Stuck for ideas for dinner? Impress the family with the One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta
Gotta love one pot dishes, right? Delicious meals do not need to use lots of pots and pans. I love cooking, but I hate the cleaning up afterwards, so that's were dishes like this one are perfect.
I've been meaning to make my yummy Chicken Fajita Pasta again, as it has been a long time since I made it, but then realized I hadn't take the chicken out of the freezer. I did have some beef strips that needed to be used, so you know me, I decided on a new take on the recipe, with a One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta.
This is everything you love about fajitas, lovely sweet peppers and onions, with strips of beef and a yummy spicy seasoning. Instead of serving with warmed tortillas. This dish is mixed with a pasta and a lovely silky sauce. Actually the sauce is pretty amazing.
Infact it was so good, we didn't miss the tortillas at all, which in turn means this yummy One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta is SYN FREE. Yet another reason to enjoy this dish.
You can also vary this up by swapping the beef for pork or chicken.
It does have a slight kick from the cayenne pepper, but the kids loved it. They will tolerate a little heat, so long as it isn't too spicy. I also add as little bit of Sukrin Gold ( a natural brown sugar sweetener with no aftertaste). It add's a little bit of sweetness to the heat of the cayenne which is perfect.
To keep this syn free, I use a little bit of quark along with the cheddar from healthy extra A allowance for that creaminess, but if you really do not like quark, you can substitute with a little cream cheese and syn it.
I then served with some chopped cilantro (coriander) and additional grated cheddar for sprinkling on top. You can also add a mixed salad for some additional speed foods.
Love this One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta? and want some other one pot recipes? Then check out these:
- Syn Free One Pot Shrimp Pasta
- Syn Free One Pot Creamy Zucchini Pasta
- Low Syn Instant Pot Bombay Lamb Curry
- Chana Masala
- Spicy Prawn and Vegetable Risotto
- Beef and Six Bean Chilli
- Mushroom Risotto
With many more delicious recipes to be found in my full Recipe Index
One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta, all served up - yum!!
Syn Free One Pot Beef Fajita Pasta
Prep
Cook
Total
Yield 4 servings
This recipe is Slimming World and Weight Watchers friendly
- Extra Easy - 1 HEa per serving
- WW Smart Points - 15
Ingredients
- 45og (1lb) or beef strips, uncooked
- 350g (12.5oz) of Penne pasta (or other pasta of choice)
- 2 red onions, sliced
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
- 1 green bell pepper, sliced into strips
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- juice of half a lime
- 2 tbs of tomato paste
- 1 tbs of cumin
- 1 tbs of paprika
- 1 tsp of of oregano
- ½ tsp of onion powder
- ½ tsp of garlic powder
- ¼ tsp of cayenne pepper
- ½ tbs of Sukrin Gold(or use other sweetener of choice)
- 4.5 cups (1.1 litres) of chicken or vegetable stock
- 2 tbs of quark
- 60g (2oz) of cheddar cheese, grated - 2 HEa's
- salt and black pepper
- spray oil
to serve:
- 60g (2oz) of cheddar cheese, grated - 2 HEa's
- fresh chopped cilantro (coriander)
Instructions
- Spray a deep pan over a medium high heat with spray oil
- Add the beef and brown till golden, remove and set aside
- Add the onion and a little bit of stock and fry till softened.
- Add the peppers and garlic
- Add in the lime juice, tomato paste, cumin, paprika, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, sukrin and cayenne and mix to coat.
- Stir in the pasta and stock
- Bring to a boil and then simmer uncovered until the sauce starts to reduce down and cook the pasta (Approx 10 mins)
- When the pasta is almost cooked add back in the beef.
- Stir in the quark and 60g of cheddar and continue stirring until the cheese melts and the sauce becomes lovely and silky and coats the pasta. Season as needed with salt and black pepper.
- Serve immediately, topping each serving with a little of the additional 60g of cheddar and some chopped cilantro (coriander)
Notes
Variation: swap the beef for chicken or pork
Don't like quark? You can sub with cream cheese, but syn accordingly.
Healthy Extra A servings of cheese can vary from the UK to the USA, so adjust accordingly.
Nutritional information is an estimate and is to be used for informational purposes only.
Ingredients can vary greatly from brand to brand and therefore it would be impossible to give accurate information. Also double check syn values of sinned ingredients as different brands can vary.
