Make this easy Chicken Fajita Marinade for the best sheet pan or grilled chicken fajitas. Full of fresh and vibrant flavors of lime, cilantro, and garlic.
If you're looking for the best, most perfect marinade for chicken fajitas or just some tasty grilled chicken, your search is over. This is my all-time favorite, holy grail marinade! If I could only make one marinade for the rest of my life, this would be it. This chicken fajita marinade makes for the most insanely flavorful chicken, especially on the grill. Something about the char from the grill brings out the best in this marinade. Although, I also make these fajitas all winter long on sheet pans with great results!
Key Ingredients
- Lime: Fresh lime juice is absolutely preferred and necessary. It adds such a bright and tangy flavor to the chicken.
- Cilantro: Fresh cilantro adds a vibrant flavor to the marinade. If you are cilantro averse, you can leave it out.
- Garlic
- Dried seasonings and salt: Cumin and oregano are a must. Add a little chili powder or Trader Joe's Chile Lime seasoning to kick it up a notch!
Making the Marinade
Mince the garlic and roughly tear up the cilantro. Then put all of the ingredients together in a bowl or bag. Add in the chicken and let it mellow for 1 hour or up to several hours. The longer the better!
Cooking Options
- Grilled Fajitas: This is my favorite option because the grill adds so much extra flavor!
Leave the chicken breasts whole in the marinade and plop them on the grill when you're ready to cook. You can cook the veggies alongside the chicken in a grill pan. Let the chicken rest a bit. Then thinly slice the breasts against the grain, before serving. - Sheet Pan: Outside of grilling season, you can cook the fajitas on sheet pans.
Slice the chicken breasts thinly before marinading. Then lay everything out on sheet pans and cook it all in the oven. The fajitas turn out great using this method as well!
- Cast Iron Skillet: Your last option is to cook everything in a hot cast-iron skillet until the chicken is cooked through and the veggies are crisp-tender.
What to Serve with Fajitas
- I like to top fajitas with a little sour cream, shredded cheese, restaurant-style salsa, and/or guacamole. You can also just eat them plain!
- Consider making some Cilantro-Lime Rice as a side with either white or brown rice.
- If you want something fruity and refreshing, try this Tropical Fruit Salad with Chili-lime Dressing. I think the flavors would really complement these fajitas!
Gluten-Free Tortilla Options
There are plenty of store-bought gluten-free tortillas or gluten-free wraps to choose from but my all-time favorite for fajitas are Siete Cassava Flour Tortillas. Corn tortillas are mostly gluten-free but for some reason, I find them unappealing with fajitas, that could just be me though!
You can also try my homemade cassava flour tortillas or three-ingredient flatbreads.
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Chicken Fajita Marinade for Grilled or Sheet Pan Fajitas
Ingredients
Marinade
- ⅔ cup olive oil
- 1 lime freshly squeezed
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ bunch cilantro torn roughly (½ cup packed)
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon chili powder or chili lime seasoning
For the Fajitas
- 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (whole for grill, thinly sliced for sheet pan)
- 3 bell peppers any color
- 2 sweet onions
- 1 package tortillas
Instructions
For Marinade:
- Place all marinade ingredients into a large zip top bag or bowl and mix together. Add chicken (whole breasts for grilled fajitas or thinly sliced for sheet pan fajitas). Marinate in refrigerator, preferably 2-4 hours or as little as 15 minutes if necessary.
For Grilled Fajitas:
- Slice bell peppers and sweet onions. Toss the vegetables with a 2T olive oil, a few shakes of cumin and oregano, and a pinch of salt. Spread evenly on a grill pan.
- Preheat the grill to about 400-450°F for about 10 min. Place the veggies and chicken on the grill and turn the heat down to medium-medium/low.
- Allow the chicken to cook, flipping only once halfway through, until cooked to 165°F. Stir the peppers and onions occasionally. When cooked through, remove and let the chicken rest for a few minutes before slicing thinly, against the grain. Serve immediately on tortillas.
For Sheet Pan Fajitas:
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper if desired.
- Slice bell peppers and sweet onions. Toss the vegetables with a 2T olive oil, a few shakes of cumin and oregano, and a pinch of salt. Spread evenly on one sheet pan. Spread the chicken evenly on the other sheet pan.
- Bake at 450 for 15 minutes, flipping once or until the chicken is fully cooked and veggies have a little char on them. Serve immediately on tortillas.
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