These Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas have been a Budget Bytes staple recipe since I first posted them eight years ago! I love fajitas, but they require a super hot griddle to get that nice smoky flavor, which also means a lot of smoky smell in my house and standing over a super hot stove. Not my favorite way to spend my evening. So I make baked fajitas instead. Is it exactly the same? No, BUT it’s almost completely hands-off (yay) and you get some nice caramelization on the edges of the peppers and onions, which gives you a similar char effect. I’ll save the real deal fajitas for when I’m at a restaurant and not doing the cooking. 😄
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What Kind of Sheet Pan to Use
You definitely want the largest sheet pan (or baking dish) you can find for this recipe. It’s imperative that the chicken and vegetables are not too crowded on the baking sheet otherwise the steam will get trapped as they bake and you won’t get that nice caramelization that only happens in a dry heat environment. I’m using a 13×16 inch baking sheet here and in the original version of this recipe I used a 13×15 inch glass baking dish.
Make it Fit in your Budget
Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers are usually significantly more expensive than green bell peppers, but you can use any mix that fits your budget. Despite using a couple of more expensive colored peppers, I used more vegetables than meat to keep costs low. The meat to veggie ratio ended up being perfect once everything had been cooked down. If you want to make these Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas vegetarian, try this Chipotle Portobello Oven Fajita recipe.
Make Your Own Fajita Seasoning or Buy Pre-Made
The ingredient list below might look long, but most of that is the fajita seasoning mix. So if you’re looking for a short cut or your kitchen spice cabinet is not well-stocked, you can simply use a packet of store-bought fajita seasoning.
Toppings for Chicken Fajitas
I like to keep my chicken fajitas really simple with just a squeeze of lime, maybe some fresh cilantro, and a small dollop of sour cream, but there are so many other things you could use to top your chicken fajitas. Try these toppings
- Shredded cheese
- Cotija cheese
- Green onions
- Salsa
- Guacamole or sliced avocado
- Pickled red onion
- Pico de Gallo
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
Servings 4 (2 fajitas each)Ingredients
FAJITA SEASONING
- 1 Tbsp chili powder ($0.30)
- 1/2 Tbsp paprika ($0.15)
- 1/2 tsp onion powder ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder ($0.03)
- 1/4 tsp cumin ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper ($0.02)
- 1 tsp sugar ($0.02)
- 1/2 tsp salt ($0.02)
FAJITAS
- 2 small yellow onions (or one large) ($0.57)
- 3 bell peppers, any color ($3.69)
- 1 lb. chicken breast ($6.24)
- 2 Tbsp cooking oil ($0.08)
- 1 lime ($0.30)
- 8 6-inch tortillas ($1.28)
- 1/2 cup sour cream (optional) ($0.90)
- 1/4 bunch cilantro (optional) ($0.22)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Mix all of the spices for the fajita seasoning in a small bowl and set aside (chili powder, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne pepper, sugar, and salt).
- Cut the onion and bell peppers into 1/4-inch wide strips. Slice the chicken breast into thin strips. Add the chicken and vegetables to a large baking sheet or casserole dish.
- Drizzle the cooking oil over the chicken and vegetables, then sprinkle the fajita seasoning mix over top. Use your hands to toss the ingredients until everything is well coated in oil and seasoning. Spread the chicken and vegetables out over the baking sheet evenly.
- Bake the chicken and vegetables in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Squeeze the juice from half of the lime over top of the meat and vegetables after they come out of the oven.
- To serve, scoop a small amount of meat and vegetables into the center of each tortilla. Top with a few sprigs of cilantro, a dollop of sour cream, and an extra squeeze of lime if desired.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Enamelware Sheet Pan
Nutrition
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What to serve with oven baked fajitas
Need a side dish to go with your Oven Fajitas? Try one of these awesome sides
Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas – Step By Step Photos:
Begin by preheating the oven to 400ºF. In a small bowl, stir together 1 Tbsp chili powder (this is a mild blend, not hot red chiles), 1/2 Tbsp paprika, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/8 tsp cayenne, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1 tsp sugar. The sugar helps the vegetables caramelize and gives the dish a very subtle sweetness.
