Tex-Mex Fajita Peppers and Onions
The peppers and onions that arrive spitting and steaming on a fajita platter are usually cooked in a slick of oil, but the flavor everyone is chasing is char, not fat. A dry cast-iron pan cranked to high does the job cleaner: the vegetables blister and sweeten against the hot metal while keeping their snap. Cumin, pure chile powder, and smoked paprika stand in for the mesquite grill, and a splash of water lifts the browned bits back onto the peppers. Lime and cilantro at the end keep it lively without a pinch of salt. This is the sizzling vegetable pile itself, ready to fold into a bowl, spoon over beans, or eat straight from the pan.
Ingredients
- 3 wholes Bell peppers, mixed colors, sliced thick
- 1 whole Yellow onions, sliced thick
- 2 cloves Garlic, minced
- 1 tsp Cumin seed, ground
- 1/2 tsp Smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp pure chile powder
- 2 tbsp Lime juice
- 3 tbsp Cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 tsp Black peppercorns, freshly ground
Method
- Heat a cast-iron skillet or heavy pan over high heat until a drop of water skitters and vanishes. A screaming-hot dry pan is the whole secret here, since the char is what the oil was never really providing on a fajita platter anyway.
- Lay the peppers and onions in the pan in as close to a single layer as you can and leave them alone for 2 to 3 minutes before stirring. Crowding and fidgeting steam the vegetables pale; patience on high heat gives them the blistered black edges that define the dish.
- When the vegetables are streaked with char but still have some snap, add the garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, and chile powder and toss 1 minute. The spices bloom against the hot metal, and the smoked paprika stands in for the mesquite-grill smoke of a restaurant fajita.
- Splash in a couple tablespoons of water to deglaze, scraping up the browned bits, and let it cook off. Those stuck browned bits are pure flavor, and a little water lifts them back onto the vegetables the way a slick of oil never would.
- Pull the pan off the heat and finish with the lime juice, cilantro, and black pepper. Lime brightens the smoky char and carries the plate with no salt; pile the peppers and onions over beans, rice, or a bowl while they still sizzle.
Nutrition
Estimated per serving: 70 calories, 2 g protein, 4 g fiber, 15 mg sodium. Computed from USDA FoodData Central reference values for the main ingredients. This is an approximation, not a laboratory measurement. How these are computed.
Cost per serving is estimated from US national-average retail prices for cheap staple forms, using BLS dried-bean prices and USDA produce prices. Prices vary by store and season, so treat it as a guide, not a receipt. How this is computed.
