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This is our favorite Steak Fajitas Marinade! It has a few secrets that make it extra flavorful and tender. Grilling is optional but produces even more deliciousness!
Table of Contents
- Flank Steak Fajitas with the BEST Fajita Marinade!
- What’s Needed for Steak Fajitas?
- How to Make Steak Fajitas
- Can I Use This Fajita Marinade to Make Chicken Fajitas?
- Can I Prep Steak Fajitas in Advance?
- Tips for the BEST Steak Fajitas
- More Delicious STEAK RECIPES:
- How to Make Our Favorite Steak Fajitas Marinade
- Steak Fajitas Marinade Recipe
Flank Steak Fajitas with the BEST Fajita Marinade!
I love this time of year!!! Isn’t it the best feeling when the seasons are changing? The air is crisp and our favorite steak fajitas marinade is calling your name. You’re going to go crazy for these beef fajitas!!
If you’ve never made homemade steak fajitas, you’ve been missing out! These easy fajitas are super flavorful thanks to the delicious flank steak fajita marinade. The fajita meat marinade featured three kinds of citrus juice, plus tons of spices to really pack in the flavor.
What is a Fajita?
Fajitas are a dish of Mexican origin consisting of strips of spiced beef or chicken, chopped vegetables, and grated cheese, wrapped in a soft tortilla and often served with sour cream.
What’s Needed for Steak Fajitas?
This flank steak fajita recipes has two main components: the beef fajita marinade and the peppers and onions that accompany the dish. Here’s what you’ll need to make the BEST fajita marinade:
- Orange juice
- Lime juice
- Pineapple juice
- Worcestershire sauce
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Dried herbs and spices
- Fresh cilantro
And for the steak fajitas, you’ll need:
- Flank steak
- Bell peppers
- Onion
- Butter
- Olive oil
- Taco seasoning
What’s the Best Steak for Fajitas?
We use flank steak in this recipe, but top round steak is a very lean cut of beef, plus it packs plenty of fresh flavor. Other lean cuts of beef, like eye of round or top sirloin, will also work in this recipe.
How to Make Steak Fajitas
This is an incredibly easy beef fajitas recipe. Here are the basic steps for making the steak fajita marinade and the fajitas themselves:
- Whisk together the fajita marinade, then add to a large Tupperware or zip-top bag. Add the steak to the marinade and marinate for at least 2 hours.
- Once marinated, cook the flank steak however you’d like (we’ve given stovetop and grill instructions in the recipe card below).
- Meanwhile, cook the peppers and onions on the stove in a cast iron skillet.
- Serve with your favorite fajita toppings and dig in!
Can I Use This Fajita Marinade to Make Chicken Fajitas?
If you’d rather make chicken fajitas, I recommend following our One-Skillet Chicken Fajitas recipe instead.
Can I Prep Steak Fajitas in Advance?
Yes! The flank steak can sit in the marinade for up to 24 hours, so you can begin the marinating process well in advance. Then, you just have to quickly grill the steak and sauté the onions and peppers day of.
Tips for the BEST Steak Fajitas
There are a few secrets to fajitas that I’m sure you all want to know.
Tip #1: Don’t Skip the Fruit Juices!
If absolutely necessary, you can double one juice in order to skip the other, but I stand by the recipe, it really is the best when you use all three, orange, lime and pineapple.
Want a little hint about that? We buy the juices (orange and pineapple) and we freeze them in bags in the freezer. We mostly do it for the pineapple juice as we buy it in a can and this way we not only don’t waste any, but we also always have some on hand since it’s not a regular ingredient for us. Lime juice is something we keep on hand, so not as much worry there.
Tip #2: Marinate the Meat
Marinating meat is not a suggestion, it’s part of the recipe. I was going to marinate meat awhile back and someone said I was planning things way too early, but I bet you that our beef fajitas are far more flavorful than those not marinaded. It breaks into all of those muscle fibers, tenderizes and gives loads of flavor.