Slice three bell peppers and two small onions (or one large onion) into thin, 1/4-inch wide strips. Red, yellow, and orange bell peppers are usually more expensive than green, so use a mix of peppers that fits your budget.
Slice 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast into thin strips as well. Place the sliced bell peppers, onion, and chicken on a large sheet pan (13×16-inch). You want to avoid piling the ingredients in so deep that they begin to stew in their juices in the oven, instead of browning, so you’ll need the largest dish available. You can also use an extra large casserole dish, if you don’t have a large sheet pan.
Drizzle 2 Tbsp cooking oil over the meat and vegetables, followed by the fajita spice mix, then toss the ingredients until everything is well coated in oil and spices.
Now that everything is coated in oil and spices, it’s ready to go into the oven.
Roast the chicken and vegetables for 35-40 minutes at 400ºF, stirring once halfway through, or until the fajita veggies have softened slightly and are a bit brown on the edges.
Squeeze the fresh lime juice over the chicken and fajita veggies.
Serve hot with tortillas, extra lime wedges, sour cream, cilantro, or whatever other fajita toppings you like!
Love this! The flavors come together so delightfully.
I really like the cost breakdown, too.
Pinterest screwed up your recipe portions. Hope people link to this site before they screw up this awesome dish.
Easy, delicious, and so much less salty than the premixed spices. Thanks!
I make this recipe for my husband and I all the time! It has definitely become a staple for us. We have tried all kinds of variations of toppings but I think my favorite is refried black beans and avocado. Such a tasty and simple meal! Thank you for this recipe!
We make these fajitas about once a month. My kids can’t get enough of them (6, 3, and 2)!! We’ve started using beef stew meat that I slice into strips and I double the seasoning because we love the flavor. So glad I found this one!!!
Would you suggest marinating the chicken in the seasoning and oil before popping it in the oven?
Nope, I just mix it all up just before it goes in the oven.
Would this work cooking chicken tenders from frozen if you don’t have time to thaw?
I don’t think it would work to use chicken that is frozen. I think it would take the chicken too long to cook and then the vegetables would be over done.
If there are any campers out there, this recipe is PERFECT over a camp fire. I’ll usually make a couple foil packets, splitting the ingredients evenly, and suspend them over a fire that has turned to coals, for about 30 minutes. Prep everything ahead of time – combine the seasoning in a jar, chop the chicken and veggies, etc. Friends were blown away by this camp meal!
Any idea on how you would go about making this freezer friendly? I’m looking to do some meal prep from an upcoming busy time and this is one of my favorite recipes.
I’m curious if you would slice up of the chicken and veggies and freeze on a baking sheet then transfer to a freezer bag… and would you wait to coat in oil and spices until you take out of freezer to cook?
Similarly, would that work for the greek pita version? or would the eggplant in that recipe make it less freezer friendly?
Thanks!
Personally I don’t think I’d use the freezer for this one because it would make the vegetables too limp and there might be too much moisture to really get that nice roasted flavor that makes them seem like fajitas.
This is a great recipe. I have used it with beef and shrimp and they all work equally as well. Thanks for sharing!
These really are amazing! Thank for the recipe. I shared a link on my blog http://www.healthhappensathome.com/blog/2016/8/1/august-meal-plan
Have you ever tried this with steak ??
I haven’t yet!
I have several times. It’s Uh-may-zing.
I just made your chicken fajitas and they are wonderful!! I am wondering if you have nutritional information on this particular recipe??
No, I’m sorry, I don’t. :(
These are a staple in our house. Perfect every time.
This is on our dinner list for the week AND I’m making a freezer kit for a later meal too, similar to a Let’s Dish kind of thing. This is an easy one to prep in advance – all but the sour cream, lime, cilantro can go in the freezer.