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These easy flank steak fajitas are packed with bold Tex-Mex flavor thanks to a simple homemade marinade – no seasoning packets needed. The marinade helps tenderize the flank steak, which pairs perfectly with peppers and onions for a high protein family-friendly meal. Great any night of the week!
A Quick Look: Flank Steak Fajitas
- Cooking time: 20 minutes of prep and around 10-15 minutes to cook.
- Servings – This will serve 4 people for a main dinner recipe.
- Main ingredients: Flank steak, olive oil, garlic, cumin, paprika, peppers, and onions or shallots.
- When to serve: An easy high-protein weeknight meal, or for healthy fajita night. No grill needed – these beef fajitas are pan-seared.
- Dietary information: This recipe is Mediterranean diet friendly. It can also be migraine diet-friendly, lactose free and gluten free with a few minor edits.
- Why you’ll love it: These flank steak fajitas have an easy marinade and don’t use a packet, but still pack tons of flavor. They’re a great one-pan meal for easy clean up, and make a delicious for weeknights and meal prep.
You’ll love this flank steak fajita marinade because it’s extremely versatile, and you can change out the ingredients pretty easily while still producing a delicious recipe. You can also use this marinade for an air fryer flank steak, or flank steak tacos.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
These are just some details on what to look for when grocery shopping. For measurements, see the recipe card below.
- Flank steak – Ideal for fajita or tacos, this long, flat cut of beef is perfect for marinades as the acidity can make the meat even more tender and flavorful. Plus it is generally less expensive than other cuts of meat. Sometimes it’s also called a “London broil” or “bavette” steak. You could also substitute a skirt steak with this recipe, or a flap steak.
- Garlic – Fresh garlic is ideal here since it gives a stronger flavor in the marinade, but garlic powder can be substituted if needed.
- Spices – Cumin and smoked paprika add a smoky flavor that make the flank steak taste similar to the kind of fajitas you’d get at a Tex Mex restaurant. You can also add 1-2 teaspoons of chili powder for a little more spice. For a short cut, you can also use a store-bought fajita seasoning. I recommend Siete beef fajita seasoning packets.
- Juice – For the flank steak marinade, you can vary the juice added, although I tend to prefer tart cherry juice. It sounds weird, but it’s a great secret ingredient for the best steak marinade that provides a tart yet rich flavor! I’ve used a combination of tart cherry juice and white vinegar for some acidity, or lime juice. Even soy sauce or coconut aminos works well, similar to this Mexican grilled chicken. All are delicious depending what you have on hand.
- Cooking oil – Because we’re using a cast iron pan, you need an oil that stands up well to higher heat and searing. This would be avocado oil or a high heat olive oil (Graza makes this) which are ideal for a Mediterranean diet, or you can use vegetable oil.
- Onions or shallots – Onions are more traditional, and yellow or sweet onions are ideal, but shallots can be used as well.
- Bell peppers – Any color can be used, but I personally prefer red and yellow bell pepper for fajitas.
- Tortillas – I recommend Vista Hermosa, HEB tortillas (the freshly made ones), or TortillaLand.
Variations
- HYH diet – Use white vinegar and tart cherry juice for the marinade as well as Vista Hermosa or TortillaLand tortillas, ones with basic ingredients. Use shallots instead of onions, and blended cottage cheese as a sub for sour cream. Although avocado should be avoided, you can top with white queso dip.
- Gluten free – Use Siete cassava tortillas or all corn tortillas.
- More spice – Add 2 teaspoons of chili powder to the marinade, or you can add 1/2 teaspoon of chipotle chili powder for some extra heat.
How to Make Marinated Steak Fajitas
Step 1: Slice flank steak against the grain, cut in the opposite direction of where the lines run, into small, thin strips. Strips should be about 2-3 inches long. In a ziplock bag or large bowl, combine the spices with your liquid of choice (vinegar and tart cherry juice, lime, or soy sauce) and add the steak with kosher salt and black pepper. Coat the steak slices well with the marinade and let it combine for at least 20 minutes, up to 8 hours. Leave at room temperature if only marinating 20 minutes.
Step 2: Slice bell pepper and onions or shallots into thin strips. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a cast iron pan over medium high heat.
Step 3: Slice bell pepper and onions or shallots into thin strips. Add 1 tablespoon of oil to a cast iron pan over medium high heat. Sear the bell pepper and onion slices, not touching them for the first few minutes to allow a char to form on the outside, then gently stirring till cooked through. Push them to the side of the pan or remove them and place in a separate dish.
Step 4: In the same cast iron pan, heat another tablespoon of oil over high heat. Place the flank steak slices in an even layer in the pan, searing on the first side. Turn the heat down to medium high and continue to cook 4-5 minutes, until browned on the outside and cooked to your liking.
Step 5: Place the steak, peppers, and onions inside warmed tortillas and serve with your favorite toppings like salsa, avocado, cheese, or sour cream.
How to Warm Tortillas for Fajitas
There are a few ways you can warm tortillas for fajitas.
- Stovetop method – This is my personal favorite, but only works with a gas stovetop. Place the tortilla over the gas grill grates and heat over a low flame, keeping an eye that it doesn’t start to smoke or burn. After about 30 seconds, flip the tortilla and heat on the opposite side. The tortilla may bubble a little bit as it cooks, this is ok! A little char on the outside provides some crispy texture and smoky flavor.
