One of our favorite, fast, weeknight meals is this Chicken Fajitas Recipe. For years I relied on the seasoning packets to whip this meal up - but I recently discovered I could do it from scratch with just as much ease and with double or triple the tastiness.
Why You'll Love This Recipe
This easy chicken fajita recipe has been a long time favorite of mine! It is delicious every time. Serve it up with homemade guacamole and salsa to a dish you won't forget! You'll love it because:
- It is fast! This meal is done in under 30 minutes.
- It is healthy - tender veggies and lean proteins together are delicious and nutritious.
- It's versatile - swap out the protein for steak or shrimp and it is still equally delicious.
About The Ingredients
Everything you need for this chicken fajitas recipe can be purchased at your local grocery store. Here are a few items to note:
- Chicken - you can use boneless skinless chicken breast, or chicken tenderloins in this recipe. I kind of prefer the tenderloins because they are tender and cook up faster. But feel free to use chicken breast if you prefer.
- Bell peppers - use a mixture of colors. It's beautiful and flavorful.
- Onions - yellow or red onion are great options.
- Seasonings - to amp up the flavor we are making a homemade fajita seasoning using garlic, lime, and some dry spices like cumin, chipotle, and onion powder.
- Flour or corn tortillas - its a personal preference. I prefer corn tortillas, my husband prefers flour tortillas. Either way, warm them up as the base for your fajitas.
- Toppings of your choice - we like to serve these with guacamole, salsa, jalapeños, cilantro, shredded cheese, and sour cream.
For a complete list of ingredients and amounts, see recipe card below.
How To Make Skillet Fajitas
This fajita recipe comes together really fast. Let me show you how to do it.
- Start by marinating your chicken. In a large bowl add lime juice, lime zest, minced garlic, olive oil, cumin, chipotle, and onion powder. Whisk to combine. Add your chicken breast and cover. You can marinate for as little as 10 minutes while you chop veggies, or up to overnight for more flavor. This is the base of the fajita seasoning. You can also transfer the marinade to a large ziplock bag and toss the chicken in it.
- Chop your veggies in to ½ inch pieces. Make the onions and peppers into similar sizes. Mince your garlic.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a cast iron skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook tenderloins about 4 minutes each side, or until internal temp reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If using chicken breasts it takes about 7 minutes each side. Remove from skillet and set on a cutting board to rest.
- Add peppers, onion, and garlic to your skillet. Toss with juices in the pan and cook, stirring frequently until tender. Remove from heat.
- Slice chicken and return to the pan.
- Squeeze the juice of one lime on top of the veggies and chicken. Serve immediately with warmed tortillas, guacamole, and salsa. In less than 20 minutes you have a perfect fajita meal. The fresh lime juice takes it over the top.
Variations
This easy chicken fajitas recipe is so easy to adjust. Here are a few ideas:.
- Mix up the veggies - add what you love! I like to add cherry tomatoes and mushrooms to mine.
- Change the protein - you don't have to use chicken, try steak or shrimp for a delicious change.
How To Serve
- Use homemade tortillas or really good store bought ones.
- Top with your favorite toppings, and your 1-dish dinner is served! Some of our favorite toppings are guacamole, salsa, and sour cream. Some other fun options are jalapeños, cilantro, or lettuce.
- You can serve as a complete meal, or add in some Mexican rice or pinto beans.
FAQs
Yes, you can prep your chicken and veggies ahead of time and then cook everything up when you are ready. I wouldn't recommend cooking ahead of time though. There is something special about fresh sizzling fajitas.
Yes! The chicken and veggie mixture is gluten free. Opt for a corn tortilla and the complete meal is gluten free.
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Chicken Fajitas Recipe
Equipment
- Cast Iron Skillet
Ingredients
Chicken Marinade
- 1 lb chicken breast you can also use chicken tenderloins
- juice from 2 limes
- zest from 1 lime
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon ground chipotle powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon cumin
Fajita Ingredients
- 3 bell peppers sliced into ½ inch pieces
- 1 red onion sliced into ½ inch pieces
- 1 clove garlic minced
- juice from one lime divided
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Fixin Ideas
- Flour or corn Tortillas
- shredded cheese
- sour cream
- salsa
- guacamole
- lime wedges
- shredded lettuce
Instructions
- Start by marinating your chicken. In a large bowl add lime juice, lime zest, minced garlic, olive oil, cumin, chipotle, and onion powder. Whisk to combine. Add your chicken breast and cover. You can marinate for as little as 10 minutes while you chop veggies, or up to overnight for more flavor.
- Chop your veggies in to ½ inch pieces. Make the onions and peppers into similar sizes. Mince your garlic.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a cast iron skillet. Add chicken and cook tenderloins about 4 minutes each side, or until internal temp reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If using chicken breasts it takes about 7 minutes each side. Remove from skillet and set on a cutting board to rest.
- Add peppers, onion, and garlic to your skillet. Toss with juices in the pan and cook, stirring frequently until tender. Remove from heat.
- Slice chicken and return to the pan.
- Squeeze the juice of one lime on top of the veggies and chicken. Serve immediately with warmed tortillas, guacamole, and salsa. In less than 20 minutes you have a perfect fajita meal.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Erin V says
guac is perfect for these- sososososo good
sammmie says
made these and were sold! so dang good.
divyah says
Yay! Thank you for sharing! Yes, there is so much you can do to make this recipe your own. Your additions sound fantastic...especially marinated kale. If you don"t mind my asking, what did you marinate the kale in?
WOMANTALENT says
Thanks time to load up
Adri says
Wow! This sounds great to me. This proves that with some smart prep work, it is indeed possible to have tasty and wholesome food 7 days a week. Thanks for this one.