Sheet Pan Fajitas are a fast, easy dinner option. These chicken fajitas arrive sizzling hot to the dinner table after 20 minutes cook time!
I always love a fast, easy dinner recipe but there are times of the year when they are mission critical.
One of my favorite tried-and-true dinner recipes is Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas.
I think of this as my ‘life saving recipe’. It’s my go to more often than I can count.
This delicious sheet pan fajita recipe couldn’t be easier. Perfect for a fast (20 minutes cooking time), fantastic dinner or for a party!
Jump to:
- What Are Chicken Fajitas?
- How to Eat Chicken Fajitas?
- What are Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
- What are the Ingredients in Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
- What Toppings Go with Chicken Fajitas?
- Why Make THESE Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
- How Long to Marinate the Chicken Fajita Ingredients?
- What to Do with Leftovers
- Make These for a Party!
- What to Serve with Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
- How to Make Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas – Step by Step:
- The Sheet Pans I Use
- More Easy Dinner Recipes to Try!
- Recipe
What Are Chicken Fajitas?
Have you ever eaten at a Mexican food restaurant and heard a loud hissing coming from the kitchen to a lucky diner’s table?
Most likely those were an order of fajitas.
Fajitas are a Mexican dish of sliced steak or chicken, with vegetables and spices cooked then served rolled in a tortilla with toppings.
Restaurants serve them sizzling hot on a special oval cast iron fajita pans right off the stove top.
There is no denying how delicious restaurant chicken fajitas are but this Sheet Pan Chicken Fajita recipe is just as good!
How to Eat Chicken Fajitas?
If you haven’t eaten fajitas before you may not know what to do with all the prepared ingredients!
The cooked chicken, peppers and onions are rolled together with Mexican toppings in warm corn tortillas and eaten by hand.
The mix of flavors is irresistible!
What are Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
With all the same ingredients as restaurant fajitas, everything is cooked together on one sheet pan with sheet pan fajitas.
They are fast and easy with little clean up.
What are the Ingredients in Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
This sheet pan recipe features wholesome, colorful delicious ingredients:
- Boneless, skinless Chicken Breast
- Sweet Bell Peppers (red, orange, and yellow but any color may be used)
- Red Onion
- Garlic cloves
- Chili Powder
- Cumin
- Oregano
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
- Vegetable Oil
- Corn Tortillas
What Toppings Go with Chicken Fajitas?
Mexican food staples are what we love on fajitas too:
- Grated Cheese
- Sour Cream or Crema
- Guacamole or Sliced Avocados
- Salsa
- Sliced Jalapenos
- Torn Cilantro Leaves
- Lime wedges
Why Make THESE Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas?
I rely on this recipe regularly in fact it’s probably the most frequently made dinner recipe on BoulderLocavore.com. Why make this recipe?
- They are easy. Other than slicing of ingredients there isn’t much work making it perfect for a fast dinner that everyone loves.
- They are fast; both to prepare and to cook.
This chicken fajita recipe has two basic parts: preparation of the ingredients to marinate them, then cooking.
The steps can be separated to work with your schedule: make the marinade with ingredients the night before, bake and serve the next day!
Or prepare it in the morning and cook/serve that evening. Super easy.
- Wholesome ingredients. Lean chicken breast, a load of colorful vegetables in a bit of oil and spices. You can feel good about serving these sheet pan fajitas!
- Designed for little clean-up. The method for marinating the sheet pan fajitas ingredients uses one zipper-seal plastic bag which can just be discarded after marinating.
The sheet pan is lined with foil which also can be discarded after cooking leaving the sheet pan clean!
- Great ‘serve yourself’ meal. Whether serving everything at once or letting diners serve themselves when they are ready, sheet pan chicken fajitas are flexible.
How Long to Marinate the Chicken Fajita Ingredients?
The ingredients can be marinated just during the time the oven is heating or prepared up to a day before hand and refrigerated until cooking.
What to Do with Leftovers
Fajita filling can be refrigerated and reheated. If all the prepared ingredients aren’t eaten, leftovers may be chilled and reheated.
Can also be used in other recipes: on pasta, in an omelet, on a sandwich!
How to Reheat Corn Tortillas
Keeping corn tortillas moist is key to them both staying in one piece and to be pliable for rolling.
The original way of heating them with the sheet pan fajitas allows them to steam in the foil.
Reheating is most successful when they are kept moist.
To reheat corn tortillas:
- Wrap the tortillas in a damp paper towel
- Microwave for 30 seconds or until the tortillas are warm.
Make These for a Party!
The great thing about sheet pan fajitas is they are easy to prepare for a larger group vs on traditional cast iron pans.
Set up a Chicken Fajita buffet with all the toppings your guests will love along with pans of the sheet pan fajitas for a ‘serve yourself’ meal.
