Chicken Fajitas! Seared in a homemade Fajitas seasoning so you get a gorgeous chargrilled crust for a true Fajita experience. Combined with the kaleidoscope of colours of the Fajita veggies, who can resist this Mexican favourite that just happens to be healthy??
Whenever I see yellow capsicums (bell peppers) at the shops, I always think of Fajitas.
Scratch that. When I see yellow capsicums on sale at the shops, I always think of Fajitas.Just being honest. Yellow capsicums are available most of the year, but they’re usually a bit pricey. When they come down to $6/kg (that’s $3/lb), I pounce.
I’m not one for cooking with colour. At least, not deliberately. Regular readers know I’m partial to brown and yellowy foods. Ugly-But-Delicious foods that are notoriously difficult to photograph so they look sexy. Like curries, lamb shanks, beef cheeks, stews, lentil soup. Brown, brown, brown.
So I always feel especially cheerful when I’m sharing a colourful recipe – like these Chicken Fajitas!!
When I was doing my usual research before I shared this recipe, I was interested to see that there are a lot of Chicken Fajita recipes made using wet marinades with varying combinations of lime, orange juice, sometimes chicken broth (this was new to me!), olive oil, chipotles in adobo, soy sauce plus flavourings like oregano, garlic, cumin etc.
I like to use a wet marinade for Beef Fajitas because I think it benefits from tenderising. But for Chicken Fajitas, I’ve always made mine using a homemade Fajita Seasoning rather than a wet marinade. I like the char grilled crust you get when seared over high heat – it’s the Fajita way!
With most tacos, I like to serve them with a variety of fixings on the side both for flavour and to add texture to the taco filling. Especially something to provide some wetness, a sauce of some kind or a Pico de Gallo (tomato salsa), sometimes with avocado.
However, with Fajitas, the capsicum and onions are cooked over very high heat so they are beautifully juicy and also provide nice texture because they’re tender-yet-crisp. So usually, I only feel the need for a dollop of sour cream and a squeeze of lime juice.
But don’t let me hold you back. Go wild with your sides! Some favourites for Fajitas include: Shredded cheese, Guacamole (real deal Mexican style!), Pico de Gallo tomato salsa, Restaurant Style Salsa (pureed so it’s like a sauce) and Pickled Red Cabbage.
And lastly, confession time: crank up the volume when you watch the video, and tell me if you can resist doing a little jiggy….. Bet you can’t!! ?????? – Nagi xx
Chicken seared in a wicked homemade Fajita Seasoning so you get that gorgeous crust, then stuffed inside tortillas with chargrilled capsicum/bell peppers and onion. Colourful, flavour loaded and just happens to be healthy! Makes about 15 tacos. Click here for STEAK FAJITAS.
- 1/2 tsp each onion powder and garlic powder (Note 1)
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional, adjust to taste)
- 1 tsp each cumin, paprika, oregano
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 3 chicken breasts (600 - 700g / 1.2 - 1.4lb)
- 3 tbsp lime juice
- 2 tbsp olive oil, separated
- 1 EACH red, green and yellow capsicum / bell pepper, medium size
- 2 onions
- Small tortillas (corn or flour), warmed
- Sour cream
- Lime wedges
- Fresh coriander / cilantro leaves
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Combine Fajita Seasoning in small bowl.
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Cut chicken in half horizontally to form 2 steaks. If thicker than 1.5cm / 3/5", pound to even thickness (optional). Place in bowl, add Seasoning, lime juice and a little drizzle of oil. Mix, set aside for 30 minutes - 24 hours. (Can skip marinating if needed)
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Deseed capsicum and cut into 7mm / 1/3" strips. Halve onion and cut into thin wedges (or just slice).
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Heat 1 tbsp oil over medium high heat in a heavy based skillet.
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Add half the chicken and cook for 2 - 3 minutes on each side, until nicely charred. Transfer to plate, cover loosely with foil. Repeat with remaining chicken.
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Scrape black bits out of skillet. Turn up to heat to high, heat remaining oil in skillet until smoking.
