Hidden Valley Skillet Fajitas

This is one of Matt’s and my favorite Saturday-night-cook-at-home-after-the-kids-are-in-bed recipes. Simple and so good!

1 packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
1 1/2 T olive oil
1 1/2 T water
1 lb flank steak strips (we actually always get shoulder tender medallions – they’re about $6 a pound and much better than flank) OR chicken breast strips (this is good too, but since we eat very little beef, we usually have the steak version)
3 cups assorted pepper and onion strips
2-3 sliced fresh jalapenos (if you like spicy stuff!)
sliced mushrooms (ok, not a traditional fajita ingredient, but we love them!)
flour tortillas
Fillings: guacamole, salsa, sour cream, shredded cheese

This is how the recipe says to do it: Combine dressing mix, oil and water in a skillet. Saute steak in this mixture. Add vegetables; cook until tender-crisp (or longer if you like). Roll in tortillas with desired fillings.

But this is how we do it, because otherwise, we feel that the meat gets overcooked: Combine dressing mix, oil and water in a skillet. Saute steak in this mixture until cooked as much as you want it. Remove from the pan, leaving as much of the “sauce” as possible. Add about another tablespoon of olive oil to the pan, and cook the peppers. After a couple of minutes, add the onions, jalapenos and mushrooms. Cook as long as you like (we prefer the vegetables be softer than stir-fry). Before serving, stir the meat (which will have most of the seasoning on it) back into the pan. Roll in tortillas with desired fillings.

You could also just cook the vegetables in a separate skillet, which would save time over doing it the way we usually cook it!

There’s usually leftovers for another fajita the following day.