Conference turris::cooks

The beef or chicken should be boiled heavily  until it is easily shredable
    if you want the meat itself tto be spicy add lots of FRESHLY ground
    pepper and/or just a touch of cumin.
    
    I'm not sure just exactly what a Fajitas is but it sounds kind of
    like a chimichanga and that's how we used to cook our meat for them.
    
                                                           Geoff
    

    I believe Fajitas are sliced meat or chicken, marinated in something
    wonderful and then put over charcoal and broiled.  Then you roll
    the meat in a flour tortilla with all the aforementioned goodies.
    
    
    Only thing, I wish I knew what the marinade consisted of.
    
    Hope someone else can enlighten us.
    
    		-Dotti

    The marinade I use consists of vinegar, lots of garlic, cilantro
    and tequila. I can look up the recipe tonight and get exact portions
    and enter them here, but a lot of it depends on individual tastes.
    You should marinate the beef or chicken at least over night. If
    you're going to charcoal broil it, get mesquite for the best flavor.
    You can also cook them in a super hot frying pan with a little olive
    oil and sliced onions and green chiles. Just be sure the skillet
    is hot enough to quick-sear the meat so it doesn't boil in the marinade
    (the marinade should be drained off before dumping the meat in the
    pan). I'll try and find the recipe tonight and enter from home.
    
    Debbie
    

    Here's the recipe for the marinade:
    
    1 to 1 1/2 lb beef skirt steadk
    1/2 c. lime juice
    1/4 c. tequila (optional but good)
    3 or 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
    1 tsp. salt
    1/2 tsp. pepper
    1 tsp. cilantro
    
    Cut the skirt steak into 3 to 4 inch pieces. Put the steak in a
    plastic bag and add the remaining ingredients. Tie the bag securely
    (I use a ziploc bag) and marinate in the refrigerator 2 to 3 hours
    or overnight. Drain the marinade and discard. Broil steak over coals,
    mesquite to be authenic or pan broil in a heavy skillet or med-high
    heat. Either way cook ony 2 to 3 minutes each side side. Carve into
    thin slices across the grain and serve on warm tortillas (flour).
    
    Debbie
    

Cilantro, by the way, is the Spanish name for fresh coriander.  I suspect that
one could use ground coriander or whole coriander seeds if fresh coriander
leaves are not available.

--PSW

RE: .-1

There is no real substitue for fresh corriander!  Hampshire Farms has it.
Buy extra and freeze it in water in an ice cube tray.  It retains its freshness 
and taste.

    The marinade is one of the "keys", however, the real key is the
    meat. When I first moved back from Texas, that was one of the 
    biggest sacrifices-no good fajitas in the north. I tried several
    times to make them, though the meat just wasn't the same. Upon
    investigation, I found that the problem is you can't get the good
    skirt steak up here (skirt from right under the brisket) because
    as it turns out, the Chinese restaurants buy it all in quantity
    from the meat houses, and that's what they make terryaki with!!
    Don't despair though, if you love them, they still come out pretty
    good with the other steak-if possible, I'd still try to use the
    grill-hot fire to seal the juices-then off to the side-ENJOY!!!

    To get good skirt steak, go to any Chinese supermarket.  Ming's
    in Boston's Chinatown is the biggest, but several others have it
    too.  It also shows up as "flank steak", or "flanken", in some other
    stores, particularly in Jewish areas (when I was a kid we knew it
    as "elephant meat" since it was usually served boiled and gray).

Here is another marinade that I just discovered, and I like it a lot more than 
the usual 'Fajita' marinade. Its real name is 'Carne Adobado':

	8 Tablespoons chili powder (use Gebhardt's--it has other 
					tasty ingredients along 
					with the chili)
	1 Cup vinegar
	1 Clove garlic
	1/2 Tablet Mexican Cocoa
	3 or 4 Cloves
	1 Cinnamon stick
	1/4 teaspoon salt
	1/4 teaspoon pepper


	Dump everything into a saucepan, and heat it until the chocolate 
melts; stir it around until it's all mixed together. Then let it cool.
Cut 2 pounds of skirt steak into long thin strips, and throw them in the
pot. Stir the stuff again until the meat is coated and/or covered. It 
should look like a thick pasty mess. Now pour in enough water to cover 
the meat, and stir again. It should now look about like the consistency
of menudo. Stick it in the refrigerator overnight. 
	When ready to eat, either barbecue the meat or broil it on 
something like a Farberware grill (or Jenn-Air if you got one). Brush 
the meat with the marinade while it cooks. 
	To serve, roll the meat strips up in the thickest chewy tortillas
you can find. If all you can get are those paper-thin Taco Bell kind, move
to another state. You can also throw in some sauteed onions, bell peppers,
and tomatoes if you want. Also, don't forget some fresh cilantro sprinkled
on before you wrap up the tortillas.

