Skillet Chicken Fajitas

Name: Skillet Chicken Fajitas
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 650 g chicken breast; 2 tsp smoked paprika; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp dried oregano; 2 limes; 2 tbsp olive oil; 3 peppers of different colours, sliced; 2 (about 120 g each) red onions, sliced thick; 200 g skyr; 8 (about 40 g each) small wheat tortillas; 1 small bunch coriander

Chicken and peppers cooked hard and fast so they char instead of stewing, with a lime and smoked-paprika marinade and skyr instead of soured cream.

Fat loss friendlyHigh proteinMeal prep

Under 700 kcal and at least 50 g protein per serving — enough protein to hold on to muscle while you eat less.

A black skillet of charred chicken strips with red, yellow and green pepper and onion, beside a stack of warm tortillas, a bowl of white skyr, lime wedges and coriander.

Servings: 4
Total time: 25 min
Hands-on: 25 min

What you need

Large heavy skillet or griddle pan
Mixing bowl

Ingredients

650 gchicken breast— cut into finger-thick strips
2 tspsmoked paprika
1 tspground cumin
1 tspdried oregano
2limes— one for the marinade, one to serve
2 tbspolive oil
3peppers of different colours, sliced
2 (about 120 g each)red onions, sliced thick
200 gskyr— instead of soured cream
8 (about 40 g each)small wheat tortillas
1 small bunchcoriander

How to make it

Toss the chicken strips with the smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, the juice of one lime, 1 tablespoon of the oil and plenty of salt. Ten minutes is enough — any longer in that much lime and the acid starts to cook the surface of the meat and turns it opaque and dry.
Get the skillet genuinely hot, almost smoking. Cook the chicken in two batches, 3–4 minutes each, without moving it for the first two. A crowded pan drops the temperature and the chicken releases water and poaches itself.
Set the chicken aside, add the last of the oil and throw in the peppers and onions. Cook them 5–6 minutes over the same high heat — they should blacken in patches and still have bite. Soft, sweated peppers are the single most common thing wrong with home fajitas.
Return the chicken and any resting juices to the pan, toss for 30 seconds and take it straight off the heat.
Warm the tortillas in a dry pan for 20 seconds a side, and serve everything in the middle of the table with the skyr, the second lime cut into wedges and coriander.

Per serving, roughly

Energy: ~600 kcal
Protein: ~51 g
Carbs: ~57 g
Fat: ~16 g

These are estimates calculated from standard ingredient values. Your numbers will shift with the exact products you buy and with how generously you fill the plate — oil, sauces and cheese move them the most.

Variations

Prawn version

Swap the chicken for 600 g of raw prawns and cook them for 2 minutes a side only. About 150 kcal and 12 g of protein less per portion, and far less forgiving on timing.

Lower carb

Serve in large lettuce leaves instead of tortillas. About 240 kcal and 45 g of carbohydrate less per portion.

Coach's tip

51 g of protein for 600 calories — the figures that make this one of the easiest weeknight dinners to fit into a cut without it feeling like one. The skyr instead of soured cream does most of that work and nobody notices at the table.

More recipes

Other recipes worth a place in your week.

MealsLean Beef Burrito-Style Rice BowlLean beef mince with cumin, smoked paprika and peppers over rice — burrito filling without the wrap. Four bowls, about 50 g of protein each, and the sauce freezes properly.MealsButter ChickenChicken thigh marinated in spiced yoghurt and charred under the grill before it meets a tomato sauce finished with butter and cream. 43 g of protein.MealsChili sin CarneTwo kinds of bean, charred peppers and a spice base of smoked paprika and cumin. Half an hour of simmering that tastes like a whole afternoon.

General information only, not medical or nutritional advice. If you have a health condition, an allergy, or specific dietary needs, talk to a qualified professional.

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