Marinated Halibut-Veggie Fajitas

From the kitchen of Sheri' and Mark DuMond:

You don't have to go to a Mexican restaurant to enjoy some wonderful sizzling fajitas. The key to this dish is the marinade, which was concocted by Sheri'. It was pretty much done "on the fly" so ingredient amounts are approximated.

It helps to have a stove with some sort of device that can suck away the smoke. Otherwise you might be setting off your smoke alarms with this one.

Serves four.

For the halibut marinade:

1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. ancho chile powder (recipe follows)
Pinch ground cinnamon
2 tsp. olive oil

For the veggie marinade:

1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. ancho chile powder (recipe follows)
Pinch ground cinnamon
1 tsp. southwest chipotle seasoning (we use Tone's)
1/4 cup dry red wine
2 Tbsp. saffron oil
2 Tbsp. orange juice

4 small flour tortillas

3/4 lb. fresh halibut, skinned, rinsed and cut into 1" cubes

1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into bite-size pieces
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into bite-size pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, cored, seeded and cut into bite-size pieces
1 zucchini, trimmed and thinly sliced
1 red onion, trimmed, peeled and sliced into thin wedges

Condiments:

Medium red or green salsa
Prepared guacamole
Sour cream

Accompaniments:

Spicy slow-cooked black beans
Spanish rice

Put the tortillas inside a tightly wrapped piece of aluminum foil and place in a 275 degree oven to warm.

Place the fish marinade ingredients in a resealable plastic bag. Work it around in your hands to mix. Put the halibut chunks in the bag and shake around to coat with the marinade. Place in refrigerator to marinate for up to an hour.

Put the vegetable marinade ingredients in a large resealable plastic bag, seal the bag, and work everything around to thoroughly mix. Add all the cut veggies to the bag, seal it, and place in refrigerator to marinate for up to an hour.

When ready to serve, heat a cast-iron skillet over high heat with a little safflower or canola oil. When it's almost smoking, pour in the marinated veggies. Stir-fry for a couple minutes.

Put the marinated fish into the pan and continue to stir-fry for several more minutes, until the halibut is cooked through and opaque. Remove the pan from heat and scrape into a serving bowl. Take the warm tortillas out of the oven and put onto four separate serving plates.

Serve with black beans, spanish rice, guacamole, salsa, sour cream, and any other appropriate accompaniments.

ANCHO CHILE POWDER

2 large dried ancho chiles

Break the chiles into pieces, removing the stems and most of the seeds. (The more seeds you add to the finished product, of course, the spicier it's going to be.)

Put the chile pieces into a spice grinder or small food processor and buzz thoroughly until it becomes a gritty powder. Store in a jar at room temperature.