			-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

	Incidentally, this tends to be a bit spicy for those who are not 
used to real Mexican food. If this is a problem, you could either cut down 
on the amount of chili, or just stick to tofu and sprouts. 

	Also incidentally, if you can't find fresh cilantro, just buy some
coriander seed at your local supermarket, and plant them; they grow real
quick. You can have plenty of fresh cilantro in about 2-4 weeks.

    LAWRY'S-OR IS IT SCHILLING'S?-MAKES AND EXCELLENT PACKET OF SEASONINGS
    FOR FAJITAS. TRY IT, YOU'LL LIKE IT!!!
    
    JUDY

    You keep talking 'bout flour tortillas here.  Where do I find them
    at the market?  All I have been able to find is the corn type (in
    the can).
    

    Where are you?  In the So. NH area you find flour tortillas and
    corn tortillas in flat plastic packages generally in the dairy
    cooler near the butter and such.  Or wherever the store found
    cooler space for them.  I've never seen them in cans, so are
    you somewhere other than the USA?
    
    --Louise

    In the event you can't find "store-bought" tortillas, why not try
    making your own?
    
    Flour tortillas
    
    2 cups all-purpose flour	1 teaspoon salt
    1 teaspoon baking powder	1 tablespoon lard (or shortning)
    1/2 to 3/4 cup warm, not hot, water
    
    in a bowl, stir together all the dry ingredients, cut in the lard
    until mixture looks like cornmeal. Add 1/2 cup water and mix until
    dough can be gathered into a ball, if needed, add a little more
    water about 1 tablespoon at a time. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.
    Divide the dough into 12 portions and shape it into little balls.
    On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a 7" round. You
    can trim the edges if you want the tortillas perfectly round. Take
    a skillet and let it heat over a medium flame. Do not grease the
    skillet...I use an old fashioned iron skillet myself. Cook the tortilla
    about 1 minute and a half on each side or till it's lightly browned.
    
    you can keep these in a plastic bag in the refridgerator and when
    you want to reheat them, just toss them in the microwave, or if
    you have a gas stove, lay it directly over the flame, turning quickly
    several times.
                                -sunny-

    
     Well Gang, I found two places up here in New England that sell
    skirt steak. In Southern New Hampshire the Hilltop Butcher shop
    carrys it. And in central Mass a small market near the Wallace Civic
    center called- Watsons. The steak goes about 3.50 per pound.
    
                   REK

    RE: .9
    
    �� 1/2 Tablet Mexican Cocoa
    
    Could someone please explain this ingredient to me.  How does Mexican
    Cocoa differ from, say, Hersey's Cocoa.  If I can't get Mexican Cocoa
    can I make a substitution?  Also, I'm not familiar with the unit "1/2
    Tablet", would that be something like an extra strength tylenol, or
    more the size of an alka-seltzer (joke: ar ar).
    
    
    			Thanks in advance,
    
    			     David

    
    Mexican Cocoa comes in solid cones and has a distinctly cinnamon taste
    mixed within the chocolate.  
    
    I've never seen it anywhere but in Mexico.
    
    gailann

It is cocoa and cinnamon in a package of round disks. The disks are
designed to break into wedges (two wedges per cup of hot milk for hot 
chocolate). The Safeway next to CXO3 in Colorado Springs carries them 
from two different Mexican companys. Check the ethnic food section of
your store.

					Dick

    Can you tell me what makes up the tomatillo relish?

I put a recipe in here somewhere that was for a tomatillo salsa that might fit
the bill.  It was called Salsa de Tomate Verde.  It's mainly tomatillos (mexican
green tomatoes, available fresh in the Mayard area from Idylwilde Farms).

