Chicken, Main, Mexican, Seafood

Chicken and Shrimp Fajitas

Mexican Night is always a win at mi casa. While tacos are our standby, I decided to shake things up recently with Chicken and Shrimp Fajitas.

My marinade below makes enough for 2 pounds of protein. I did 1 pound chicken and 1 pound shrimp. The chicken can marinate from 1 to 6 hours, while the shrimp marinates for just 30 minutes. So plan accordingly!

I slice up the peppers and onions first and I cook them separately.

Mexican Night is a great way to get your kids to try new things. Building their own tortilla gives them a sense of control,  and they get to see a table filled with different colors and textures which can really awaken a palate, no matter what age we are. I serve these beautiful fajitas with Goya yellow rice and my awesome black beans. Click here for the black bean recipe.

I also made some Salsa Fresca. Click here for the salsa recipe.

Fajitas

Recipe by Susan LeiserCourse: MainCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Easy
Servings

8

servings
Prep time

30

minutes
Cooking time

30

minutes
Marinating time

1-6

hours

Ingredients

  • For the fajitas
  • 1 lb. chicken breast cut into strips

  • 1 lb. shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed

  • Fajita Marinade (see below)

  • 1-2 red bell peppers, cut into strips

  • 1-2 green bell peppers, cut into strips

  • 1 large onion, cut into strips

  • 1- 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil for the veggies, depending on how many you cook

  • Salt and pepper to taste

  • To serve: flour tortillas, warmed; salsa fresca, sour cream, guacamole, cilantro, chopped jalapenos, chopped scallions, and shredded cheese (not traditional, but I like cheese on mine!). I also have some shredded romaine on the topping list, since I love my leafy greens.

  • For the fajita marinade (makes enough for 1 lb. chicken and 1 lb. shrimp)
  • Juice from 3 limes, about 1/4 cup

  • 2 scallions, chopped into 1-inch long pieces

  • 4 garlic cloves

  • Handful of fresh cilantro

  • 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

  • 1 tsp. cumin

  • 2 Tbsp. chili powder

  • 1/2 tsp. salt

Directions

  • For the veggies
  • Spread cut veggies on a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil. Season with salt and pepper. 
  • To cook veggies, heat a large grill pan over medium high heat. Grill the veggies until tender, stirring occasionally. Cook in batches if using 2 of each pepper. About 5-8 minutes per batch.
  • For the fajita marinade
  • Combine all ingredients into the bowl of a blender. Puree until smooth. Set aside until ready to marinate your protein. Divide into two equal portions: one for the chicken, one for the shrimp.
  • Pour half of the marinade over chicken. Toss and rub marinade into chicken.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 6 hours until ready to cook.
  • About 30 minutes before, cooking the shrimp, pour the remaining half of marinade over shrimp. Toss shrimp to fully coat. Marinate for 30 minutes.
  • To cook the chicken, preheat the grill pan (I use the same one I use for the veggies) over medium high heat. Cook the chicken about 4-5 minutes per side. Your chicken should have beautiful grill marks. To achieve this, don’t overcrowd the pan. Cook in batches if necessary.
  • To cook the shrimp, preheat a skillet over medium heat. Add shrimp and marinade. Saute until opaque and pink. 
  • Serve prepared peppers, onions, chicken and shrimp on warmed tortillas with your favorite toppings. Suggestions are listed with the ingredients above. 

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