Easy Chicken Fajitas

Seared, simmered and perfectly seasoned chicken, bell peppers and onion - nestled into warm tortillas with all the fixings fajitas deserve. Always welcome, and always a winning weeknight meal.

I love making fajitas because I can grab whatever pantry staples I have handy and go to town. There's no need for premade bottled or powdered fajita seasoning - so try to dodge that purchase at the grocery store. I'm fairly confident you have all (or most) of the ingredients already, and you can control every inch of the flavor when you make your own sauces and marinades. That means, you can make things saltier, sweeter, spicier, smokier, and so on. I'm not opposed the the prepared stuff (and you know I love to sprinkle taco seasoning over all kinds of things), but fajitas are different and my sauce is as easy as it gets.

You might notice that I didn't add hot sauce to the mixture in the first step. That's because we like to add it at the table - sprinkling droplets of fiery sauce right into our custom tortillas. For spicy fajitas right out of the gate, add hot sauce to the liquid ingredients in the first step (1 teaspoon should be a good place to start).

I also relish the fact that this is a ONE-SKILLET meal. Not only does that mean easy cleanup, it means layers of flavor. Cooking the chicken in the same skillet where you just cooked the onion and bell peppers adds another layer of flavor to the meat. I prefer cast iron for fajitas...

About the chile rub: I've discovered some amazing chile powder blends in the spice aisle and the Smoky Chile Rub from the Spice Hunter is one of my favorites (no sponsor affiliation; I just really love this rub). It's a unique blend of cocoa, cumin, garlic, sesame, and chile. The flavor is much more complex than traditional chile powder. That said, if you already have chile powder in your spice rack - feel free to use that!

To warm the tortillas, you have two choices. You can wrap them in damp paper towels and then foil and place them in a 250-degree oven for about 8 to 10 minutes (about the time it takes to make the rest of the dinner). Or, you can wrap them in a damp towel and microwave them for 45-60 seconds. Obviously, if you have a tortilla warmer, use that!

Easy Chicken Fajitas
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons honey
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
1 teaspoon smoky chile rub or smoky chile and cumin rub
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and ground black pepper
4 teaspoons olive oil, divided
1 each red and green pepper, seeded cut into thin strips
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced 
1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin strips
Corn or flour tortillas, warmed (see note above)
For serving (this is what we love with our fajitas, add what you want):
Shredded cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend
Hot sauce
Sour cream
Salsa
Guacamole or sliced avocado

In a small bowl, whisk together the broth, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, honey, liquid smoke, vinegar, chile rub, onion powder, garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Set aside.
Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers and onion and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until soft, stirring frequently. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the onion and peppers from the pan and cover with foil to keep warm.
Heat the remaining 2 teaspoons of oil in the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until browned on all sides, stirring frequently. Add the broth mixture and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, until the liquid reduces almost completely (I like to leave a little sauce for drizzling into the tortillas). Return the peppers to the pan and serve everything with the warm tortillas and desired fillings.

Serves 4