Spring fajita dinner

It has been decided by The Powers That Be that we're making chicken and steak fajitas on the grill next weekend for a large out of town crowd looking for something Mexicanish but simpler than moles, ceviches, cochinita pibil, etc.

Can you help me brainstorm appropriate Tejano / Tex-Mex sides? And what are your favorite store-bought flour tortillas (I like making corn tortillas, am not prepared to make flour)?

Initial thoughts are marinated skirt steak, hit some chicken with mojo criollo (perhaps even smoke on bone in advance a la G Wiv, then shred), pot of chili or beans, rice, grilled veggies. What will make this interesting but not too interesting? Thoughts appreciated.

If it's a really big crowd, you might consider buying the premade and already marinating fajitas at a place likr Tony's.

The North Riverside Tony's premade fajitas have chicken chunks. I always have to reslice. Seriously. Cermak Produce (on Cicero and Cermak) are inedibly salty as most of their pre-seasoned stuff is. If you plan on grilling though, breasts and thighs, pretty criss cross grill marks. Seasoning is simple enuff. Some comino and the usual suspects with a healthy dose of lime.

IMO -
What will make this interesting but not too interesting is a salsa bar. Verde, rojo, a nice, earthy chile de arbol (buy it from Zacatacos, preferably the one on Harlem. I would bathe in that stuff,) perhaps somethng searing with habanero, a corn salsa, an avocado salsa, etc. OOOH! Mix some crema with canned chipotles in a blender...seriously.

Sides:
Sure, rice and whatnot.
Source some cheap but good tamales.
Guac (surprise!)
Jicama slaw dressed with a lime, cilantro, ancho type dressing.

Tortillas - El Milagro brand Fajitas Caseras style. Usually between 1.50 and 2 bucks a pkg. Buy a package at your Fair Share over there. They make a wheat version of these as well. They are thicker and chewier than any of the other brands available. NOT THE REGULAR EL MILAGRO FLOUR TORTILLAS. TRY THE ONES THAT SAY "CASERAS" and "FAJITAS." These are generally avail in any Latin tinged store, and any grocer of decent size with a few Latin customers.

Make sure you have outer skirt.
Black beans w/ chorizo.
Margaritas.

I think it might also be a perfect time to concoct some kind of silly drink with that Lime / Cucumber gatorade. I finally found a bottle (in Wisconsin no less!) and tried it. The firs thing I thought was, "yeah this stuff is awesome." Second thing I thought was, "Now, add rum or tequila or something." Cucumber Margarita? Cuervo Gold need not apply. I think the cucumber taste would be tamed down enough to make it wildly refreshing with a fresh limey margarita base. It's really cucumbery as is. That stuff was awesome tho. No wonder that top shelf of Tony's is always flippin empty in the gatorade section.

Santander wrote:And what are your favorite store-bought flour tortillas (I like making corn tortillas, am not prepared to make flour)?

The best, hands-down, are the uncooked ones in the refrigerated section at the Clybourn/Damen Costco. Not sure of the brand. They toast up beautifully (30 seconds a side) and the flavor is fantastic. It redefined flour tortillas for me.

As an FYI, they're optimal in the "just cooked" state so you could set up an electric griddle (or a griddle-top on a grill) for guests to "cook" their own.

This is all gold. I'll keep reading and post the final menu and pics if we get any. Seebee, glad you found and enjoyed the Limon Pepino.

I love the salsa bar idea--I'm stealing that

For the grilled vegetables, you might want to do them up ahead of time and make a salad out of it--sooo much easier than trying to manage multiple high-maintenance items on the grill while dealing with guests. A chipotle vinaigrette would make a lovely dressing for a grilled salad...

And queso is always a crowd pleaser, especially with good chorizo. Throw is in the crock and you're done: guac, good tortillas, salsa bar. YUM!

I'm wondering why you say you are "not prepared" to make homemade flour tortillas. They don't require a tortilla press, and the entire ingredient list is flour, salt, baking powder, lard and water. In a pinch, you could definitely substitute butter for lard.

Personally, as a Texan who grew up eating fajitas several times a week, there is no substitute for hot, fresh, homemade flour tortillas.

