These chicken fajita tacos are bursting with fresh flavors, take less than 20 minutes to make- start to finish, and are even meal prep friendly! Serve them inside of a tortilla or over lettuce for a fajita taco salad.
Why This Recipe Works
There is nothing I love more at the end of a day than to sit down to a fresh, flavorful meal with my husband. But ya know what I don’t love? Spending an hour or more preparing said meal! Ya feel me?!
Well, these chicken fajita tacos have become a weekly staple because they’re so flavorful, nutrient packed, and delicious while also being SUPER fast and insanely simple to make. Seriously, I think my dog Theo could make them they’re THAT easy and fool-proof!
I like to make a big batch of the chicken fajita taco filling and use it throughout the week for lunches too. Usually I’ll just warm it up, throw it on a bed of lettuce, add some tortilla chips (bonus points for making a batch of air fryer tortilla chips!) for a crunch and *BOOM* lunch or dinner is served!
Oh, and you can NOT forget to make a batch of my insanely delish 2 minute avocado lime crema. It goes with these chicken fajita tacos like peanut butter goes with jelly!
In addition to being super delicious I do also love that these are veggie packed and have a good protein punch. Even though I believe in having no food rules I DO still think about nutrition! it’s just not in an obsessive, always dictates my choices kinda way!
Pssssssst….Want to learn more about having no food rules and eating intuitively? Checkout this blog post: A Beginners Guide To Intuitive Eating
Ingredients Needed
- Chicken breasts: You’ll need about 1 pound of chicken breast, cut into 1″ strips.
- Bell peppers: You’ll need about 2 large bell peppers, cut into strips. I like to use a mix of colors, but you can use whatever you like best!
- Red onion: These are a classic addition to chicken fajitas, and they have a milder flavor than standard yellow cooking onions.
- Oil: I like to use olive oil for flavor, but you could use whatever you have on hand if you don’t have olive oil available!
- Spices and seasonings: A mix of spices that combine to give that classic fajita taco flavor! Includes paprika, chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, black pepper, salt, and brown sugar.
Serving Options:
- Tortillas
- Salsa
- Avocado lime crema
- Cilantro
- Lime wedges
- Rice
- Shredded lettuce
How To Make This Recipe
Step One: In a medium sized bowl combine chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, paprika, salt and pepper.
Step Two: Mix all of your seasonings together really well.
Step Three: Now, add your sliced chicken breasts to the bowl.
Step Four: Toss your chicken strips in with the seasoning until everything is fully coated.
Step Five: Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Step Six: Add your spice coated chicken to the pan and saute for 2-3 minutes.
Step Seven: Push your chicken to one side, making some room for the veggies.
Step Eight: Add the sliced bell peppers and red onion to the other side of the skillet.
Step Nine: Cover your skillet and allow to cook for 10 minutes.
Step Ten: Remove from heat and enjoy with either inside of a warmed tortilla, or however you like! Serve with shredded lettuce and some rice on the side for a delicious chicken fajita taco salad!
How To Assemble Chicken Fajita Tacos
- Take a tortilla and add shredded lettuce (if desired)
- Add chicken to your tortilla
- Add peppers & onion to your tortilla
- Top with any additional fixing you like (avocado, lime wedges, cilantro, etc)
- Sink your teeth into your fajita taco and enjoy!
Variations and Substitutions
Chicken Fajita Taco Salad: You can easily make your chicken fajita tacos into a delicious and satisfying salad. All you have to do is make the recipe as usual, and serve it over shredded lettuce instead of inside of a tortilla!
I recommend serving your taco salads with rice. Why? The Registered Dietitian in me has gotta say it: it’s important for our bodies to have carbs at meal times! They’re our preferred energy source… and taste delish! There is a little gentle nutrition for ya!
Protein Options: If you’re wanting to switch things up, you can totally try different protein options! I’ve made this with ground beef, tofu, and fish. Simply cook the other protein with your normal preparations for that protein source (i.e. sauté ground beef, bake fish, etc) and just add the spice blend for these chicken fajita tacos prior to cooking. See? Super easy!
Vegetarian: If you want to make this a vegetarian recipe you can use a batch of my air fryer tofu in place of the chicken! Just cook the veggies as usual and add the tofu when assembling and serving the tacos.
Meal Prep: If you want to make a big batch and have the leftovers for lunch for the week, you can totally do that! Just double (or triple) the batch and store in sealed containers in the fridge for up to 5 days. You can prep the standard chicken fajita tacos with a tortilla, or the fajita taco salad variation, OR a mix of both!
Recipe FAQ’s
Fajitas and tacos vary in a variety of ways such as the spices used, the meat (fajitas usually have strips) and the veggies. Fajitas tend to have cooked veggies such as peppers and onions, while tacos tend to utilize vegetables as toppings instead.
Yes! While the flavor is slightly different, and often on the mild side, you can use a fajita seasoning blend on tacos in a pinch. Just be sure to taste and adjust any seasoning to your taste. You may like to include some additional chili powder, or smoked paprika for a nice boost of flavor.
Chicken fajitas are a classic Mexican recipe that features sliced chicken breast tossed in a delicious seasoning blend, then browned in a skillet until cooked through. Then, sliced bell peppers and onions are added for crunch and flavor. Fajitas are often served with your choice of toppings, and often include cilantro, lime wedges, and crema.
If you don’t have enough of any one spice or blend, you can mix them together in a pinch. Just be sure to note that the flavor will be off a little bit, so be sure to taste and adjust to your liking often during cooking.
If you love this recipe, be sure to leave a star rating on the recipe card and leave a comment below!
Don’t forget to pin it on your Pinterest board for later, or tag me on IG @no.food.rules if you try the recipe and love it!
XOXO
-Colleen
Chicken Fajita Tacos
Ingredients
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp brown sugar
- ½ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp black pepper
- 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into ~1” strips
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 bell peppers sliced into ~ ½” strips 2 different colors if possible; red and yellow is recommended
- 1 small red onion sliced into ½-¼” strips
- 4, small flour tortillas
Additional Suggested Toppings
- Shredded lettuce more if making fajita taco salads
- Cilantro
- Lime slices
- White rice if making salads
Instructions
- In a medium sized bowl combine chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, brown sugar, paprika, salt and pepper. Mix it up well.
- Now, add your chicken to the bowl and toss to coat evenly.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
- Add your spice coated chicken to the pan and saute for 2-3 minutes.
- Push your chicken to one side and add the peppers and onion to the other side.
- Cover your skillet and allow to cook for 10 minutes.
- Remove the skillet from heat and fill each tortilla with the chicken and veggies.
- Enjoy!
Leave a Reply