Bona fide fajitas

6 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2.00 pounds To 3 lb whole beef skirt; trimmed of fat and membra
12.00 ounce Beer
½ cup Oil, prefer. corn or canola
½ medium Onion; chopped
1.00 Juice of 2 limes
4.00 each Cloves garlic; minced
1.00 each Bay leaf
2.00 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1.00 tablespoon Chili powder
1.00 teaspoon Fresh-ground black pepper
1.00 teaspoon Crushed chiltepins or chiles pequin
1.00 teaspoon Ground cumin
4.00 small Red-ripe tomatoes, prefer. romas or; sliced
½ each Bell pepper, preferably red; chopped
¼ cup Fresh cilantro; chopped
¼ cup Red onion; chopped
2.00 each To 3 fresh serranos; minced or-
3.00 each To 4 fresh jalapenos; minced
1.00 Juice of 1/2 lime
½ teaspoon Salt or more to taste
2.00 tablespoon To 4 tb tomato juice (opt'l)
1.00 Warm flour tortillas
1.00 Lime wedges and cilantro sprigs, fo
1.00 Sour cream

Directions

The night before you plan to barbecue, combine the marinade ingredients in a blender and puree. Place the skirt steak in a plastic bag or shallow dish and pour the marinade over it.

Refrigerate the skirt steak overnight, turning occasionally if needed to saturate the surface with the marinade.

Prepare the smoker for barbecuing, bringing the temperature to 200 degrees F to 220 degrees F.

Remove the skirt steak from the refrigerator and drain it, reserving the marinade if you plan to baste the meat. Let the skirt sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Make the pico de gallo by combining all the ingredients except the tomato juice in a bowl. If you prefer a more liquid consistency, add some or all of the tomato juice. Refrigerate until serving time.

If you are going to baste the meat, boil the marinade in a saucepan over high heat for several minutes and then keep the mop warm over low heat.

Transfer the skirt steak to the smoker. Cook for approximately 1 hour, mopping every twenty minutes in a woodburning pit, or as appropriate for your type of smoker.

If your smoker has a separate grill area for cooking directly over the fire, or if you have another grill handy, move the meat there and sear it for 1 to 2 minutes per side. This step adds a pleasant exterior texture, but isn't necessary for flavor. Alternatively, smoke the meat for about 15 minutes longer.

Let the skirt sit for 10 minutes and then slice thinly at a diagonal against the grain. Pile the meat and warm tortillas on a platter garnished with lime wedges and cilantro, and serve the pico de gallo and sour cream on the side.

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