How to Cook Peppers and Onions for Fajitas

Fajitas make a quick and easy meal.
Image Credit: ivandzyuba/iStock/GettyImages

Fajitas make a quick and easy meal. While they are made with a variety of meats, vegetable content typically includes sauteed peppers and onions. Whether you fry them or grill them, cook the vegetables the same way you cook your fajita meat.

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Read more: Fajita Nutrition Guide

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Prep Your Veggies

Step 1: Choose Your Peppers

Select multicolored peppers. Peppers of different colors have great eye appeal, but they also provide different flavors, vitamins and phytonutrients.

For example, red peppers are a bit sweeter than the others and have the highest levels of antioxidants, beta-carotene and vitamin A, according to the Ohio State University. Select peppers that are firm and free of blemishes.

Step 2: Clean Your Peppers

Wash the peppers. Remove the stems, seeds and ribs. Rinse away remaining seeds. Peel the onions.

Step 3: Cut and Add Oil

Cut the peppers into 1/2-inch-wide strips. Halve the onion, and cut it into thin slices. Place the vegetables in a bowl and mix in 1 tablespoon of olive oil and garlic.

Sautéed Peppers and Onions for Fajitas

Step 1: Stir-Fry the Veggies

Fry whatever meat you are going to use in your fajitas. Remove the meat to rest. Deglaze the pan with lime juice over a medium-high heat. Use a spatula to scrape and loosen any charred remnants of the meat that you fried.

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Step 2: Add Oil to Skillet

Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the skillet. Let it heat a few seconds. Add the pepper and onion mixture to the skillet. Sear the vegetables for one minute before you stir them.

Then every 90 seconds or so, stir them, scraping the bottom of the skillet using the spatula. Sauté peppers for fajitas for a total of five or six minutes. They should be soft and have a few charred spots.

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Step 3: Remove and Cover

Remove vegetables from the pan to a serving bowl and cover it to keep the vegetables warm.

Grill Up the Veggies

Step 1: Remove From Grill

Remove your fajita meat from the grill and allow it to rest. Place the vegetables over an area of the grill where there is a high heat or set your gas grill on medium high.

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Step 2: Sear Your Veggies

Sear the vegetables for a minute or two. If you grill vegetables routinely, buy a grill basket to prevent your vegetables from slipping between the grates and make moving them around easier.

Alternatively, wrap them in tin foil so they lay flat. Use a fork to punch some holes in the tin foil. Turn down the temperature to medium or, if the vegetables are in a basket, move them to a cooler area of the grill.

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Close the lid and grill them for 15 to 20 minutes on medium-high heat, or eight to 10 minutes on high heat, as advised by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Turn once during grilling.

Step 3: Remove and Serve

Remove the vegetables, place them in a serving bowl and cover them to retain the heat.

Fill tortillas with meat and veggies. Add optional toppings such as lettuce, tomato and sour cream, as suggested by the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture. Fold in half and enjoy.

Read more: How to Cook Carne Picada

Things You'll Need

  • Cutting board

  • Knife

  • Skillet

  • Spatula

  • 2 or 3 peppers — green, yellow and red

  • 1 large onion

  • 1 teaspoon garlic — about 2 cloves

  • 2 tablespoon olive oil

  • 2 tablespoon lime juice

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