Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet

So you know how sometimes you have a bag of those cute mini sweet peppers and some thawed chicken, both just sitting around in your fridge waiting to be used. And then how, when you’re looking at your little sweet peppers and your pack of chicken, you really feel like fajitas. But then, how sometimes you realize that you don’t actually have any tortillas handy?

Don’t despair! If this ever happens to you, just throw together this handy one pot recipe for a Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet. Oh, yeah: I also didn’t have any of the more usual limes handy today, but lemon juice worked just fine. When in doubt, improvise…

Now sure, I could have just cooked my chicken and peppers up fajita-style and served them over a bowl of plain rice. (Which would be quicker if you’re in a time crunch, and is always a good option. If you’re low carb, you can also serve yours over riced cauliflower.)

To mix things up this time, however, I instead decided to draw inspiration from this older chicken burrito bowls recipe and throw everything into a skillet to create chicken fajita bowls. This also infuses the rice with fajita flavor so that you get it all the way through every bite, not just from the toppings.

Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet

Ingredients

3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs, trimmed and cut into small strips
3 cloves garlic, chopped (about 1 Tbsp minced)
1/2 of a medium yellow onion, sliced into thin strips
16 oz mini sweet peppers, stems and seeds removed and sliced into strips
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
1 Tbsp lemon (or lime) juice
3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup shredded cheddar — or use pepper jack for more of a kick

Directions

Heat 1.5 Tbsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink on the outside. Remove to a separate bowl and set aside.

Add another 1.5 Tbsp olive oil to the same skillet you used for the chicken and reduce heat to medium. Add garlic, onion, and peppers, then saute for 5-7 minutes until the onion is softened and peppers are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.

Stir in spices and chicken and cook for another minute.

Stir in rice, lemon (or lime) juice, and broth, increase the heat under the pan back to medium-high, and bring everything to a rolling boil. (This will look like a lot of liquid, but don’t worry — it will cook down.)

Reduce heat to medium-low, cover skillet with a tightly fitting lid, and let everything simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes or until the rice is done and has absorbed most of the liquid. Turn off the heat under the skillet and stir in cheddar.

Replace the lid and let your skillet sit covered for 5 more minutes to thicken up a little more and make sure the cheese is fully melted into the rice, then stir again. Serve your fajita rice skillet in bowls, along with your favorite fajita toppings.

Note: If you don’t have mini peppers on hand, you can just substitute two medium sweet bell peppers and slice them into short thin strips.

Monochromatic, yet delicious!

There’s a whole lot of orange going on here, so you’ll want to plan on providing some toppings to give these chicken fajita rice bowls a little visual interest. Think of options like: Avocado, guacamole, green onions, sour cream, black olives, diced tomatoes…

This chicken fajita rice skillet recipe is naturally gluten free, and chicken fajita bowls are a nice change of pace from the usual chicken burrito bowls. You get all of that fajita flavor I was wanting, but still benefit from all of the tender texture you’d expect in a one pan rice skillet meal.

These fajita bowls aren’t particularly spicy, but you can jazz them up to your own tastes with taco sauce (or even spice them up more heavily while cooking, if everyone’s in agreement.)

Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet, printable recipe

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5 from 3 votes

Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet

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This one pan chicken fajita rice skillet recipe has the fajita flavor infused into every bite, and is naturally gluten free.

Course dinner

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Author Rachel Singer

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp olive oil divided
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast or thighs trimmed and cut into small strips
• 3 cloves garlic chopped (about 1 Tbsp minced)
• 1/2 of a medium yellow onion sliced into thin strips
• 16 oz mini sweet peppers stems and seeds removed and sliced into strips
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/2 tsp seasoned salt
• 1/4 tsp cayenne
• 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
• 1 Tbsp lemon or lime juice
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup shredded cheddar -- or use pepper jack for more of a kick

Instructions

• Heat 1.5 Tbsp oil in large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add chicken and cook, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink on the outside. Remove to a separate bowl and set aside.
• Add another 1.5 Tbsp olive oil to the same skillet you used for the chicken and reduce heat to medium. Add garlic, onion, and peppers, then saute for 5-7 minutes until the onion is softened and peppers are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally.
• Stir in spices and chicken and cook for another minute.
• Stir in rice, lemon (or lime) juice, and broth, increase the heat under the pan back to medium-high, and bring everything to a rolling boil. (This will look like a lot of liquid, but don't worry -- it will cook down.)
• Reduce heat to medium-low, cover skillet with a tightly fitting lid, and let everything simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes or until the rice is done and has absorbed most of the liquid. Turn off the heat under the skillet and stir in cheddar.
• Replace the lid and let your skillet sit covered for 5 more minutes to thicken up a little more and make sure the cheese is fully melted into the rice, then stir again. Serve your fajita rice skillet in bowls, along with your favorite fajita toppings.

Notes

If you don't have mini peppers on hand, you can just substitute two medium sweet bell peppers and slice them into short thin strips.

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