I bet before the air fryer, nobody thought that they can have fajita dinner on their table in just 15 minutes.
The chicken of the air fryer fajita is tender and juicy to perfection, while the onions and peppers are a little bit charred.
Mostly I make homemade fajita seasoning to make air fryer fajitas because I feel like it’s much more flavorful. However, store-bought fajita seasoning would also work fine.
All you have to do is chop the chicken and vegetables, mix it with oil and seasoning, and just air fry it. Serve with tortillas and boom, your air fryer chicken fajita dinner is ready that your family would love.
The reasons I make fajita in an air fryer are:
- It’s delicious and flavorful
- Good for an easy and quick dinner
- Takes a total of 15 minutes of cooking time
- Can be made with homemade seasoning as per my spice needs.
You would fall in love too with this recipe, once you try it.
So, let’s get started.
Ingredients
- Chicken-Boneless and skinless chicken strips are recommended to be used for this recipe, you can also use chicken thigh strips but make sure they all are thin and evenly sliced.
- Pepper – You can use red, yellow, or green pepper.
- Onions- I prefer using red onion for fajita, but you can also use yellow or white onion.
- Oil – You can use any oil you want, be it olive oil, avocado oil, corn oil, or vegetable oil.
Fajita seasoning
Homemade fajita seasoning brings a huge difference in flavor and can be customized as per your desire, for more heat you can increase the amount of cayenne powder and can omit adding sugar if you want to.
The best thing is it is much healthier than store-bought seasoning, and you can keep it in an airtight container, perfect to use for a quick dinner.
Here are the spices that you would need for seasoning:
- Smoked paprika
- Chili powder
- Garlic powder
- Cayenne powder
- Cumin
- Oregano
- Onion powder
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Brown sugar
Instructions
- Step 1- Put your air fryer to preheat at 390 °F for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, start prepping up chicken and veggies
- Step 2- Pat dry the chicken pieces and thinly slice them into the same size.
- Step 3- Cut onions and peppers in even sizes, too.
- Step 4- Add fajita seasoning to the chicken pieces first to coat them well, as we need to do more seasoning in the chicken before adding vegetables to it.
- Step 5- Then add the veggies in the bowl with some salt and black pepper, and mix them well together.
- Step 6- Now put the chicken fajita strips in the air fryer in a single layer.
- Step 7- Let it cook in the air fryer for 12-13 minutes at 390° F while tossing them halfway.
- Step 8- Now check the chicken by cutting it from the middle as it shouldn’t be pink from the inside for the doneness, you can also use an instant-read thermometer.
- Step 9- Chicken is ready to eat when its internal temperature reaches 165° F. If not, then you can cook it for a few more minutes.
- Step 10- When the chicken is done, take it out from the air fryer and serve it with tortillas and toppings.
Tips
- Spray with oil- It’s good to spray the air fryer basket with olive oil first and, if you prefer, line it with parchment paper for easy cleanup later. But, if you’re lining the air fryer basket, make sure to leave the air fryer edges for proper airflow.
- Preheating air fryer – Preheating the air fryer first is very important because it makes cooking the fajitas faster.
- Never overcrowd the basket – Try not to stack the air fryer basket with chicken and veggies and put them in a single layer because this helps in proper and even cooking and prevents the chicken from steaming. If you’re cooking one pound of chicken, cook it in two batches, or if you have a smaller air fryer.
Nutritional Information
| Calories | 276kcal | Sodium | 74 mg |
| Total Carbs | 4g | Fiber | 1g |
| Protein | 24g | Sugar | 3g |
| Fat | 18g | Calcium | 21 mg |
| Saturated fat | 4g | Iron | 1 mg |
You can also check out the following video to know how to make air fryer fajitas.
What Can Be Served With Air Fryer Fajitas?
If I talk about the authentic ways to serve the air fryer fajitas, it is with corn tortillas or flour tortillas with toppings.
You can make the tortillas when the fajitas are getting cooked in the air fryer and cover them up until they are ready to use.
However, in terms of toppings, you have a few options to add:
- Pic de Gallo
- Avocado slices
- Guacamole
- Salsa
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Sour cream
- Fresh cilantro chopped
- Lime wedges
If you’re on a diet, you can use gluten-free tortillas rather than wheat tortillas or serve them with rice.
And for low-carb chicken fajitas, just skip the tortillas part and serve them with toppings only in a bowl.
How Can You Store The Air Fryer Fajitas?
Storage – Once the air fryer fajitas are cooled to room temperature, put them in an airtight container and keep them in a fridge for 3-5 days.
Reheat- To reheat, just put the air fryer chicken fajitas in the air fryer at 390° F for a few minutes until they are thoroughly warmed. There won’t be any need to microwave it.
How Can You Prep Ahead for Chicken Fajitas?
You can prep ahead chicken fajitas for an easy weeknight meal.
All you need to do is, mix the chicken slices, seasoning, and oil and keep it in the ziplock bag and store it in the fridge until it is needed use. Approximately, it would last for 2-3 days. Chop the vegetables and store them separately in the fridge.
If you like, you can even freeze the chicken fajitas in the freezer, they would last for 3 months. Just thaw it overnight in the fridge with vegetables before air frying.
Recipe Suggestions and Substitutions
Skirt steak can be difficult to come by, but the sirloin is an excellent substitute!
Guacamole, sour cream, shredded cheese, pico de gallo, salsa, and/or queso dip are some of our favorite fajita toppings.
How Can I Make My Fajita Steak Tender?
Always cut the flesh against the grain for the most tender steak. This will cut through the meat’s fibers and shorten them, resulting in a more sensitive bite every time.
Thinly slice meat into strips against the grain and arrange in a 5-qt. The slow cooker. Combine the onion, tomato juice, jalapeño, garlic, cilantro, cumin, chili powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Cook on low for 5 hours, covered.
Conclusion
In summary,
- Chicken pieces and vegetables, all should be evenly cut to ensure proper cooking.
- Homemade fajita seasoning is much good and healthier in taste than store-bought one.
- Put the chicken fajitas pieces in a single layer in the air fryer basket to avoid steaming the chicken.
- Always preheat the air fryer first before air frying chicken fajitas
- You can line the air fryer with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
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