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Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving | ||
|---|---|---|
Calories 649 | ||
% Daily Value | ||
Total Fat 15.1 g | 23% | |
Saturated Fat 7.7 g | 39% | |
Cholesterol 94.3 mg | 31% | |
Sodium 434 mg | 18% | |
Total Carbohydrates 78.3 g | 26% | |
Dietary Fiber 5.5 g | 22% | |
Sugars 1.3 g | ||
Protein 50.2 g | 100% | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Made this tonight and it was fantastic. Even my fussy 16 year old ate it peppers and all. Think this will become a family regular.
Thanks for sharing the recipe and for all the other wonderful recipes on your site, they make planning what to cook so much easier when you want to try different things.
Can you make this for the day before x
It is best enjoyed on the day of cooking, but I had leftovers the day before and it was perfectly fine 🙂
looks lovely. want to try this tonight, but with a fussy household who dont like peppers, is it freezeable?
Thanks
Pasta is always best eating on the day of cooking, but it will freeze okay, it just won't will not be as al dente 🙂
This is delicious and very easy to make . Love that it's made in one pot !
Made this tonight and it was enjoyed by all the family. I was wondering if this is suitable to reheat?
Hi Michelle, pasta is always best eaten once cooked, but it does reheat fine. I often have leftovers of any pasta the next day. Hope that helps 🙂
This recipe is incredible, really quick and easy to make and tasted delicious! I used a whole 250g tub of Quark as I like creamy pasta sauce and to tone down the spiciness a bit for my toddler! She loved it too!
I made this tonight for the second time. Whole family loves it!! Thankyou for sharing this recipe!!x
I made this this week and it was absolutely delicious! Definitely a new favourite! Will need ro make the chicken fajita pasta next!!
Quick and easy and tastes amazing! I always leave out the cayenne pepper as I don't like anything spicy but it's a family favourite in our house 🙂
hi, I'm new to this site. I'm in the US and have never seen Quark - is there a good substitute? Many thanks
-
Hi Lisa - check out http://www.elliquark.com for quark in the USA 😉
Made this tonight but cooked or in my instant pot (for tender beef) and cooked the pasta separate , then combined it all in th IP .
I didn't use any cheese or quark, and it was delicious.
Next time I will make it the she same but add mushrooms, peas and spinach. Can't wait..
What a greAt idea to do the meat part in the instant pot.
One of my favourite dishes. Quick and easy to make.
Another winner with the family. Yummie Scrummie! Love it!
This is so delicious and easy to make. Even a hit with my fussy toddler.
So happy to hear this was a hit with your family, I have to say my kids love it too.
Made this yesterday. Only got a taste as my lads devoured the lot, a hit with them and me, will deffo be making this again, and again.only thing I did different was to use the tomato and herb quark.
Made this lots of times now and it is so tatsy and one of my favourite dinners! Even the fussy kids eat it. First time I masde it I mis-read the recipe and put in too much cayenne...was very hot but I still ate it amyway, wasn't until my other half questioned how much I put in and looked at the recipe that I realised it wasn't supposed to be that spicy LOL! Love that is all in one pot as well - means less washing up for me! Sometimes I put chicken in instead of beef.
It's so very easy to use too much cayenne, it does pack quite the punch, but is a great spice for adding a little kick. Thanks for commenting.
Absolutely lovely I can’t wait to make it again it tastes like something u would have off plan at a restaurant I litterly had to stop myself from having seconds thank u so much for your recipes xx
so glad you enjoyed it Leanne, thanks so much for coming back and leaving a comment 🙂
Made this dish,it was so easy to make and so tasty . Is going to be a firm favourite with us.
This is definitely a new favourite for me and my family. I never would have thought of putting these flavours with pasta (I would have gone for rice), but it really works! Thank you!
thanks Emma, so glad you enjoyed it.
I made this with 5% fat beef mince, because that’s what I had to hand, and it was lovely.
I know it says serve straight away, but I portioned some up for myself for work the next day & my son for school the next day, I was still lovely all the same. thank you, yet another great recipe on my ‘regular’ list.
Do you think you could substitute the pasta for rice in this dish? Thanks, Alex
I’m sure rice would work, but haven’t tested and liquid and timing may need to be adjusted.
Made this on Monday night.
Family begged for it again on the Tuesday, but this time with chicken!
I think we're on to a winner.