactly. For my second attempt I am switching the measure of lime and pineapple juice to see how that turns out (I’m marinating flank this time). These are by far the very best homemade fajitas I have ever tasted and want to thank you for sharing the recipe!
It would be great if you tell or put part of the recipe with the instructions on how to cut the meat or what size to cut it
Reread it
We like steak and shrimp fajitas. How do you think this marinade would work with the shrimp?
Do you think I can use this recipe with shrimp or chicken?
Best fajitas I have ever had!!! The marinade is the best!!
Outstanding! I made a triple batch, and did it on the grill. Don’t be surprised if it looks like a dry rub prior to adding the wet. I used fresh garlic and fresh lime juice. The marinade is so sweet, it does make grilling tricky.