Name: Easy Chicken Fajita Marinade
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 4 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Cilantro lime rice and beans from my allergy friendly cookbook; Dairy-free queso; Guacamole; Fresh diced cilantro; Fresh squeeze of lime; Corn, flour, gluten-free, or homemade tortillas; 2 TBSP Olive oil; 1/3 cup lime juice; 2 TBSP brown sugar; 1 tsp table salt; 1 tsp cumin; 1 tsp Garlic salt (can use garlic powder in a pinch); 1/2 tsp smoked paprika; 1 tsp onion powder; 1 TBSP chili powder; 1/4 tsp black pepper; 1/2 tsp dried oregano; 2 tsp Liquid smoke; 1-2 pounds chicken, cut into thin strips; 1 red and yellow bell pepper; 1/2 yellow onion

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Bursting with flavor, this homemade chicken fajita marinade produces restaurant-quality fajitas from home. Eat them hot off the skillet with your favorite toppings for the ultimate Tex-Mex night. Don’t forget the guacamole! The best part, these fajitas can be naturally gluten-free and dairy-free, making them an inclusive meal to make for guests. (This is also naturally soy, fish, shellfish, peanut, tree nut free, and top-8-free too.)

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WHY THIS FAJITA MARINADE ROCKS

What makes a good fajita marinade is some acid, which comes from the lime juice, salt, lots of spices and my secret weapon: liquid smoke. If you’ve never used liquid smoke in a recipe, you are missing out! It makes it taste like it’s been slow barbequed over an open flame for hours without any of the work! It’s one of the best culinary inventions and many fajita recipes don’t use it. You can tell a huge difference in ones that don’t. This is one ingredient you won’t want to leave out. A heavy hand with a good blend of spices and a touch of sugar round out this marinade to deeply enhance and flavor the chicken in that unmistakable Tex Mex flavor you’re wanting on Taco Tuesday.

The marinade makes enough for the chicken and the veggies so that everything has flavor to the max.

HOW CAN FAJITAS BE GLUTEN FREE AND DAIRY FREE?

Nothing in my fajita marinade has gluten or dairy in it. So, in order to assure the rest of the dish stays that way, the only thing you should have to worry about is the tortilla or shell you put the fajitas in. Granted, it’s so good, you can eat it grain free just as is.

But, if you’re wanting it to be gluten free, choose a classic corn tortillas (warmed so it’s softer) or a gluten-free brand tortilla or even homemade gluten-free tortillas (these are super soft!). There are many store bought ones out there like Siete (made with cassava) or our favorite store bought version: Mission Gluten Free Tortillas. Or, you can scrap the tortillas and put the chicken and veggies over rice and make it into a fajita bowl.

To make sure the chicken fajitas are dairy free, just simply refrain from adding cheese on top. While a lot of burritos and tacos use cheese, I don’t feel like you’re missing out at all not having cheese on top because the flavor of the fajitas would drown out the cheese and it’d just be extra calories.

Guacamole is always the best topping anyways!

As always, check the labels of every single component, just to be sure some gluten didn’t sneak into the particular brand you’re using. If cooking for someone with food allergies, it’s always best to send them screen shots of everything you’re using so that they can OK it before you prepare the meal in it’s entirety and it’s too late.

TIPS FOR THE PERFECT MARINADE

Be sure to cut your chicken into thin strips so that the marinade can penetrate everything. Some people will just marinade the breast or thighs whole and then cut, but you’re doing yourself a disservice if you do this.
Give your marinade time to work! A minimum of 30 minutes is how long the meat needs to sit in the marinade, all of the way to overnight to get maximum flavor.
I recommend you pour the entire bags’ contents into your skillet (many will just say to remove the chicken) so that you’re getting to cook your chicken in those marinating liquids. It’s important that you bring the marinade to a boil (see video) to kill any bacteria that might be in the marinade from sitting with the raw chicken. I like to do this so that there’s juices leftover to cook the vegetables in. If you’re not comfortable doing this, you can make the marinade, reserve 1/4 cup of it before adding the chicken, and then use it to cook the vegetables in. Either way, we want flavor in the meat and veggies–leaving no stone unturned!

HOW LONG CAN YOU MARINATE CHICKEN

Minimum amount of time you want to marinade (for those days we just forget and it’s time for dinner already) is 30 minutes. You can marinade up to overnight. I would not recommend longer than this. Another good option is to make the marinade in the morning, let it soak all day, and then cook the chicken when you’re ready for dinner.

WHAT KIND OF CHICKEN SHOULD I USE?

You can use chicken breast or thighs, whatever your preference is.

HOW TO TELL IF THE CHICKEN IS DONE

I love to have an instant read digital thermometer to check and know for certain my chicken is cooked through. The fact that we diced it into long trips helps the chicken cook more thoroughly and faster. Chicken breast should be cooked to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F and chicken thigh should be cooked to 170 degrees F.

This marinade is so tasty, it would work well on beef strips too if you wanted beef fajitas.

I like to cook my onions and chicken at the same time. I like a very soft onion, and this gives it more time to cook (chicken takes longer than the bell peppers). I then take my chicken out, and cook the bell peppers just for a few minutes so that they’re still crisp tender and have a slight al dente or bite to them. Cook them for however long you like.

DO I HAVE TO USE BELL PEPPERS AND ONIONS?

Traditional fajitas have meat, onions and bell peppers, but this marinade is so good you really could clean out your fridge and use up whatever veggies you want.

