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. 😄
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
Nutrition
Video
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!
I made this with chicken tenders because that is what I had in the fridge. I do not stock onion powder so I omitted that and had to go easy on the heat so my 3 year old could eat it too. Absolutely delicious and super easy. I love dishes i can just pop into oven.
Thank you, this will be a staple.
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it! I will be making extra since I use the leftover fajitas to make “Twisted Omelettes” the next day. (Make an omelet and fill with warm fajita mix and cheese. Serve with salsa, sour cream, and/or Tobasco if desired.)
My husband said, “Can we have these every week?” Always love your recipes and many are in the rotation. The onions and peppers cook so nicely that there is no sharp flavor from them. Delicious! I used 2 chicken breasts since I hit a really good sale this week ($1.88/#!).
I found frozen sliced onions with green and red bell peppers at the Dollar Tree which was a lifesaver for my time crunch. I did put the bag to thaw in the fridge during the day. Fresher may taste better but I really needed cheap and convenient!
Can this be made in a crock pot at all??? My oven broke and I love it
No, unfortunately slow cookers hold in too much moisture for this to really turn out right. It will end up more like a stew.
This looks absolutely delicious and would like to try this asap. Can I leave the cornstarch out? Thank you!
Yes, it might just be slightly more watery. I’ve done it without and it still tastes great. :)
This is a go to my household recipe rotation! It’s delicious and easy.
Made this and we loved it. The only thing was, there was a bunch of juice in the bottom of the baking dish when it was done and it wasn’t as “roasted” as we would have liked. Any ideas on how to solve this issue?
That’s what happens when the dish is over crowded. So you can either try using a larger dish or even splitting it up between two dishes. You can even use a sheet pan (the kind with a rim) if needed. :)
I made this for 6 people. We gobbled it up. No leftovers at all! It was simple and delicious to make. I love that the fajita seasoning was so flavorful with the lime juice. WE added avocado. Everyone had seconds and thirds! Luckily I added extra chicken!
These were the easiest to make and best tasting we’ve ever had. And your right, the smokiness of the oven was just right. I ate one and my husband ate five!! I’m going to make these the next time my girls and their husbands come. I may have to make several pans. Thank you. I just started following you on Pinterest and I can’t wait to be able to sit down and check your boards. The perfect dessert to make with these is The Million Dollar Cake served warm with Strawberries and ice cream (says my husband…LOL‼️
Just made these tonight and they are delicious. this is a keeper.
Hi! I was googling how to make pasta+zucchini salad when i stumbled upon your blog. Now I can’t stop looking through your recipes. Thanks!
I’m glad you found your way here! :)
These are AMAZING! My daughter took some to work for lunch one day and everyone in her office thought she had gotten takeout from a restaurant, it smelled so good. I make these on a regular basis. They’re easy to make and cleanup is a breeze
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.