DJH wrote:I'm wondering why you say you are "not prepared" to make homemade flour tortillas. They don't require a tortilla press, and the entire ingredient list is flour, salt, baking powder, lard and water. In a pinch, you could definitely substitute butter for lard.

Personally, as a Texan who grew up eating fajitas several times a week, there is no substitute for hot, fresh, homemade flour tortillas.

The uncooked tortillas I mentioned earlier are Tortillaland

http://www.tortillaland.com/tortillas

brand, 5 ingredients:

"Wheat Flour, Water, Canola Oil, Salt, Sugar."

While it's certainly possible that making them from scratch ends up with a better product, I doubt you or anyone else will notice.

- Grilled skirt steak, marinated in a mix of a dollop of salsa, fresh lime juice, veg oil, and tequila

- Chicken breast/thighs, same marinade, on the grill

- Frijoles borrachas (black or pinto beans simmered with salsa & beer)

- rajas (roasted chile strips and grilled onions)

- a coarse guac - chopped avocado, tomato, green onions, & minced serrano chiles, and some salt. NOTHING ELSE.

- a green tomatillo-based salsa, a pico de gallo, a red salsa (any good Mexican market will have an array of house-made ones)

- tortillas, both kinds (wrap the flour in foil & heat in the oven; spray the corn with grapeseed cooking spray, and heat in the oven on a foil-lined cookie sheet for 8-10 minutes, turning once)

. . .chuck some mesquite on the grill (or in the smoker box, if you're going with gas), bust out a pitcher of Margaritas and some good Negro Modelo cerveza, and you're good to go.

I actually just did a "spring fajita dinner" (or "taco" dinner) on Saturday but only for about 6 people. I made enough for about 12 though and here's what I did:

Now, I'm in Minneapolis and have a limited number of Mexican grocers, so I'm sure you can find much more than I...

-Skirt steak - Grabbed this a the Mexican grocery - Arrachera (sp?) - basically skirt steak, sliced very thin. I marinaded in a bit of lime juice. It so thin and grills so fast that I leave it to the last thing on the grill. It basically comes off and is chopped right after so that everything is still warm. I think keeping the meat warm is the hardest part so you may want to think about warming trays or cast iron pans for serving vessels.

-Chicken breast - I pounded these flat - more uniform than anything so they would grill pretty quick. Salt/pepper more lime juice (I'm not a fan of overly seasoned meats since I leverage a few different salsas. These are grilled over charcoal and then "finish" on the cool side of the grill while the steak get's flash grilled.

-Corn tortillas - locally made in Mpls. I just throw these on the grill for a few seconds per side to heat through and then into a tortilla holder (like found in a restaurant). It's the best way I found to keep the tortillas warm and soft for a large party. I do this right before the steak goes on the grill because it goes fast.

-I bought two house-made, pre-made salsas from the grocery store and they were great. One was a salsa verde and the other a nice spicy red sauce - not sure exactly what kind. I also made a pico de gallo for a fresh option as well as a simple guac, which went fast with chips. Also on the table was the (I believe) house-made crema from my Mexican grocer and a really nice fresh cheese I grabbed there as well. Oh yeah, cut up lime, onions and cilantro were in serving bowls as well.

-I did a quick/easy black bean, refried beans with garlic and a little water to thin it out. Basically, two cans of beans, drained; fried with a couple of cloves of garlic. Add water to thin to consistency. Very easy to re-warm right before serving.

-Grilled zucchini and corn. Corn isn't in season but it's available. I thought about the corn/squash, bean thing so I basically grilled the zucchini and corn, sliced off the corn and ate the two with a little refried beans. I like to "dress" my beans when I make my plate so I had the beans, zucchini, and corn with a little salsa, crema, and cheese.

Now, it's all very simple and easy to do - exactly what I like about a party. Is it the most "authentic" - well, no but that wasn't my goal. I like simple tacos with great ingredients and the salsas, guac, and crema were all fresh and I thought it made the biggest difference. Our guests are originally from the bay area and have been craving "good Mexican" for a while. Although, what I made wasn't truly "good Mexican" it did hit the spot and many of the flavors were there. Most importantly, it was pretty easy to pull together.

Have fun!