- Oven method – Wrap the tortillas in foil and place in an oven at 350°F for about 5-10 minutes.
- Microwave – Cover 2-3 tortillas with a damp paper towel and microwave in 10 second increments till warmed through. A damp towel will keep them moist and pliable.
Serving Suggestions
These flank steak fajitas are best paired with Spanish brown rice and simple black beans. You can also use toppings like this mozzarella queso, shredded Monterey jack cheese or cotija cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, or avocado. It also is great topped with pico de gallo or salsa.
For drinks, this pairs well with a margarita mocktail or blueberry mojito mocktail. If you’d like to mix up how this is served, check out this chicken fajita bowl. You can replace the chicken with flank steak.
Storage Instructions
- Refrigerator – The flank steak stores incredibly well in the fridge for up to 3-5 days. It’s perfect for meal prep and you can use it as a versatile protein with salads and wraps. It works as a replacement for ground beef on these beef nachos.
- Freezer – Freeze the flank steak and vegetables for up to 6 months in an air-tight container or freezer bag. Defrost overnight in the fridge.
- Reheating – Reheat in the microwave, heating in 30 second increments, or on the stovetop over medium heat until warmed through.
Recipe FAQ
There are a few key cooking elements to getting a nice char on homemade beef fajitas and the first is using a cast iron pan, which helps retain a high heat. The next is to not overcrowd the pan, which can steam the steak or peppers instead of searing. And the final element is to get the pan very hot before adding the steak or peppers and onions.
Absolutely! This recipe stores incredibly well so if you wanted to meal prep it and have it another day for dinner, just keep it in the fridge and follow my tips for reheating.
More Tex Mex Recipes with Flank Steak
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Flank Steak Fajitas
Ingredients
Marinade
- 1 pound flank steak, sliced thinly (about 1/2 inch) against the grain, about 2-3 inch long pieces
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil, avocado oil or high heat olive oil recommended
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 2 tablespoons tart cherry juice or lime juice
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
Steak Fajitas
- 1½ cups yellow onion or shallots, about 4 large shallots or 1 large yellow onion, sliced into strips
- 2 bell peppers, sliced into strips
- 8 small flour tortillas
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil (avocado, high heat olive oil or vegetable oil)
- kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large ziplock bag or bowl, combine the flank steak, oil, garlic, vinegar, juice, cumin, paprika, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt. Allow the steak to marinate for at least 20 minutes, up to overnight. If only marinating 20 minutes, leave out at room temperature.
- Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a cast iron or non-stick pan over medium high heat. Add bell pepper and shallots, not touching it for at least 1 minute to develop a nice char on one side. Then stir around the pan, cooking until softened. About 4-5 minutes total. Add kosher salt and black pepper to taste. Remove the shallots and bell peppers from the pan and put in an oven safe dish. You can add to the oven with the tortillas to keep warm, or just cover and set aside.
- Add one more tablespoon of oil to the same pan and place the sliced steak evenly, leaving space between pieces. Do not touch the steak for at least 2 minutes to get a nice char on one side, then stir to evenly brown on the other side – 4-5 minutes total.
- Place cooked flank steak in tortillas with bell peppers and onions or shallots. Top with any favorite toppings like salsa cheese, cilantro, sour cream, or avocado.
- To heat the tortillas – If you have a gas stove, place the tortilla on top of the grate over the open flame for about 30 seconds, watching carefully so there is a slight char, but it doesn't fully burn. When softened, flip and do the same on the opposite side. Oven method – Wrap tortillas completely in aluminum foil. Preheat oven to 350℉/177℃ and place the wrapped tortillas and shallot/pepper mixture in the oven to keep warm.
Notes
- On tart cherry juice – It sounds weird but makes a fantastic marinade for flank steak that’s both tart and rich at the same time. But if you don’t want to purchase a whole bottle for this recipe, this can be substituted for lime juice, coconut aminos, or soy sauce. If using lime juice, you can omit the added white vinegar. But if using the others, it needs the acidity.
- Kosher salt – I use Diamond kosher salt, which is a little less salty than Morton’s. Take note of this as you season the fajitas, as you may want to cut back to 1/2 teaspoon in the marinade. You can always add more salt if desired.
- Cutting the flank steak – It’s very important to slice the flank steak against the grain, which means to cut it in the opposite direction of where the lines run, not parallel to them. This will provide more tender steak vs. one that’s tough to chew.
- Marinade – You can marinate the steak as little as 20 minutes, up to 24 hours. Beyond that, the steak may begin to get mushy.
- HYH diet – See the post for brand recs. Use shallots instead of onions and either the tart cherry juice or coconut aminos. Do not use sour cream or avocado.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
These were excellent–loved the marinade! Served them as bowls instead of in tortillas. Thank you for this recipe! It will be added to our dinner rotation.
Give me all the steak!!! Seriously. The chimmichuri sauce is so good too.
I was trying to review the steak with chimmichuri 🤦
Really good recipe, but curious how you have calculated this to be 550 mg sodium per serving if there is no salt in the ingredients? Are you including the sodium from a tortilla that is high in sodium?
I use a program that calculates it for me (I just don’t have the time to do it manually) and it always counts it higher than the ingredients I suggest. It uses generic ingredients. I always recommend if people are doing low sodium to just calculate it manually based on what you’re using.
Loved this recipe. The marinade was great!