5:30 Challenge: Classic fajitas

Classic fajitas

To make the meal:

Fresh salsa

Guacamole

Sour cream

Classic fajitas are made with skirt steak, a cut of beef that can be difficult to find at the grocery store. Flat iron steak, hanger steak and even flank steak also work equally well. Each cooks quickly and is tender when thinly sliced on the bias.

Fresh salsa can be made quickly beginning with a mixture of colorful fresh tomatoes chopped in the food processor. Add a little chopped onion and dress with salt and a few tablespoons of olive oil. For the guacamole, roughly chop an avocado and mix with olive oil, lime juice and salt to taste, and you’ve got all your sides fixed while the steak is grilling.

Classic Fajitas

Hands on: 20 minutes

Total time: 20 minutes

Serves: 4

1 pound skirt, flat iron, hanger or flank steak

Juice of 1 lime

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 red or orange bell peppers, cored, seeded, and cut into large wedges

1 onion, cut into half-inch slices

8 (6-inch) whole wheat flour tortillas, warmed

Preheat grill pan over high heat.

Sprinkle both sides of steak with lime juice, salt and pepper. Place in grill pan and cook until well-seared and dark brown on first side, 4 to 6 minutes. Flip steak and grill 2 to 5 minutes more or until just slightly less done than your family prefers. Remove steak from pan, cover and set aside.

Add peppers and onions to hot pan and cook until lightly charred, about 6 minutes, turning occasionally. Remove from grill, slice into thin strips and set aside.

When ready to serve, slice steak very thinly on the bias and against the grain. Taste for seasoning and add more salt and pepper if needed. Arrange steak, peppers and onions on platter and serve with warm tortillas.

Per serving: 437 calories (percent of calories from fat, 34), 28 grams protein, 43 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fiber, 17 grams fat (6 grams saturated), 58 milligrams cholesterol, 654 milligrams sodium.

Take the 5:30 Challenge. If you have a great-tasting main-dish recipe that uses no more than five ingredients and can be made in 30 minutes or less, tell us. (Salt, pepper, water and oil for greasing a pan don’t need to be included in the ingredients.) You can also suggest a side dish if it can be made within the same time. Send recipes to 5:30 Challenge, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Sixth Floor, 233 Perimeter Center Parkway N.E., Atlanta, Ga. 30346. E-mail fivethirty@ajc.com.