Traffic Light Fajitas (with Red Pepper, Yellow Pepper and Courgette)

Traffic Light Veg

The results are in!!! This week I asked you, the reader, which recipe you would like to see posted on the blog next. You voted on twitter ( @KitchenGoddess3 ) and on the Facebook Page and decided that you wanted to see my Traffic Light Fajitas, so here they are!

These Traffic Light Fajitas are so called because strips of red, yellow and green make up the bulk of the filling. The bold, vibrant colours remind you of fiery hot Mexico and the beaming hot sun. What a better way to celebrate the start of the hot weather than with this fun dish.

We often have “Mexican Night” in our house and although we eat our fair share of enchiladas, burritos and tacos, fajitas are the firm favourite.

Fajitas can be filled with almost anything. Chicken, beef and pork work really well but for the vegetarians among us (or meat eaters who just fancy a change) mixed peppers are the stars of the dish. Their ability to soften under the fiery heat of the pan yet retain their shape and a slight bite gives them the perfect texture when wrapped in a soft corn tortilla.

Courgettes may not initially an obvious choice. Often used in ragouts and slow cooked dishes where they are given the chance to soften and break down, they might not seem suitable for fajitas. However, by cutting the courgette into strips and cooking it hard and fast on a high heat you are able to retain the same kind of bite you get in the peppers.

I find the prep when making fajitas quite therapeutic. I think it’s the repetition of cutting neat, clean strips all of the same length and width. Or maybe it’s the fact that it’s normally carried out with a margarita in hand!!!

But it’s all part of the fun. Fajitas are all about everyone chipping in and sharing and what better way than with a jug of margaritas right?!



Traffic Light Fajitas with Orange and Chilli Salsa, Sour Cream and Avocado and Corriander Salad

So we’ve got the perfect red, yellow and green combination for our Traffic Light Fajitas but that’s only half of the battle. The sweet flavour of the veg needs to be kicked up a notch with a fiery blend of spices.
I first made my own spice blend when I had friends round in a “Come Dine with me Style” competition at university. Since then, Mr KG has refined it and we now have our house blend. It’s worth noting that everyone has different tastes so as you go do have a taste – some like it hot, some like it peppery. It’s up to you! As much as you can customise what condiments go into a fajita you can also customise the spice.

Our spice mix is as smokey as it is hot, but it’s not a pure chilli heat. The cayenne gives it a peppery kick too for a more well rounded flavour!

Mango and Avocado Salsa

This recipe for me was a really fun one! Just look at the vibrancy and the great mix of colours in that bowl – this mango and avocado salsa just screams joy, fun and laughter. But then again for me, so does Mexican food in general.

In this country most people’s first experiences of Mexican food come in the form of an Old El Paso fajita kit, (or perhaps these days it’s a Discovery pack or your Supermarket’s own brand version...)

When I was growing up Mexican food was really just starting to take off in this country. Old El Paso was seen as a real treat. It was exciting, fun, and all the family could get involved by building their own fajita/taco etc.

We still buy these kits every now and then and ‘fajita night’ is a much loved night in my house. It’s all about getting stuck in, getting a little bit messy and tailoring your food to your mood. Some day’s I’m feeling extra spicy and add mounds of jalapenos. Other day’s I want something creamy and velvety and pile on the sour cream and refried beans.

While there’s nothing wrong with using these kits. It’s really easy to do your own Mexican food at home – without taking these little short cuts. In my second year at university, some friends and I decided to do a “Come Dine with Me” style cooking competition. The idea was that we were all skint and wanted some cheap indoor entertainment. I decided that I wanted to do a Mexican Night. I had a bottle of margarita mix left over from god knows when, and the essential like a pack of chicken, wraps and sour cream could all be brought pretty cheaply. As it was a cookery competition I decided to steer away from the packet mixes and spent hours analysing the back of “fajita spice” packets before raiding my own spice cupboard to come up with my own personalised fajita spice blend.

That spice blend saw me win our little competition (though no prizes unfortunately) and set me up for fajita nights to come!

If you don’t feel like going to the extreme of developing your own spice blend, I don’t blame you! BUT there are other ways you can jazz up a Mexican meal without resorting to packets.

Take the jars of salsa for example. Travel to Mexico and I promise you the slop we buy in a jar that seeps a greyish-red liquid is NOT salsa. In fact they have hundreds of different salsas...none of which look like that!

SO, I propose you make your own salsa to serve alongside tacos, fajitas, enchiladas, or even just a delicious bit of steak as I did here. (But that’s for another day!)

I think the key to making a good salsa is to go for the key colour groups – green, red and yellow.

For example -

Green: coriander (cilantro), lime, avocado, green pepper, jalapenos

Red: tomatoes (fresh not tinned/canned), red pepper, red onion, watermelon, grapefruit, chilli peppers

Yellow: yellow pepper, sweetcorn, lemon, mango

You can mix and match any of these ingredients to make a fab Mexican inspired salsa! One thing I must say, when choosing ingredients from the colour groups above; don’t be afraid to add in fruit. The juice of lemons and limes is an obvious choice to give the salsa a bit of zing, but chunks of watermelon, grapefruit and mango all bring another flavour dimension and texture to the salsa.

I think this salsa works well for that exact reason. Not only does it include fresh mango, but also avocado which adds a creamy texture to the salsa and balances out the sharp lime juice.