I LOVE Fajitas. The fragrance when they are cooking. The fact that they are a build your own dinner. The bright fresh flavor. How quick and easy they are. The fact that I can cook them on the stove or on the grill. When I order them in restaurants, I love that they come out sizzling. Now the problem with making that home for me has always been the seasoning.
I used to make fajitas using seasoning from a packet or a jar of seasoning mix, but it became hard for me to find the brand I really liked (this was before I discovered Penzey’s). Eventually I thought, hey I can make my own taco seasoning – why not fajita seasoning too? So I googled various fajita seasoning recipes, read labels and packages, but nothing seemed quite right. So I started throwing things together, mixing and smelling, and eventually testing it out on fajitas. The secret ingredient that I ended up finding was dried, lime peel. The best fajitas have this hint of a bright citrus note and that’s what lime peel provides. I was able to find it at Spice Jungle – which [at least when I write this] has free shipping on US orders.
Here’s what you need:
Here’s a picture of the spices in the amounts you’ll use in the fajita mix so you can see the proportions:
Note: that is not regular chili powder, it’s ground ancho chili powder. This means it’s just ground ancho chilis. Regular chili powder has other things in it like garlic and salt.
The predominant flavor in fajitas is definitely the cumin which is why you see so much of it. That’s also why there is only a little bit of chili powder – that’s more predominant in tacos. But you will see a lot of overlap between the two – the lime peel is the really unique ingredient.
Put all the ingredients into a bowl and whisk together.
Since it’s finally warming up in Minnesota, I’ll be posting my recipe for grilled fajitas in a couple days – keep your eyes out for them.
My friend Jenny likes to mix this seasoning with chicken breasts and a jar of 505 Green Chili Sauce and toss it all in the crockpot. It’s on my list to try as soon as I figure how to get a jar from Denver (eventually, I’m just going to order a case online) since I’m too stubborn to check my bag.
- 1 t ancho chili powder
- 1 T paprika
- 1 t kosher salt
- 1-1/2 T onion powder
- 1-1/2 T garlic powder
- 1 T cumin
- ¼ t cayenne pepper
- 1 T granulated lime peel
- 1T + 1 t Mexican oregano, crushed with your fingers
- Whisk all ingredients together.
- Store in an airtight container
[…] the sauce for inside the enchiladas. You’ll need a can of diced green chilies, sour cream, fajita seasoning (try making your own, it’s super easy and tasty!), and chipotle tabasco sauce (regular works too […]