Tip #3: Season the Onions and Peppers
Add a dash of homemade taco seasoning to your peppers and onions. Not a lot, we aren’t looking to pack in the spice on the vegetables. Instead, it adds a little something without tasting like seasoning at all. Cade even asked me, “What makes these peppers so much better than the others? They are so good!” I’m telling you, it’s the way to go. The butter doesn’t hurt either. 😉
Tip #4: Buy Fresh Tortillas
Oh, and the tortillas, buy fresh. Oh please buy fresh. You’d be shocked how much better a fresh tortilla is for fajitas. It’s fantastic.
I could actually go on as you know what else is awesome? Fresh avocado with a crack of black pepper and a dash or red pepper flakes. It doesn’t add heat but it does at another depth and texture which is wonderful in fajitas. And top these steak fajitas with our Restaurant Style Salsa, and you’ll be in heaven!
More Delicious STEAK RECIPES:
- Easy Garlic Butter Steak at Home
- Healthy Thai Peanut Steak Salad
- Best Steak Marinade
- Grilled Steak Burrito Bowls
- Grilled Flank Steak Summer Salad
- Porterhouse Steak with Mushrooms
- Spicy Steak and Shrimp Kabobs
- Steak Burrito with Grilled Zucchini
- Steak and Brussels Sprouts
- Philly Cheesesteak Egg Rolls
- All our Beef Recipes here!
How to Make Our Favorite Steak Fajitas Marinade
Steak Fajitas Marinade
Ingredients
For the fajita marinade:
- 1/4 Cup Orange Juice
- 1/4 Cup Lime Juice
- 1/4 Cup Pineapple Juice
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
- 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil , (or Canola Oil)
- 4 Cloves Garlic, minced
- 2 1/2 teaspoons Cumin
- 2 teaspoons Chili Powder
- 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon Ground Coriander
- 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt
- 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1/3 Cup Chopped Fresh Cilantro
For the Fajitas:
- 1 Tablespoon Butter
- 1 teaspoon Olive Oil, plus more if needed
- 2 Pound Flank Steak
- 3 Bell Peppers, cored, seeded and sliced (I used a Yellow, Green and Orange pepper)
- 1 Onion, sliced
- 1 teaspoon Homemade Taco Seasoning
Instructions
For the marinade:
- In a plastic storage bag or baking dish, whisk together all of the marinade, adding the cilantro at the end.1/4 Cup Orange Juice, 1/4 Cup Lime Juice, 1/4 Cup Pineapple Juice, 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce, 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil , 4 Cloves Garlic, 2 1/2 teaspoons Cumin, 2 teaspoons Chili Powder, 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika, 1/4 teaspoon Ground Coriander, 2 teaspoons Kosher Salt, 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper, 1/3 Cup Chopped Fresh Cilantro
- Set aside 1/4 cup of the marinade.
For the flank steak:
- If you wish to cook the flank steak whole, add it to the marinade, cover or seal, and refrigerate for 2-24 hours. Otherwise, slice the meat against the grain very thin and add to the marinade.2 Pound Flank Steak
- If cooking the meat in slices: heat a grill to medium high heat and add the meat to the grill, carefully laying it across the grates so it does not fall through.
- Cook for 2 minutes per side or just until grill marks appear and then remove to the serving dish with the peppers, drizzle with the reserved marinade.
- If cooking the meat whole: as soon as you place the meat on the grill, turn it down to medium. Cook for 6-7 minutes per side or until desired temperature.
- Remove to a cutting board and allow to rest with a piece of foil draped over the top for 5 minutes.
- Slice thin and serve with peppers.
