Directions
I want to be honest with you: I love barbecue’s variety. Flavors and textures at the antipodes alternate, creating simple dishes, but always tasty, credible from a culinary point of view, we could say, even if they alternate ingredients that may seem contrasting at first glance.
And speaking of contrasting dishes, there is no cuisine more tantalizing than Mexican cuisine. Today we will prepare chicken fajitas, a simple dish that becomes a small culinary masterpiece when combined with the right combination of fruit and vegetables.
What are chicken fajitas?
Very simple: they are “strips,” slices of spiced and usually marinated meat cooked on the grill and then cut to be wrapped in the classic tortilla with beans, tomatoes, and cheese.
By now, you know that chicken is never my first choice when it comes to meat. Still, I make an exception for fajitas because the final result is delicious. The dish is very light and healthy, bordering on vegetarian for a carnivore like me!
I prefer to put the “combo” dish on the table with the tortillas available, and then everyone prepares the tortilla as they see fit, which is much more convenient, faster, and fun.
How to make chicken fajitas
(for 6 people)
For the marinating of fajitas
- 600 grams of skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 12 grams of ginger
- 40 grams of olive oil
- 4 cl of tequila
- 10 grams of salt and pepper
- 15 grams of oregano
- 1 lemon
Sauce
- 1 poblano pepper
- 125 grams of sour cream
- fresh coriander leaves, let’s say 50 grams
- the juice of half a lemon
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 clove of garlic
- 6 grams of cumin powder
- 8 grams of salt
- 5 grams of freshly ground pepper
For the salad
- lettuce
- 1 large tomato or cherry tomatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 avocados
- 150 grams of black beans
- 6 tortillas
How to make authentic Mexican chicken fajitas
We will use skinless chicken breasts: the only way to make them acceptable is to beat them mercilessly with Thor’s hammer, my wife’s name to my meat tenderizer. What dear, I also look like him, tall, blond and cool.
Anyway, put the chicken in the refrigerator submerged in a marinade of oil, lemon, ginger, pepper, oregano, and tequila—at least 2 hours. If you use the vacuum even better, the flavor of the fajitas will gain a lot!
Spend 2 hours remove from the refrigerator and let the chicken rest at room temperature.
Let’s move on to the pepper: if you can’t find the poblano, get a lovely spicy green with a nice bitter aftertaste. Roast it on the grill or the stove and when the skin is charred (10 minutes), put it in a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and wait another 10 minutes. Then you will peel it in 5 seconds.
Put the pepper in a blender and blend with all the sauce ingredients until you get a smooth sauce.
Cooking chicken fajitas
Drain the chicken and dry it carefully, then grill it over direct heat on the barbecue for 12 minutes, 6 per side, depending on how much it has been massaged with the hammer.
Wash all the vegetables, cut them, drain the beans, and then place them in a reasonably large serving dish, under the lettuce and everything else. Don’t also forget to put a bowl with the sauce.
When the chicken is cooked, remove it from the grill and cut it into thin slices. The fajitas are also ready to be placed on the salad and vegetable bed—season with a vinaigrette of oil, apple cider vinegar, pepper, salt, and oregano. No mustard. There is the sauce! You can also wrap them in a tortilla that you have heated for 4 minutes if you want.
Pay attention to the sauce: you should make it abundant. There is never enough!
Good fajitas, everyone!
What to drink with chicken fajitas?
If you want a dry drink, prepare a Spritz. If you prefer a more elegant combo, Brunello and Bolgheri DOC and Barolo are excellent red wines, suitable to accompany the dish and cut the sauce and condiments without distorting them.
