Got leftover chicken? Make these super easy chicken fajitas in an electric skillet.
From time to time, we all face this situation.
Leftover chicken in the fridge.
We don't want to waste it but often we don't really want to eat the same meal two nights in a row. Or maybe we can stretch the chicken we do have out further. Make it last longer.
One of the best dishes to make with leftover chicken are chicken fajitas. With some select ingredients you can whip up this dish in no time flat.
How to Make Chicken Fajitas with Leftovers
Just because it's easy doesn't mean it's not yummy. Here is what you can do to take any old leftover chicken and turn it into delicious fajitas
- Get your bell peppers from the farmer's market or grow them yourself
- Use high quality, whole spices
- Take the time to really caramelize the onions
Fajitas in an Electric Skillet
I like using an electric skillet to make fajitas. My skillet provides me with lots of space to move ingredients around. And it's easy to keep on warm until it's time to serve.
Let me take you to step by step in how to put these fajitas together.
How Long Does it Take to Caramelize Onions
Onions are great fajita fooder. You want to caramelize them. That takes quite a bit of time.
Whenever I order onions at a restaurant and want them sauteed they hardly ever come to me the way I want them. That's because it takes time to develop deep caramelized onion flavor. I start with my onions way before I am going to add in the chicken.
How long before? At least half hour. I cook them over a low heat, otherwise they will be ash in 30 minutes.
The pieces look pretty big in the beginning but as you see these reduce in size quite a bit as they brown. I personally like to use sweet Vidalia onions when they are in season.
Once the onions have taken on enough color, I introduce the bell peppers that I cut into strips. The last time we made them with Chocolate Beauty bell peppers from our garden. So sweet and yummy.
If you have some peppers that are looking a bit wrinkly don't hesitate to still use them in this recipe. We have never noticed a difference since they are soft when we eat them anyway.
Best Spice to Use with Fajitas
What I think makes these the best chicken fajitas ever is the spice I use. I was lucky to get a hold of Wild Mountain Cumin from Burlap & Barrel. These is easily the best cumin on the planet. It's miles ahead of the ground cumin you find hanging out at the grocery store.
This isn't any old cumin. Here is how Burlap & Barrel describe it:
Our wild cumin is hand-picked by foragers in the Hindu Kush mountains of Afghanistan. They are tiny, oblong and black with long stems. Botanically distinct from common cumin (Cuminum cyminum), our wild mountain cumin is renowned in Afghanistan and throughout central and south Asia for its delicious flavor as well as its medicinal properties. It has a savory, penetrating aroma and bright, umami flavor evocative of grilled meats and sweet caramelized onions.
Burlap & Barrel
It's such a rare treat that you can't find anywhere else in the United States.
No matter what you do choose whole cumin seeds and smash them with a mortar & pestle or take them for a spin in a coffee grinder.
For Serving Your Fajitas
You can use flour or corn tortillas whatever you please. My wife likes to use flour tortillas for fajitas. Sour cream and cheddar cheese is probably what most people think of, but I like to add a more Mexican flair by using queso fresco and crema instead.
Other Chicken Recipes You Might Like
Chinese Chicken with Snow Peas
Sous Vide Chicken with Creamy Pepper Flake Sauce
Single Serving Chicken Noodle Soup
Electric Skillet Leftover Chicken Fajitas
Ingredients
- 1-1.5 pounds leftover white and/or dark meat chicken shredded
- 2 bell peppers cut into strips
- 1 medium sweet onion sliced
- 2 tsp whole cumin seeds crushed
- kosher salt to taste
- 3 tbsp cooking oil
- ¼ cup chicken stock optional
To go with your fajitas
- tortillas
- cilantro chopped
- cheddar cheese grated
- queso fresco crumbled
- sour cream or Mexican crema
Instructions
- Heat up your electric skillet to the setting right above warm.
- Add 2 tablespoons of oil, the onions, and a pinch of kosher salt. Slowly cook until the onions have soften and taken on brown color about a half hour, flipping the onions every so often.
- Add 1 tablespoon of oil, the peppers, and a pinch of kosher salt. Increase the heat to 300 degrees or medium and cook until the peppers have soften about 5-10 minutes.
- Use chicken broth or water and scrap the brown stuff off the bottom of the pan. Add in chicken and the cumin. Cook until the chicken is warmed through about 2-4 minutes.
- Reduce the heat to warm. Serve with tortillas, cream, cilantro, and cheese.
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