Fajita Seasoning: What Is in It, Where Fajitas Came From, and How to Use It

Fajitas started out as grilled skirt steak on Texas ranches, a cut that rose from throwaway to menu star. Today the seasoning goes on strips of beef or chicken, seared with peppers and onions and served in flour tortillas. At its core are chile, cumin, garlic and onion, plus something sour, like lime or citric acid, which is what sets it apart from taco seasoning.¹² There’s no single recipe, so below we put three named versions side by side.

At a glance

Where fajitas came from

Virginia B. Wood’s history of the dish in The Austin Chronicle draws on the first serious study of fajita history, done in 1984 by Homero Recio.³ The main points:

• Ranch origins. Recio found anecdotal evidence of fajitas going back to the 1930s in the ranch lands of South and West Texas. Byproducts were handed to Mexican vaqueros (cowboys) as part of their pay, and Wood describes skirt steak’s rise from throwaway cut to menu star.
• The cut. Wood glosses fajitas, also called arracheras, as grilled skirt steak. The Real Academia Española defines arrachera, in Mexican usage, as a beef cut from the diaphragm muscle.⁴
• First commercial sales, 1969. Sonny Falcon ran the first commercial fajita taco concession stand, in Kyle, Texas, in September 1969. The same year, Otilia Garza’s Round-Up Restaurant in Pharr, in the Rio Grande Valley, put fajitas on the menu, served on a sizzling platter with warm flour tortillas.
• Houston and Austin. In Houston in 1973, Ninfa Laurenzo’s restaurant sold fajitas as “tacos al carbon” and “tacos a la Ninfa.” Wood’s account picks up in Austin with George Weidmann, opening chef of the Hyatt Regency there in 1982.
• National spread. By the 1990s, fajitas were on the menu at Jack in the Box and Taco Bell.

You’ll sometimes read that skirt steak once belonged to a “category” of cuts including hooves and tripe. We couldn’t trace that.

What goes into fajita seasoning

Here’s what three named sources list, side by side, with McCormick’s taco seasoning for comparison:

How to read this:

• The USDA list is a minimum. The specification says fajita seasoning should include, but isn’t limited to, these ingredients.¹
• The sour element is the difference. The USDA list and the McCormick packet include lime or citric acid;¹² the taco label we checked has none.⁶ PepperScale’s recipe gets its tang another way, with optional tomato powder, which it says brings color and a tang reminiscent of the lime in fajita marinades.⁵
• “Spices” on a label may hide more. McCormick lists “spices (including chili pepper, cumin, paprika)”,² so other spices may be in there unnamed. A missing name doesn’t prove an ingredient is absent.

Flavor

A good fajita blend tastes of chile and cumin first, then garlic and onion, with a sour, lime-like edge that’s great on charred meat. You’ll often read that fajita seasoning is meant to recreate a traditional lime marinade. None of the sources we opened says so, though the USDA list and the McCormick packet above do include lime,¹² and PepperScale says the tomato powder in its blend gives a tang reminiscent of the lime used in fajita marinades.⁵ The same goes for the claim that vaqueros used citrus to tenderize skirt steak: we couldn’t trace it.

How it is used

Fajitas. McCormick’s directions use one packet per pound of chicken breast or beef sirloin, cut into strips and cooked in a little oil with sliced onion and bell pepper and a splash of water, then served in flour tortillas. Brown the meat, cook the vegetables, then return the meat and stir in the water and seasoning for about 3 minutes.² Skirt steak, the original cut, works the same way.

Other uses.

• A dry rub for grilled chicken thighs, skirt or flank steak, and shrimp.
• Sheet-pan peppers and onions, or roasted potatoes.
• Black beans, rice and burrito bowls.
• In place of taco seasoning, if you don’t mind a tangier, less oregano-forward result; see fajita vs. taco seasoning.

Making your own

PepperScale’s recipe: 3 tablespoons chili powder, 1 tablespoon each of salt, ground cumin and smoked paprika, 2 teaspoons each of garlic powder and onion powder, 1 teaspoon cayenne, and 1 teaspoon tomato powder (optional).⁵ The heat comes from the cayenne and smoked paprika, and it’s salted, so taste before salting the dish.

We found no federal or academic recipe with quantities, so here’s a starting point. Build from the USDA list¹ with chili powder or paprika as the base, about half as much cumin, smaller amounts of garlic powder, onion powder, oregano and black pepper, and salt to taste. For the sour note, add dried lime zest or a little citric acid, or finish the cooked meat with fresh lime juice. Taste and adjust. For which spices do which job, see good spices for fajitas.

Buying and quality

• Read the label. Packet mixes contain salt and often sugar and corn starch.² A salt-free blend lets you season to taste.
• Check for the sour note. A blend with no lime or citric acid is closer to taco seasoning.
• Freshness. It should smell clearly of chile and cumin. A dull, dusty smell means it’s faded.

Storage

Keep it airtight, dark and cool. We found no shelf-life figure from a regulator or standards body for fajita seasoning. For its homemade blend, PepperScale says to store it airtight for up to 3 months.⁵

Nutrition and health

You use small amounts, so the blend gives you little of any vitamin or mineral. Packet mixes contain salt. You’ll see claims that the capsaicin in fajita seasoning treats or prevents prostate or breast cancer, or that cumin stimulates digestive enzymes. None of the sources we reviewed supports them, and we don’t claim fajita seasoning treats or prevents any disease.

Safety

• Salt. Salt is in the USDA specification and on the McCormick label;¹² taste before adding more to the dish.
• Mycotoxins (EU). EU law sets maximum levels of ochratoxin A and aflatoxins for dried Capsicum spices such as chilli powder, cayenne and paprika,⁷ the chile in the blend.

Substitutes and comparisons

• Fajita seasoning substitutes
• Fajita vs. taco seasoning and taco seasoning
• Good spices for fajitas
• The single spices: chili powder, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, Mexican oregano
• Related blends: adobo seasoning