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Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

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I’ll get to the point. We love tacos and fajitas. So much so that I came to the conclusion that we needed another Taco Tuesday, but let’s say on a Friday. I decided mix it up a bit and make these tasty fajita steak rice bowls, which feature juicy slices of homemade fajita-seasoned skirt steak along side sliced onions and peppers over rice. I promise the effort is worth the reward. What am I saying?! You’ll find this recipe is a quick and satisfying meal. This recipe comes from The Recipe Critic and will not disappoint.

First, bring out all your ingredients, which are your seasonings, olive oil, limes, soy sauce, skirt steak (try to pull it out an hour ahead of time because meat cooks more evenly when it’s at room temperature), peppers (any color you want), some butter, and rice (brown or white, your choice).

Go cook some rice.

Next, make the fajita seasoning. A lot of stuff (seven!) goes into this, but that’s where all the flavor. Please do that skip the chipotle chili pepper powder, which you can find among all the other spices at the grocery store. I hate buying spices that I never use again, but you can use this instead of your regular chili powder. It’s worth the purchase.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

Mix it up, spoon out some for your veggies, and put the rest aside for the marinade.

Time for the marinade. You don’t have to marinate the meat for hours. Love it. If you’re like me, you usually forget to marinate ahead of time. Not a problem here. In a gallon size zip-top bag, add olive oil, lime juice, soy sauce, and the fajita seasoning. Throw your steak in the mag, close the bag, and squish the bag around to coat the steak. Let it hang out on your counter while you slice and cook up the peppers and onion. BTW, you can use any color of bell pepper. Any type of onion too. I used yellow and red peppers with red onions.

Now you’re going to cook your onions. I used an iron cast skillet because it makes a nice crust on the steak and it makes me feel fancy (which is super important when cooking as it boosts your confidence level), but any skillet works. After you’ve softened the onion a bit, add your peppers and reserved fajita seasoning. Give it a stir. I don’t like overcooked, soft peppers so I only cooked them for about 4 minutes. These are perfect.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

Transfer them to a plate and set them aside.

Next is the steak. I did sort of make a mess, but that’s okay. Melt some butter in the skillet and gently place it in the pan so you don’t splatter the butter like I did.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

Sear the steak for about 4 minutes on each side. When you think it’s ready, take our your trusty instant thermometer. Wait, you don’t have one? You need to buy one (and no, I’m not making any money from this recommendation). It’s perfect when making sure your meat isn’t raw. Ick. I like mine around medium rare, which is about 145F. If you want it medium, cook until 160F. Let’s not discuss any other acceptable level of rareness.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

When the steak is cooked, transfer it to a cutting board and slice it as thin as you like. Fill a bowl up with hot, cooked rice. Throw on your steak and veggies. Add any toppings you like. Cilantro is a must in our family. We also added spicy pickled carrots and avocado. Yum.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

This is a make again. Two thumbs up. This meal pleases everyone because it’s both adult and kid friendly. The perfectly seasoned steak is flavorful without being too spicy. You can customize the bowl to however you want. My picky eater skipped everything but the rice and steak while throwing some cheese on top. Perfect! There’s no wrong way to make your bowl. Because I tend to low carb it, I skipped the rice and put it on a bed of kale (yes, I’m weird that way), but cabbage would have worked too.

Go make this. Please and thank you.

Chipotle Steak Rice Bowls

Servings 4

Ingredients
  

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons chipotle chili pepper powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
  • 3 tablespoon olive oil divided
  • 2 limes juiced
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 1/2 pounds skirt steak
  • 2 medium bell peppers any color
  • 1 medium onion any type
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 cups rice
  • your favorite toppings

Instructions
 

  • About an hour before cooking, place the steak on the counter so it comes up to room temperature.
  • In a small bowl, combine the chipotle chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Reserve 1 1/2 teaspoons for the vegetables.
  • In a large zip-top bag, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, lime juice, soy sauce, and the remainder of the fajita seasonings. Add the steak, seal the bag, and press the bag to coat the marinade onto steak. Set it aside on the counter while you prepare the vegetables.
  • Remove the onion skin and slice into thin strips. Core the bell peppers to remove the seeds and thinly slice.
  • Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a 12" cast iron or non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Add the onions and allow to cook for 4-5 minutes, or until softened. Add the bell peppers and sprinkle with the reserved 1 1/2 teaspoons of fajita seasoning. Cook for about 3-5 minutes. Transfer and set aside on a plate.
  • Melt butter on the same skillet and sear the steak. Allow to sear for 3 to 4 minutes (or more depending on how done you like your steak) on each side. Internal steak temperature should be 145F for medium rare or 160F for medium. Transfer steak to a cutting board and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing into thin strips.
  • Fill bowls with rice. Top with steak, onions, peppers, and your favorite toppings.
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