TOOLS NEEDED FOR FAJITA MARINADE

I like to put my zip-topped bag in a bowl, in case it tips over while I’m filling it with marinade, but that’s literally it: a bowl, a ziploc baggie, and measuring cups and spoons! You’ll also need a cutting board and a knife to chop chicken and veggies, as well as a cast iron pan or non-stick pan to cook in. So basic and simple!

INGREDIENTS NEEDED FOR CHICKEN FAJITAS:

Marinade ingredients:

Olive oil
Lime juice
Brown sugar
Table salt
Cumin
Garlic salt (can use garlic powder in a pinch)
Smoked paprika
Onion powder
Chili powder
Black pepper
Dried oregano
Liquid smoke
Chicken, cut into thin strips
Red and yellow bell peppers
Yellow onion

ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS:

Corn, flour, gluten-free, or homemade tortillas

Optional toppings:

Guacamole
Fresh diced cilantro
Fresh squeeze of lime

Optional sides:

Cilantro lime rice and beans from my allergy friendly cookbook
Vegan queso

WAYS TO SWITCH UP THE MARINADE

If you’d like to have some fun and variation with this recipe, you can do so in these ways:

Swap out the lime juice for orange juice in the marinade, or do half and half
Use a red onion, which is more potent in your veggie mix
Use beef instead of chicken
Use a different kind of liquid smoke (try hickory instead of mesquite or vice versa)
Try different tortillas, or make it into a bowl over rice
Try making it a little hotter. I use chili powder, but if you’re a heat-a-holic, you can swap in chipotle chili powder instead.
Try making it vegetarian–double the veggies, and add mushrooms instead of using meat.
One thing I would ask you NOT to swap out is regular paprika for smoked paprika. I rarely use regular paprika. It’s like food coloring to me, no flavor, just color. But SMOKED paprika has a very distinct flavor that really lends itself to this recipe. If you’ve never bought it, I can’t wait for you to try it.

HOW TO STORE LEFTOVER FAJITAS

If you have leftover fajitas, store the onion/pepper/meat mixture in an air tight container. Store the tortillas separately, and any toppings separately as well. Keep in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Is there a video showing how to make this?

Yes there is! The video should auto populate. If it doesn’t, it’s embedded into the bottom of the recipe card. If all else fails, you can watch it on my YouTube channel.

Easy Chicken Fajita Marinade

Yield: 4 servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Additional Time: 4 hours

Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes

Bursting with flavor, this homemade chicken fajita marinade makes restaurant quality fajitas from home. Eat them hot off the skillet! Naturally gluten-free and dairy-free options.

Ingredients

FAJITA MARINADE:

2 TBSP Olive oil
1/3 cup lime juice
2 TBSP brown sugar
1 tsp table salt
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp Garlic salt (can use garlic powder in a pinch)
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 TBSP chili powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp Liquid smoke
1-2 pounds chicken, cut into thin strips
1 red and yellow bell pepper
1/2 yellow onion

ADDITIONAL:

Corn, flour, gluten-free, or homemade tortillas

OPTIONAL TOPPINGS:

Guacamole
Fresh diced cilantro
Fresh squeeze of lime

OPTIONAL SIDE:

Instructions

Thinly slice chicken into strips. Set aside.
Place a large zip topped bag in a bowl. Add all of the marinade ingredients: olive oil, lime juice, brown sugar, salt, cumin, garlic salt, smoked paprika, onion powder, chili powder, black pepper, dried oregano, liquid smoke.
Place sliced chicken into marinade. Close the bag and give it a good massaging to stir around the marinade and ensure it's touching all the chicken pieces.
Set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes up to over night (I try to at least shoot for four hours).
When it's time to cook, thinly slice your onion and bell peppers, set aside.
Place a large cast iron skillet, or non-stick pan over medium high heat.
Dump the chicken and marinade from the bag into the hot skillet.
You'll want to bring this to a boil to ensure the marinade is safe to eat. Stir frequently until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through (about ten minutes). Use a digital thermometer to make sure.
Remove the chicken and onions.
Place the diced bell peppers in the remaining juices, stirring frequently until they're crisp tender (or to your liking).
Add back in the chicken and onions and stir to give everything a chance to mix together.
Serve immediately with tortilla shells of your choosing, and any sides you desire.
Store leftover meat/pepper/onion mixture separately from tortillas in the fridge in an air tight container for 2-3 days.

Notes

All FAQs are above the recipe card. Be sure to watch the video below too for best results.

*Our allergies, while severe and that get re-tested frequently, are such that we can go strictly by what's on the label. I do not call companies to see what things are derived from, or call manufacturers to see about potential cross contact. If your allergies require you to do so, please do your own homework. I cannot assure you of any ingredient's safety, only you can do that. I simply share what works for our family.

**If you are going to feed this to someone with food allergies, and you yourself do not have food allergies, I HIGHLY recommend having them check every single brand and ingredient you are using, to ensure they're OK with each part of the recipe. And, to make sure you've talked to them about how to avoid cross contamination in your kitchen.

Inspired by: Dinner at the Zoo, Meaningful Eats and Carlsbad Cravings.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 837Total Fat: 42gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 27gCholesterol: 213mgSodium: 1447mgCarbohydrates: 56gFiber: 7gSugar: 8gProtein: 61g

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Megan Lavin

Hi! I’m Megan, a mom to four kids, two with multiple food allergies & one with EOE. I’m a published cookbook author that constantly tweaks recipes to make them allergy friendly–it’s an addiction. I share every recipe & tip with you, to help you eat like you did before food allergies & dietary restrictions. You can still be awesome, even with food allergies!