Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas with Lettuce Wraps
Making chicken fajitas on the sheet pan is genius. Serving them in lettuce wraps versus high-carb tortillas is brilliant. All together, this is a next-level delicious dish that you’ll love for Cinco de Mayo or anytime you’re craving Mexican food.
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas
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Normally, you would think about making chicken fajitas in a skillet with lots of oil. With this recipe for sheet pan chicken fajitas with lettuce wraps, cooking everything in the oven removes the time-consuming — and let’s admit, messy — part of chicken fajitas out of your hands.
If you’re looking for sides to serve, beyond the avocados and limes that I’ve included in this recipe, why not heat up cauliflower rice. Everyone can even add them to their lettuce wraps if they’d like. For a special occasion, consider whipping up some sugar-free pina colada drinks to serve, too.
Ingredients
I’ve broken out the ingredients list into two sections. The first is for the fajita seasoning, which you could easily replace with my no-sugar homemade taco seasoning. The second is for the fajitas themselves.
Fajita Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Fajitas
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1 medium red bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium orange bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 small red onion thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 large ripe avocado sliced
- Fresh cilantro
- Bibb or other large lettuce leaves for wrapping
- 1 large lime cut into wedges
Step-by-Step Directions
- Add the fajita seasoning ingredients into a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
- Place the chicken tenders in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil and half of the fajita seasoning on top. Seal the bag and carefully turn until the chicken is evenly coated. Marinate chicken for 30 minutes or in the refrigerator overnight.
- To prepare, preheat the oven to 400 F and line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat. Set aside.
- Add sliced peppers and red onion, if using, to a large mixing bowl and drizzle remaining olive oil and fajita seasoning on top. Generously season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.
- Remove chicken from freezer bag and discard remaining marinade. Spread the chicken and vegetables into a single layer on the prepared baking sheet without overcrowding. Place in the pre-heated oven and roast for 7 minutes.
- Pull sheet pan from oven and flip each chicken tender. Return to oven and roast for another 7-8 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables develop some nice color.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the fresh lime juice. Serve immediately with sliced avocado, cilantro and lettuce leaves for wrapping. Offer lime wedges on the side for squeezing. Enjoy!
Notes
This recipe calls for 1.5 pounds of chicken tenders. However, I find that tenders are often more expensive at the grocery store. So try this frugal hack instead: buy regular boneless, skinless chicken breasts and use a pair of kitchen shears to cut the breasts into tenderloins.
You can try different spices and rubs on the chicken and even how you serve the finished dish. Blackened is an option as well as making a barbecue flavor. In fact, with this recipe for BBQ chicken sheet pan tacos, not only are you changing up the flavor profile, you’re swapping fajitas for tacos. Both ways are delicious.
In this recipe, I’ve given you ingredients to make a fajita seasoning from scratch. However, my sugar free taco seasoning is a fine stand in if you want to skip making the seasonings from scratch.
If preferred, the lettuce wraps used in this recipe can be replaced with low-carb tortillas for a more traditional sandwich presentation.
For best results, use a quarter sheet pans, which are 9-by-13, for this recipe versus a standard 13” x 18” sheet pan. Make sure you’re using a Silpat mat that matches that size, too. If the size doesn’t match, you can go with parchment paper instead.
Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas Lettuce Wraps
Equipment
Ingredients
Fajita Seasoning
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Fajitas
- 1 1/2 pounds chicken tenders
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil divided
- 1 medium red bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium yellow bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 medium orange bell pepper cut into strips
- 1 small red onion thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1 large ripe avocado sliced
- Fresh cilantro
- Bibb or other large lettuce leaves for wrapping
- 1 large lime cut into wedges
Instructions
- Add the fajita seasoning ingredients into a small bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
- Place the chicken tenders in a gallon-sized freezer bag. Drizzle one tablespoon olive oil and half of the fajita seasoning on top. Seal the bag and carefully turn until the chicken is evenly coated. Marinate chicken for 30 minutes or in the refrigerator overnight.
- To prepare, pre-heat oven to 400 F and line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat. Set aside.
- Add sliced peppers and red onion, if using, to a large mixing bowl and drizzle remaining olive oil and fajita seasoning on top. Generously season with salt and black pepper, to taste, and toss to combine.
- Remove chicken from freezer bag and discard remaining marinade. Spread the chicken and vegetables into a single layer on the prepared baking sheet without overcrowding. Place in the pre-heated oven and roast for 7 minutes.
- Pull sheet pan from oven and flip each chicken tender. Return to oven and roast for another 7-8 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables develop some nice color.
- Remove from oven and sprinkle with the fresh lime juice. Serve immediately with sliced avocado, cilantro and lettuce leaves for wrapping. Offer lime wedges on the side for squeezing. Enjoy!