Chicken Fajitas with Poblanos, Onions, and Salsa

Sizzling fajitas are always an impressive sight at a restaurant, but you can make them easily at home with Vanns Fajita Seasoning!

This method of making fajitas borrows from the classic French technique of making a chicken paillard, in which a chicken breast is pounded flat, so that it will cook evenly, marinated with citrus and seasoning, to make it flavorful and juicy, and then cooked over a hot flame. The citrus is tangy lime in this case, and the seaoning is Vanns Spicy Fajita Rub, if you like a little heat, or Vanns Fajita Seasoning, if you like things on the mild side.

The chicken is served with caramelized onions and poblano peppers, which can be replaced with bell peppers if those are easier for you to find. Wrap the tangy, flavorful chicken and the sweet vegetables up in a flour tortilla with some sour cream and salsa, and there's dinner!

Spices used in this recipe


Fajita Rub, Spicy
Fajita Seasoning
Cumin Ground
Salt, Kosher

Ingredients

  • 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, 1 ½ - 2 lbs.
  • ¼ cup lime juice, from 3-5 limes
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 Tbs. Vanns Spicy Fajita Rub or Vanns Fajita Seasoning, depending on spice level desired
  • 1 tsp. Vanns Ground Cumin
  • 1 tsp. brown sugar, light or dark is fine
  • ½ tsp. Vanns Kosher Salt
  • 2 white onions
  • 4 fresh poblano peppers (or 4 bell peppers, if poblanos aren’t available)
  • 2 Tbs. olive oil
  • Vanns Kosher Salt, to taste
  • Tomatillo Salsa and/or Pico De Gallo, for serving
  • 12 flour tortillas, for serving
  • Sour cream, for serving

Preparation

  1. Put a chicken breast in a ziploc bag and seal the bag halfway. Pound the chicken with a rolling pin, meat mallet, or even a can from your pantry until the chicken is an even ½-inch thick all across. Place the pounded breast in a bowl and repeat with the remaining chicken breasts. Place all of the chicken breasts back in the ziploc bag, and place the bag in a tupperware or other container to make sure they don’t leak in the fridge.
  2. Make the marinade: whisk together the lime juice, vegetable oil, Spicy Fajita Rub, ground cumin, brown sugar, and ½ tsp. kosher salt. Pour the marinade into the ziploc bag, press to remove air and evenly distribute the marinade throughout the chicken pieces, and seal. Marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
  3. While the chicken marinates, make your salsas (see directions here) and prep your vegetables. Remove the stems, seeds, and membranes from the peppers and cut into ¼-inch strips. Remove the ends from the onions, slice in half lengthwise, and then slice into ¼-inch strips, cutting lengthwise, or pole-to-pole.
  4. A cast iron grill pan is best for cooking the chicken, but a skillet will work in a pinch. When the chicken is marinated, heat the cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat and brush with a thin coating of vegetable oil. At the same time, heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in a large, preferably cast iron, skillet over medium high heat. When oil is shimmering, add the sliced onions and peppers and a pinch of kosher salt and cook, stirring, until soft and browned in spots, about 10-15 minutes. You can grill the chicken at the same time.
  5. Cook the chicken on the grill pan until it reaches 165°F at its thickest part, around 4-5 minutes per side. Rotate the chicken a quarter turn halfway through cooking on each side if you want to achieve beautiful cross-hatched grill marks! When chicken is cooked (a meat thermometer is the best way to know it’s done and to avoid over-cooking), remove to a plate and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Continue grilling until all chicken pieces are cooked. When vegetables are done, remove from heat and taste for seasoning, adding more salt if needed.
  6. After chicken is cooked, lower the grill pan heat to medium, and use the grill pan to warm your flour tortillas, grilling them on each side for around 1 minute, until grill marks just start to develop. Put them in a tortilla warmer or a basket lined with a tea towel to keep warm.
  7. Slice your chicken breasts into ½-inch strips and serve with sour cream, salsa, warmed tortillas, and onions and peppers.

Serves 6, with 2 fajitas per serving.

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