It's easy to great restaurant quality chicken fajitas with the best-tasting chicken. Just follow the simple step by step photo instructions. Only a little work and almost no skill and you have a new house favorite.
Editor's Note: Originally Published May 3, 2012. Republished with expanded explanation and discussion along with updated photos.
Only a little work and almost no skill and you have a new house favorite. Happy almost Cinco de Mayo.
Here is the "other" restaurant favorite: Beef Steak Fajita, I knew that chicken wouldn't be far behind.
I always go back and forth chicken or beef... beef or chicken... What to do? Your choice. But both are easy and if you care, much cheaper at home. Another candidate for house favorite recipe.
Start with chicken, clean it and cut up. Now marinade for a few hours, cook in a heavy cast iron skillet then do some veggies, and you are good to go.
My Rating
I always love great Mexican, and this is it.
Pro Tips: Recipe Notes for Easy Chicken Fajitas
I wanted something that would fit ingredients that I almost always have on hand. I'll do an "inspired by" to an Allrecipe.com recipe. There are many great finds there. I kicked the spice up some and added expanded explanation.
What Chicken to Use?
Fresh chicken is preferred here. Use skinless boneless breasts or thighs. I don't recommend precooked shredded chicken like a rotisserie chicken.
I cut the chicken into strips and then broke them up during cooking. This gives a little of that shredded texture while still having chunks. Cut them into small cubes if you want, but I think that looks like dog food.
The Secret to the Great Taste
The key to why this recipe is so good is the marinade. Most home recipes are some dry spice mix from the store. It is just not acceptable after you try this.
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Start by mixing a marinade in a 1-gallon zip lock. 2 tablespoon lime juice, 4 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/ 4 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, 1-2 cloves of garlic crushed.
Clean and trim about 1 1/2 pound of skinless boneless chicken breasts. This is about 2 medium-large ones. Don't worry if you're a little over or under that amount. Cut the chicken into strips about 1/2 inch thick.
Add to the marinade and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Overnight is fine also.
When ready to cook. Put 1 teaspoon oil in a large cast iron pan and heat over medium-high heat. While heating, slice up a large onion and one or two peppers. I like a medium red and green pepper. If your pepper is large, you only need one. Mix 1 tablespoon water, 1 teaspoon lime juice and 1 teaspoon soy sauce in a small bowl.
When the oil is hot, add the veggies and after a few minutes add the water, soy sauce, and lime mixture. When onions are nicely browned (about 8-9 minutes), Remove from pan and set aside and cover.
Add a little oil to the pan. When hot, add the drained chicken and brown. Near the end of cooking, break apart the chicken with a wooden spoon. This will make much smaller pieces and prove the meat is cooked. About 8-9 minutes. Please check a few of the large piece with an instant-read thermometer to be sure you are to 165 degrees.
When the chicken is done, move the meat to one side and add the veggies back to the pan. Cook and stir for a minute or two until veggies are reheated.
Serve with heated tortillas, sour cream, guacamole and anything else you like. An easy way to heat tortillas is to sprinkle a dish towel with some water put tortillas inside and heat in a microwave on high for one minute.
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Easy Chicken Fajitas
Ingredients
- 2 skinless boneless chicken breasts - cut into thin slices or cubes
Marinade
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 4 tablespoons water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1-2 cloves garlic - crushed
Veggies
- 1 teaspoon oil
- 1 pepper - large or 2 medium - green or red
- 1 onion - large
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
Serving
- 4-6 flour tortillas
- sour cream
- cheese
- salsa
- Guacamole
Instructions
- Start by mixing a marinade in a 1-gallon zip lock. 2 tablespoon lime juice, 4 tablespoon water, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon liquid smoke, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper, 1/ 4 teaspoon pepper, 1 teaspoon soy sauce, 1-2 cloves of garlic crushed.
- Clean and trim about 1 1/2 pound of skinless boneless chicken breasts. This is about 2 medium-large ones. Don't worry if you're a little over or under that amount. Cut the chicken into strips about 1/2 inch thick.
- Add the chicken to the marinade and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Overnight is fine also.
- When ready to cook. Put 1 teaspoon oil in a large cast iron pan and heat over medium-high heat. While heating, slice up a large onion and one or two peppers. I like a medium red and green pepper. If your pepper is large, you only need one.
- Mix 1 tablespoon water, 1 teaspoon lime juice and 1 teaspoon soy sauce in a small bowl. When the oil is hot, add the veggies and after a few minutes add the water, soy sauce, and lime mixture.
- When onions the (about 8-9 minutes), Remove from pan and set aside and cover.
- Add a little oil to the pan. When hot, add the drained chicken and brown. Near the end of cooking, break apart the chicken with a wooden spoon. This will make much smaller pieces and prove the meat is cooked — about 8-9 minutes. Please check a few of the large piece with an instant-read thermometer to be sure you are to 165 degrees.
- When the chicken is done, move the meat to one side and add the veggies back to the pan. Cook and stir for a minute or two until veggies are reheated.
- Serve with heated tortillas, sour cream, guacamole and anything else you like. An easy way to heat tortillas is to sprinkle a dish towel with some water put tortillas inside and heat in a microwave on high for one minute.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- You can use chicken breast or thighs.
- I prefer to use two smaller peppers so I can have a mixture of color, but the day of the pictures, I only had a huge green pepper.
- Raw chicken only here. This is not a recipe for precooked chicken.
- The lime juice is important.
- There has a touch of heat. Cut down the cayenne if you want.
- I didn't cover how to assemble your fajita. I think you know what you like if you are reading this. I did add a tip for the tortillas.
Nutrition
Originally Published May 3, 2012.
Darice T
I always make a mixture of chicken and steak when making Fajitas. It tastes great and there is no deciding between the two.
Ziyi
I love exploring tortilla with different fillings and this turned out to be so good! Thanks for the great recipe!
Charlene
We had these tonight for dinner and WOW fantastic! I was really curious about the lime, liquid smoke, and soy sauce together and these were amazing! Highly recommend, nice to have had the meat prepared ahead of time so dinner went together in a snap. Thanks Dr. Dan - another great recipe!
Lara
Delicious on the grill, too. Having that slightly charred taste ramps up the flavor even more, and no skillet to clean!
DrDan
Hi Lara,
I agree, the grill does add something special.
Thanks for the note and rating.
DrDan
Marsha
Does the T stand for teaspoon or table spoon? Thanks
DrDan
T is tablespoon and t is teaspoon. I just moved the FAQ section onto the main part of the menu bar to help.
DrDan
Chris
I love fajitas, probably one of my favorite meals from the grill.
I have to have a little cumin in mine, one of the definitive flavors in the profile.