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Vegetarian Fajitas
Fajitas are a favorite of many people who enjoy Mexican or Tex-Mex cuisine. They are easy to prepare and of course, easy to love as well. They can be made with grilled meat and onions along with sautéed peppers or with all of the ingredients prepared on the stovetop instead; they are delicious either way, but of course, if you are able to grill your ingredients, your fajitas will be even more enjoyable.
Now of course, not all fajitas need to include meat; for instance, check out this vegetarian fajita recipe. It still features the robust, deep flavors of grilled (or roasted, if you do not have a grill) bell peppers, onions and in the place of meat, seitan.
In case you are unfamiliar with seitan, this is a food made from wheat, consisting almost solely of the protein (gluten) in the grain. It makes a wonderful meat substitute, especially for dishes which call for beef or pork. For this recipe, we will assume you are using premade seitan which is already seasoned; it is not all that hard to make your own, in case you were wondering, but that is a subject for another day - for now, our focus is on these amazing vegetarian fajitas.
Seitan and Bell Pepper Fajitas
Ingredients -
8 large (fajita-size) flour or whole wheat tortillas
1 package (12-16 oz) seitan, preferably beef-style, cut into strips or small chunks
1 large green bell pepper and 1 large red bell pepper, sliced
1 large yellow or white onion, chopped
Salsa, lime wedges, diced jalapeno, chopped cilantro or guacamole, for garnish
Oil for sautéing
Preparation:
If you are lucky enough to have a grill, then start by getting the fire going while you chop your ingredients. If you will be grilling, then dice your ingredients; if you are going to sauté things instead, then you will want to slice them into strips instead. If you are grilling, simply grill the seitan, peppers and onion until the peppers and onion soften and slightly caramelize. If you are sautéing instead, (and you may want to sauté the peppers in either case so that you can have them in the traditional strips rather than shorter, wider pieces suitable for grilling) then simply sauté with a little olive or vegetable oil over medium heat until tender.
Once your ingredients are grilled or sautéed to perfection, then serve with warm tortillas, salsa, chopped cilantro, lime wedges and jalapeno and guacamole or any other condiments and garnishes of your choice.
It is hard to go wrong with fajitas; and especially with these satisfying vegetarian seitan fajitas, everyone at your table will want to go back for seconds - and thirds, so you may actually want to double the recipe if you will be serving more than four people or if you and your guests are especially hungry. Fajitas have a way of disappearing fast; and while they are definitely best eaten hot as soon as they are prepared, few Mexican food lovers will say no to reheated leftovers either. If you have never had seitan or any other meat substitutes before, this fajitas recipe makes a great introduction to the world of vegetarian recipes.