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Add half the capsicum/onion. Cook for 2 - 3 minutes until charred and tender yet still a bit crisp. When it starts to sweat, sprinkle with salt & pepper. Transfer to serving platter, cook remaining capsicum/onion.
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Slice chicken thinly, pile onto serving platter.
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Warm tortillas. To serve, take a tortilla and top with capsicum/onion. Top with chicken, a dollop of sour cream, drizzle of lime juice and coriander leaves. Eat and enjoy!
1. The onion and garlic powder can be substituted with 2 garlic cloves, minced. Add it with the lime juice.
2. To warm tortillas, I normally wrap a stack in foil then pop them in the oven. If I'm really lazy, I'll just microwave them!
3. I like to keep Fajitas simple with the chicken and juicy tender-crisp capsicum and onions and just have sour cream and lime juice on the side. However, don't let me stop you! Here are some more Taco Fixings: Shredded cheese, Guacamole (real deal Mexican style!), Pico de Gallo tomato salsa, Restaurant Style Salsa (pureed so it's like a sauce) and Pickled Red Cabbage.
4. Nutrition is per taco, assuming 15 tacos made using flour tortillas. Toppings not included - I cannot be held responsible for how much you load these up!
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Chicken Fajitas recipe video! Crank up the volume and do a little jiggy!
LIFE OF DOZER
Assessing the distance between him, the Fajitas and the door versus me behind the camera.
Calculated risk assessment result: No go. Better chance of getting a treat for good behaviour.
Made this for dinner tonight! Perfect and delicious, as always! Thank you, Nagi! 🙂
Great to hear you enjoyed this Jamieanne! Thanks for letting me know 🙂 N x
Delicious!! Just made it tonight and will definitely make it again! Thank you.
Fantastic! So glad you enjoyed this Izel! N x
Delicious! I am pregnant and couldn’t stand the idea of cutting up any garlic or onion (or any strong smelling thing). This was perfect!! So simple, tasty…
I had no limes so I used 4 tbs of lemon juice. Basically I used the chicken marinade and grilled the chicken on the bbq, cubed the meat and had a lazy mans nachos. Except they tasted awesome! The chicken was the star. I only marinated it for 6 hours and it was tasty! I did cook it for a much longer time as even though I thought the chicken pieces were thin enough they were thick when cooking them. Plus right now I like things pretty well done… sorry!
My husband demolished his and even commented afterwards how it was tasty (feedback from him is like blood from a stone).
Another hit! Thanks Nagi!
Fantastic! So glad you both enjoyed this Chantelle! N x
PS Blood from a stone… 😂
This is my go to recipe for fajitas! I put the seasoning on leftover shredded chicken & do a quick fry. I also make a quick pickled red onion, guacamole, and salsa. The family also likes them w/sour cream. One of my family’s favs. Thanks Nagi!!!
That’s terrific to hear Lani! Great idea on using precooked chicken 🙂 So glad you enjoyed this – N x
Heating flour tortillas on a hot skillet (or on an open flame) will take your Mexican food dining to a whole new level.
Heating corn tortillas in hot oil will make you weep.
Thanks for sharing this great recipe! My husband and I have enjoyed it very much!
I am, truly, finally learning to expand my cooking skills now that I am retired and have more time. This recipe is excellent—I have made it twice for friends and they love it. Thank you for making me look good, Nagi! We used the leftovers for nachos the next day. (Only leftover because I made 1.5 times the recipe because that was the size of the chicken package.)
The taste I should excellent for those of us who do not like chipotle.
I have had so-so success with cake recipes from other sites, so will try your red velvet cake because I really like your detailed explanations and humour.
Thanks from deep in the woods in Canada!
Love hearing that Anna! Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed it! N xx
Made these tonight and they are AMAZING. Way better than any restaurant nearby. I used enough seasoning for 3 breasts on just 2, because I like extra sense flavor. I also used a bit of chipotle powder. Fantastic! Thanks!
Thank you so much for sharing your feedback Nina, I’m so pleased to hear you enjoyed this! N x ❤️
Just made here tonight. This recipe is absolutely amazing. It was sooooooo good. Will be cooking this a lot!
I’m so pleased to hear that Jenny! Thanks for sharing your feedback! N x 😊