It seems that in every modern restaurant across the country there is always a fajita on the menu. This item is served at lunch, dinner and even breakfast.

A fajita generally refers in Mexican cuisine to grilled meat served on a flour tortilla with condiments. Popular meats are beef, chicken, pork and shrimp. They are often cooked with onions and bell peppers. Popular condiments are sour cream salsa and guacamole and Pico de Gallo. In restaurants, the fajita meat is traditionally brought to the table sizzling loudly on a metal platter or skillet, with the tortillas and condiments served on the side.

Texans would probably like to claim the fajita. History gives credit to Mexican ranch workers living in west Texas in the late 1930s or early 1940s. When a steer was butchered, the workers were given the least desirable parts to eat for partial payment of their wages. Because of this, the workers learned to make good use of a tough cut of beef known as skirt steak. In Spanish, fajita is a form of the word faja, which translates to belt or girdle in English.

The fajita is truly a Tex-Mex food. The Mexican term for grilled skirt steak is arracheras, and its American counterpart is fajitas. Today, the term fajita has completely lost its original meaning and has come to describe just about anything that is cooked and served rolled up in a soft flour tortilla.

The only true fajitas, however, are made from skirt steak. Before fajitas became popular throughout the United States, skirt steak was a cheap cut. Since then, however, the price of skirt steak has doubled and redoubled.

Fajitas start with the marinade. Marinades for beef fajitas rely on acid ingredients like lime juice not just for flavor, but to tenderize the meat. So that the marinade will have time to work, beef fajitas should be marinated several hours or up to 24 hours.

There is nothing written in stone when it comes to marinades. Cooks experiment with everything from bottled salad dressing or orange juice to tequila or Coca-Cola. Putting together your marinade can be a creative experience.

Great tortillas are available in your supermarket, and condiments can be purchased or homemade. Most of the items used are hot and spicy. By making your own condiments this can be controlled.

Here is a recipe for a traditional beef fajita. I also have included a recipe for two condiments that are traditionally used and some feel is necessary for the perfect fajita. Enjoy.

This column has been a collaborative effort between Auburn natives chef Max Hitchcock and his mother, Susan Silverman. They can be reached at Birdscapes@adelphia.net

Lime Marinade

Juice of 4 to 5 limes

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon light molasses

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

In a large resealable plastic bag, combine lime juice, vinegar, soy sauce, molasses, cilantro, garlic, cumin and pepper; set aside.

Pico de Gallo

Makes 2 to 2 1/2 cups

4 ripe plum tomatoes, seeded, finely chopped (about 1 pound)

1 small white onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

4 fresh jalapenos, seeded, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

Salt to taste

Mix tomatoes, onion, cilantro, jalapenos and lime juice. Add salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour, and serve the same day made.

Traditional Beef Fajitas

Makes 4 to 6 servings

1 1/2 pounds skirt steak

1 green or red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and thinly sliced

1 small onion, thinly sliced

3 tomatoes, chopped

Shredded cheddar cheese

Sour cream

Guacamole sauce

Salsa

Flour tortillas

Prepare Lime Marinade. Lay the skirt steak on a cutting board and remove the outer membrane (grab the membrane with one hand and slide the knife beneath it, cutting as you go). Using a sharp paring knife, make a number of slits in the meat, cutting both with and against the grain of the meat (this cuts the muscle fiber and reduces any toughness.)

In a large plastic bag filled with the Lime Marinade, add skirt steak; reseal and marinate in the refrigerator at least one hour or overnight, turning steak occasionally.

Remove steak from refrigerator and bring to room temperature before cooking. Preheat barbecue. Drain steaks, reserving marinade. Place steak on hot grill and spoon some of the reserved marinade onto the steak. Close barbecue lid, open any vents, and cook 3 to 5 minutes for medium-rare. Remove from grill and transfer to a cutting board; cut on the diagonal into thin strips.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wrap stacked tortillas in aluminum foil and heat in oven 15 minutes or until hot. To microwave, wrap a stack of tortillas lightly in paper towels and warm on high for 6 or 7 seconds per tortilla.

When the skirt steak is cooking, grill the green pepper and onion slices 1 to 2 minutes or until soft; remove from grill and place on a serving platter. Place cooked steak strips onto the same platter.

For each fajita, fill a warm tortilla with cooked steak and desired amounts of green pepper and onion slices. Add tomatoes, cheddar cheese, sour cream, guacamole and pico de gallo as desired; roll up like a burrito and enjoy.

Guacamole

2 ripe avocados, peeled (Haas avocados - the ones with bumpy skin)

2 tablespoons fresh lime or lemon juice

2 tablespoons minced white onion

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (optional)

1/2 teaspoon salt

Roughly mash the peeled avocados in a bowl. Leave lumps. Stir in the lime or lemon juice. Add all remaining ingredients. Adjust seasonings to taste. Serve at once.

If you must refrigerate guacamole, cover it with plastic wrap, placing the wrap directly on the surface. Contact with air will darken the guacamole. Use, however, as quickly as possible.

Guacamole heat preferences vary. Obviously, the heat depends upon the quantity of jalapenos used. Some chilies are hotter than others are, so experiment to determine your favorite proportion of ingredients.