Mexican
Chicken Fajita Skillet
Sliced chicken, peppers, and onions cooked hot with chili, cumin, and lime. Pile it into tortillas or eat it straight from the pan.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Easy
Why you’ll love it
- High heat is the whole trick. The peppers should char in spots.
- The spice mix is measured, so you are not guessing from a packet.
- One skillet, and the tortillas warm in a dry pan after.
- Leftovers are good in a rice bowl the next day.
Ingredients
Ingredient amounts scale. Oven temperature and cook time do not. Salt, spices, and leaveners are a starting point after you scale. Taste and adjust.
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Instructions
- 1
Toss the chicken with salt, chili powder, cumin, paprika, and pepper.
- 2
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over high. Cook the chicken in a single layer until browned and 165°F, about 5 to 6 minutes total. Transfer to a plate.
- 3
Add the remaining oil, peppers, and onion. Cook over high, stirring now and then, until the edges char and the vegetables soften, 6 to 7 minutes.
- 4
Add the garlic and stir 30 seconds. Return the chicken and any juices. Squeeze half the lime over the pan.
- 5
Warm the tortillas in a dry skillet or over a gas flame for a few seconds each.
- 6
Serve the skillet with tortillas and the remaining lime.
Pro tips
- Slice the chicken across the grain and keep it thin so it cooks before it dries.
- Do not stir the peppers constantly. They need contact with the pan to char.
- A cast-iron skillet holds the high heat better than a thin nonstick pan.
Easy substitutions
- Chicken breasts
- Thighs, sliced the same way.
- Flour tortillas
- Corn tortillas, doubled if they tear.
- Two bell peppers
- One pepper and a sliced poblano for more heat.
Storage and reheating
Storage
Refrigerate the filling up to 3 days. Keep tortillas separate.
Reheating
Rewarm the filling in a hot skillet until the chicken is hot and the edges sizzle again.
Nutrition
Estimates per serving, using standard ingredient averages and rounded to the nearest gram. This is not a lab analysis, and it shifts if you change brands or add sides.
- Calories
- 430
- Protein
- 36 g
- Carbs
- 34 g
- Fat
- 16 g
- Fiber
- 4 g
Moderate · Stovetop · High Protein
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From the kitchen
Kitchen tools we love
Practical tools these recipes actually use. This is not a review roundup, and these are not paid placements. If affiliate links are added later, they will be labeled and disclosed.
A heavy 12-inch skillet
Most of the chicken and steak recipes are written for one pan that holds heat. Stainless or cast iron both work.
An air fryer with a real basket
The air-fryer recipes expect a single layer. A crowded basket steams instead of browning.
A half-sheet pan
Drumsticks, potatoes, sausage, and carrots all use one. A dark pan browns faster than a very shiny one.
A sharp chef’s knife
These recipes do not need a specialty blade. A sharp 8-inch knife is faster and safer than a dull one.
A large cutting board
Big enough that the onion and the raw chicken are not sharing the same puddle.
Dry cups and a liquid cup
Desserts in particular expect level dry measures and a separate cup for milk.
An instant-read thermometer
Use it for poultry, pork chops, and meatloaf. Color is a weak guide.
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