Monday, January 11, 2010

In Praise of Processed Foods

OK.  This is going to sound ridiculous, but after tonight's meal, I just can't help but publish a post in praise of the Old El Paso Fajita Dinner Kit.

After a horrible night's sleep last night and an insane day at work, the odds of me making and legitimately enjoying a home-cooked meal were slim to none; however, thanks to the blessed companies Goya and Old El Paso (and Betty Crocker, apparently!), Matt and I were able to toast with our delicious Gascon Malbec to a fabulous and relaxing Monday night meal together.

Maybe I like the convenience of pre-made seasoning sauce packets and microwaveable tortillas!  So sue me!  Just trust.  With a few tweaks and additional ingredients, these fajitas are incredibly flavorful and fresh (and, yes, easy).

MORGAN'S OLD EL PASO FAJITA DINNER (adapted from Old El Paso)

(picture from Mi blog es tu blog)

1 Old El Paso Fajita Dinner Kit (includes flour tortillas, seasoning packet, and sauce packet)
2 tbs olive oil
2 tbs butter
2 - 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 white or yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 bell pepper (any color), thinly sliced
1/2 head romaine lettuce chiffonade
1 bunch cilantro, stems removed
jarred salsa (we used Green Mountain Gringo - Hot)
sour cream
shredded Mexican-style cheese (any mix will do)

1 box Latin-style rice (I recommend using anything GOYA - I particularly enjoy their Yellow Rice [Arroz Amarillo] and Curry Rice [Arroz Curry])

Start boiling the water for the rice (follow the instructions on the box - I usually add either 1 tbs of oil or butter to the water, depending).  The rice actually takes the longest out of anything else in this meal!

Meanwhile, clean and slice the onion, bell pepper, and lettuce, and clean and tear apart the cilantro.  Set aside.  Cut the chicken breasts into thin strips.  (Note: Sometimes the chicken breasts are thick enough that I will cut them in half horizontally to allow for thinner pieces.)

*** Be sure to add the rice to the boiling water before you start cooking the fajita filling, otherwise the rice won't be done on time.  The cooking time for boxed rice is usually around 20 - 25 minutes.  (Note: I've found that the instructions on boxes of rice generally produce a wet result.  Therefore, I add a tiny bit less liquid and turn the burner on a tiny bit higher than recommended.  Disclaimer: your mileage may vary.) ***

Melt 1 tbs butter and 1 tbs olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the chicken strips and give the pan a shake to keep the chicken from sticking.  Add a little bit of salt and pepper to season (not too much - there's plenty of salt in the seasoning packet!).

Once the chicken is seared on all sides, add the onion, pepper, and seasoning packet, and if necessary, another tbs of oil.  Stir to coat.  After the vegetables have sweat out a little bit of liquid (1 - 3 minutes), add the contents of the sauce packet.  (Note: Old El Paso says not to cook the sauce at all; however, I like the it to be warm and evenly distributed throughout the filling, not simply drizzled on top of the finished product.)

While the sauce heats through, take the tortillas out of their foil, place them on a plate, cover with a paper towel, and microwave on high for 60 seconds.

At this point, the filling, rice, and tortillas will all (hopefully) be done.  Bring to the table along with the lettuce, cilantro, sour cream, salsa, and shredded cheese.  Build your fajitas using any combination of the above ingredients that you desire!

I may be a "foodie," but I'm not a snob - and with this blog entry, I rest my case.

- M

4 comments:

  1. But you've still done a lot of cooking! Its not as though the fajitas came pre-made in the box and you just heated them up. All that came for you were the tortillas, sauce, and seasoning. I can't imagine making tortillas in a home kitchen is even remotely feasible without some serious knowledge/skill/equipment. So you just got lots of convenient ingredients together in the same box, easy. The only downside is that I believe you've reached the week's sodium quota, but meh, who's counting?

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  2. Once in a while it's not so bad to have a little bit of processed food. But not everyday...

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