Oh Summer. The months of constant running around here, there and everywhere. Dinners out on patios with friends, wedding events galore, time spent at the beach and at parks…sometimes it feels like we are rarely home during the summer, let alone home for dinner. But on those quiet summer nights, we fire-up the grill and enjoy the best of the seasonal produce, and this meal was everything a summer meal is meant to be.
Not to mention this is a quick dinner to get on the table and would be well received for those summer dinners with friends. I served it up with some cheddar cheese, sour cream, tomatillo salsa and those made it top-notch. The only changes I made to the recipe was using chicken thighs (my go-to) and adding a few more peppers to the mix. I also don’t have a charcoal grill, so we just used our gas grilled and it tasted perfect.
Another great recipe from Annie’s Eats and one that will be on our table many times over the next few months (and I am sure even over the winter too!)
Enjoy!
Grilled Chicken Fajitas
Yield: 4-6 Servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes, plus 15 for marinating
Cook Time: 20 minutes, give or take
Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 6 TBSP vegetable oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- 1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
- 1½ tsp. brown sugar
- 1 jalapeño, seeded, ribbed and diced
- 1½ TBSP minced fresh cilantro (or more!)
- 1 tsp. salt
- ¾ tsp. pepper
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1½ lbs)
- 1 large red onion, sliced into ½-inch thick slices, rings not separated
- 1 large red bell peppers, stemmed, quartered and seeded
- 1 large yellow bell peppers, stemmed, quartered and seeded
- 1 large orange bell peppers, stemmed, quartered and seeded
- 1 large green bell peppers, stemmed, quartered and seeded
- 8-12 (6-inch) flour tortillas
- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, grated
- Sour Cream, Salsa, Tomatillo Salsa and extra cilantro for serving
Directions:
In a medium bowl, whisk together the lime juice, 4 tablespoons of the vegetable oil, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, jalapeño, cilantro, salt and pepper. Reserve ¼ cup of the marinade; set aside. Place the chicken thighs in the marinade, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Brush both sides of the onion rounds and peppers with the remaining 2 tablespoons vegetable oil. Season with salt and pepper.
For a gas grill, light all burners to high, cover and heat grill until hot, about 15 minutes. Leave one burner on high and turn the rest down to medium. (see here for charcoal directions).
Remove the chicken thighs from the marinade and transfer to the hotter side of the grill; discard the left over marinade. Cook the chicken until it is well browned, 3-4 minutes. Using tongs, flip the chicken and continue grilling until it is no longer pink inside (or an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 160˚ F.)
Place the onion rounds and peppers on the cooler side of the grill. Cook the onions and peppers until spottily charred and crisp-tender, about 8-12 minutes, turning once or twice as needed.
When the chicken and vegetables are done, separate the onions into rings and place them in a medium bowl. Slice the bell peppers lengthwise into ¼-inch strips (discard the inside bits!) and then slice the chicken into ¼-inch strips (or, as I did, just dice the chicken into pieces).
Add the chicken and the reserved marinade into the bowl with the onions and toss to mix.
In 2 or 3 batches, transfer the tortillas in a single layer to the now empty grill on the cooler side. Cook until warm and lightly browned, about 20 seconds per side. When the tortillas are done, wrap them in a clean kitchen towel or foil.
Arrange the chicken and vegetables on a large platter, serve with the warmed tortillas and cheese, sour cream, salsa etc.
Enjoy!
Recipe from Annie’s Eats
JBean Cuisine 