What to Serve with Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
Here are some great options to serve with the chicken fajitas:
- Easy Instant Pot Cilantro Lime Rice Recipe or conventional Cilantro-Lime Rice
- Gallo Pinto (beans and rice)
- Mexican Quinoa Salad with Green Chilies
- Fresh-style Pineapple Cilantro Margarita
How to Make Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas – Step by Step:
To keep the clean up as quick as possible my favorite way to do the marinade is in a gallon zipper plastic bag.
The ingredients are added separately and the marinade is massaged into them from outside the bag. It gives good marinade coverage of the ingredients and no mess.
- In a gallon plastic zipper-top bag, add all the spices, oil and garlic cloves. Seal and shake to combine.
- Add the peppers; seal, shake and massage through the bag to cover.
- Add the onions; seal, shake and massage through bag to cover.
- Add the chicken; seal, shake and massage through the bag to cover. NOTE: adding the ingredients separately ensures best marinade coverage.
- Marinate while the oven is heating OR up to 24 hours before hand.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large sheet pan with foil (dull side up).
- Spoon the marinating ingredients onto the prepared pan in a single layer.
- Cook for 20 minutes; flipping the ingredients after 10 minutes.
- Wrap the corn tortillas in foil and place in the oven when flipping the fajita ingredients. Turn over after 5 minutes.
- Remove from oven and serve with the tortillas and toppings.
The Sheet Pans I Use
These are the sheet pans that I use and love. Heavy gauge metal so they won’t bend or warp yet still affordable.
More Easy Dinner Recipes to Try!
Lemon Rosemary Sheet Pan Chicken Thighs with Vegetables
If you’ve made this Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas recipe please RATE THE RECIPE below!
Recipe
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
Ingredients
- ¼ cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 tablespoon Chili Powder
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground Cumin
- 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ½ teaspoon ground Black Pepper
- ½ teaspoon Oregano
- 2 large Garlic Cloves , peeled and diced (or equivalent garlic paste from a tube)
- 1 medium Red Bell Pepper , cored and cut vertically into ½-inch width slices
- 1 medium Orange Bell Pepper , cored and cut vertically into ½-inch width slices
- 1 medium Yellow Bell Pepper , cored and cut vertically into ½-inch width slices
- 1 medium Red Onion , peeled and sliced vertically into ½-inch thick wedges
- 1 pound boneless , skinless Chicken Breasts; sliced across the width of the breast in ½-inch width slices (if the thickness of the slice is an inch or more, slice in half)
- 1 package gluten-free Corn Tortillas
- Suggested toppings: Mexican crema , chopped fresh cilantro leaves, grated Mexican blend cheese, avocado slices or guacamole, salsa
Instructions
Marinating the Ingredients
- In a gallon plastic zipper bag combine the oil, chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, oregano and garlic cloves. Seal the bag and shake vigorously to combine the marinade.
- Add the peppers; seal and shake/massage to cover with the marinade.
- Repeat each for the onions and again for the chicken (note: doing it separately ensures all ingredients will be coated); squeeze the air out of the bag and seal.
- Refrigerate if not cooking immediately. Note: Can be prepared up to 24 hours before cooking, kept chilled, OR as the oven is heating.
Cooking and Serving the Chicken Fajitas
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with foil (dull side up).
- Spread the marinated peppers, onions and chicken on the prepared pan in a single layer.
- Cook the fajita ingredients for 20 minutes, flipping the ingredients halfway through.
- Wrap the tortillas in foil and place the packet in the oven when flipping the fajita ingredients at 10 minutes (turn the tortilla packet over once during cooking).
- At 20 minutes the chicken should be done and still moist and the vegetables should have softened (but will still have great texture). Serve on warm tortillas with preferred toppings.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published January 20, 2017
Betty-Sue Gage says
Absolutely delicious! a a it tonight. My husband raved about the dinner. He said “lets make it again real soo”.
Steph says
Great recipe! I would love to make this as a freezable meal for friends that they can pop in the oven when needed. Can I put it all together and freeze it or what would you recommend doing? Thanks!
Toni Dash says
What a lovely idea! I have only made it as written however I did some research and it seems you should be able to assemble everything, make sure the air is totally squeezed out of the bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours and proceed with the recipe as written.
I did see some reports of the vegetables lacking texture after freezing and thawing for a similar type of recipe preparation. So my personal recommendation would be to experiment yourself making and freezing it so you know how it will turn out for your friends before gifting it. I’ll do the same!
Jessy Freimann says
Fajitas are always a good idea- I can’t wait to try these!
Erin says
These are definitely my kind of meal – so good and so easy!
Erin says
Once you make this sheet pan version, there is no going back to regular fajitas!
Jennifer Farley says
This was a great Monday night dinner! Thanks!
Aysegul Sanford says
I loved how quick and convenient this was. Big dinner with very little clean up. Perfect after a busy day.