Try a directory/title= MEX or SALSA

    If you can't get tomatillos and can get fresh gooseberries (or
    gooseberries that are canned in water or juice without sugar) you
    can improvise.
    
    The tomatillo is directly related to the Cape Gooseberry and the
    taste and consistancy can be mimicked using them.
    
    For the absolute best results it is best to use the Gooseberry fresh
    and to 'toast' it on a comel or in a dry frying pan before blending
    or chopping for the salsa.
    
    gailann

coarsely chop ripe tomatillos, add chopped onion (enough to look right),
add chopped fresh cilentro (I consider this unnecessary 'cause I'm
allergic to it and it tastes like soap to me, but most consider it
necessary)....again, use amount 'to taste'.  For two cups of chopped
tomatillo, try 3 tablespoons cilentro, approx 1/2 - 3/4 cup chopped,
mild onion.  There you have your basic salsa.  Now, you can add
approx. 3/4 cup chopped fresh tomato, enough salt to please you - can
be quite a lot if you are used to the stuff you get in restaurants,
start with 1 teaspoon and taste before adding more.  If you want a
good kick, add 1 small fresh diced jalepeno pepper (blister over
flame or high heat, hold in plastic or paper bag for a few minutes,
peel skin off, slice open and remove/discard seeds, dice very
fine).  If you live dangerously, add the seeds and/or more pepper.
The thing is - with salsa, you just wing it.

    Can you use the same marinade for chicken as with beef?  I want to make
    fajitas (chicken) with boneless breasts and slice them.  Can I use the
    package mix for beef?
    

>    Can you use the same marinade for chicken as with beef?  I want to make
>    fajitas (chicken) with boneless breasts and slice them.  Can I use the
>    package mix for beef?
    
You betcha!
The reason they are "fajitas" is because of the marinade.  Use the same 
marinade for beef, chicken, or whatever else you think you might like....
(lean pork strips, do you think?)

    
    The Hard Rock Cafe has one of the best marinades for fajitas  - in my
    opinion.  Am hoping to get my hands on the recipe, but in the meantime
    am satisfied with a bottled version I found in San Diego. Can't think
    of a name at this time!
    

    FYI, Casa Fiesta has a really good packaged marinade mix.  I use it and
    mix it with white wine to marinade the chicken and beer to marinade the
    beef.  It has to sit a couple of hours to really soak up the flavour.

Here is a great recipe for Chicken fajitas that I got out of a 
little handbook for cooking chicken


1 lb. chicken breast cut into strips (like stir fry)
8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 small onion thinly sliced
1 1/2 t. cumin
1 1/2 t. chili powder
1 t. ground pepper
1 1/2 t. salt

In a skillet add a little oil and brown the chicken until no longer pink.
about 10 minutes or so.
Remove chicken and set aside. 
In the same skillet add the sliced onion and saute until the onion is 
translucent.
Add the chicken back into the skillet with the onion, tomato sauce, and  
add the spices.
(you may want to play with the spices, I like to go heavy on the cumin.)
Simmer about 15 minutes stirring ocassionaly.
Heat your tortillas in a dry frying pan (there IS no other way to warm tortillas)
Pile in the chicken, lettuce, cheese, sour cream etc. 
Maybe serve with rice on the side?
It is easy and fairly low cal.


Lj

    I was going throught the grocery store one day, and they had some
    people giving out samples of pork fajitas that they then gave recipes
    out for.  It was cooked as a 'stir fry' instead of being grilled.  I
    thought it tasted pretty good and I have used it with pork and beef so
    far.
    
    Slice the meat in thin strips. Place meat in a ziplock bag with 2
    tablespoons of lime juice, 1 tablespoon of cumin, 2 garlic cloves (I
    didn't have any on hand at the time so I used garlic powder which seem
    to work fine) and 1 tablespoon of oil.  I let it marinade in the
    refrigerator for about 4 hours.  
    
    When I got ready to cook it, I sliced onions and green peppers in thin
    slices as well.    Stir fried all these together.  (I threw the entire
    contents of the ziploc bag into the fry pan so that all the flavors of
    the veggies, meat and marinade combined)
    
    I then took warm flour tortillas, spooned the fajita mix and a cheddar/
    Monterey Jack mixture of cheese, rolled up the flour tortilla and ate
    it up.    It really was one of those quick easy meals that didn't take
    too much effort.