For the Peppers and onions:
- In a cast iron skillet (we prefer this one from Lodge), over medium heat add the butter and oil.1 Tablespoon Butter, 1 teaspoon Olive Oil
- Add the peppers and onions and the seasoning.3 Bell Peppers, 1 Onion, 1 teaspoon Homemade Taco Seasoning
- Once the veggies begin cooking, turn the heat to medium low and while stirring occasionally, allow to cook for about 20 minutes or until golden and tender.
- Add the meat and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes
- To cook indoors: slice the meat thin and marinate. Right before the peppers and onions are ready for serving, remove them from the cast iron and turn the heat to medium high. Add the meat, cooking on one side for about a minute or two, then stir and repeat until the meat is desired temperature. We usually stick with about 4 minutes total so it’s not well done. Turn the heat to low and add the peppers and onions back in, cook for another minute and serve.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This recipe was tasty but the spices overwhelmed the meat and citrus. I followed the recipe and marinaded overnight. Might as well have used vinegar instead of citrus, as we could not taste those lovely juices it at all due to way too much cumin, garlic (yes, there can be too much garlic!) and other spices. Doesn’t need taco seasoning, for sure. Next time I will adjust the amounts. Also cooked this on stovetop as I was using already cut up meat from butcher, so that may have made a difference.
Thank you for the feedback Katie! We love the big bold flavor on these, but you can definitely decrease the spices some to your liking. Thank you for taking time to leave a comment!
Oh my gosh! These were amazing. I had one pound of flank steak and one pound of chicken so I did both with the marinade. I didn’t have oj so I doubled the pineapple juice which worked out just fine. My daughter said this is the meal she wants to make for her birthday (her top choice of the year). This recipe is a keeper!
This was great definateky make it again, loved it
Thank you so much Lori! We sure love it!
Update
Fabulous! Best fajitas I have ever made or eaten. Suggest substituting Ancho pepper for chili pepper and Chipotle for Cayenne (Taco Seasoning) for more taste. Enjoy!
Thank you for the feedback!! Love your substitute suggestions!
Can you please let me know when I use the 1/4 cup marinade I put to one side.
I’m cooking on stove top
Thank you
Hi Brigette! It is added at the end of step 5 when you are searing the meat. Enjoy!
This recipe looks like a winner. I’m doing it tonight on a Primo xls ceramic grill/smoker with hickory and mesquite wood and a seasoned cast iron grill attachment. I expect the 40 mls of marinate withheld in the recipe is for seasoning the vegetables. I also cook steaks on the the Primo using the reverse sear method for combined smoking and grilling. I highly recommend it for two zone cooking.
Alistair Montgomery
How did it go? Yes, you add the reserved marinade back into the veggies as you are sauteeing them.
We used this marinade for steak fajitas and it was excellent. We marinated for several hours and if we’d had time for overnight marinating that would possibly have been even more flavorful. We used flap steak which, when cut across the grain made quite tender and flavorful fajitas. We mixed the veggies with EVOO and Julio’s Seasoning (a small Texas brand). Turned out excellent. This will probably be our current go-to for beef fajitas. Thank you.
Love it! Thank you for the feedback Rod! So glad your enjoyed the marinade! It sure is a favorite in our house.
Will this marinade work with chicken as well?
We have a chicken fajitas recipe! The marinades is very similar: https://ohsweetbasil.com/adult-and-kid-approved-one-skillet-chicken-fajitas-recipe/
Made these yesterday and they were delicious! I think the marinade would be really good with chicken or pork as well, so will try that too. Thanks for the great recipe! Yum!
Yes, it is delicious with chicken! We haven’t tried it yet with pork, but I bet it would be so tasty!
Had the fajitas yesterday. They were amazing. Will certainly save and make them again. Super delicious
Yippee!! Thanks for the feedback Ada!
Hold guacamole! I made this and my 9 year old told me it was the best meal she ever ate in her 9 years of life. Made me smile because she is a really good eater. This was so easy to put together and the best fajitas I have had anywhere.
Yahoo!! That’s the best news of my day! Thanks for taking time to leave us a comment Cheryl!