Dump Meals

Chicken Freezer bag

Chicken Fajita Filling

dumpmeals.com/recipes/chicken-fajita-filling/

Chicken breasts, bell peppers and onion with fajita seasoning and tomatoes. Shred and serve in warm tortillas.

Serves
6
Prep
15 minutes
Cook
Low 3 to 5 hours, or high 1½ to 2½ hours
Slow cooker
6-quart

Chicken fajitas are usually cooked fast in a hot pan. This version goes the other direction: chicken breasts, sliced peppers and onion, a packet of fajita seasoning and a can of diced tomatoes with green chiles all go in the pot together. The peppers and onions soften and sweeten, and the chicken shreds into the juices.

A squeeze of lime at the end wakes it up. Serve in warm flour tortillas with sour cream, shredded cheese and sliced avocado. Or spoon it over rice, or on a baked potato. The vegetables are soft instead of crisp, so this suits people who prefer a gentler texture. Slice the peppers into strips about as wide as your finger.

Warm the tortillas wrapped in a damp towel in the microwave for 20 seconds. Leftover filling is good in quesadillas or over a salad the next day.

Ingredients

Into the slow cooker

  • 2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 3 bell peppers, cut into strips
  • 2 yellow onions, sliced
  • 1 (10-ounce) can diced tomatoes with green chiles
  • 1 (1-ounce) packet fajita seasoning mix

Near the end

  • 2 tablespoons lime juice

To serve

  • flour tortillas, for serving
  • sour cream

Directions

  1. If your meat is frozen, thaw it completely in the refrigerator first. Never put frozen meat in the slow cooker.
  2. Put the peppers and onions in the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker.
  3. Lay the chicken on top. Sprinkle the fajita seasoning over it, then pour the tomatoes with their juice over everything.
  4. Cover. Cook on low 3 to 5 hours or on high 1½ to 2½ hours.
  5. Check the chicken. It must read at least 165°F in the thickest piece.
  6. Shred the chicken in the pot and stir in the lime juice.
  7. Serve in warm tortillas.

It's done when the chicken reads at least 165°F in the thickest piece and shreds easily. The peppers and onions are soft. Check with a food thermometer.

Leftovers go in the refrigerator within two hours. Reheat them on the stove or in the microwave until hot all the way through (165°F), not in the slow cooker. Slow cooker safety

Make it a freezer dump bag

Put the chicken, sliced peppers, sliced onions, fajita seasoning and tomatoes in one gallon freezer bag. Keep the lime juice and tortillas for cook day. Squeeze out the air, seal, label and freeze flat.

Bag: gallon freezer bag. Keeps: 3 months for best quality; safe indefinitely at 0°F in the freezer.

Chicken Fajita Filling

Frozen on:

Thaw in the refrigerator 24 hours, until no ice is left in the middle. Never cook it from frozen, and cook it within 2 days of thawing. Dump into a 6-quart slow cooker. Cook on low 3 to 5 hours. Check with a food thermometer that the chicken reads 165°F in the thickest piece. Shred the chicken and stir in 2 tablespoons lime juice.

Best within 3 months of the date above.

Plan several bags at once with one shopping list and printable labels.

The planner prints this label free. A designed set for all 17 freezer recipes, plus blanks, is in the Freezer Bag Labels pack ($7).

Cooking for two

Use 1 lb chicken, 1 or 2 peppers, 1 onion, half the tomatoes and half the seasoning packet. Use a 3-quart slow cooker, so the food still fills it about halfway. Check the chicken at 3 hours on low.

More in Cooking for two in a slow cooker.

Tips

  • Use a slotted spoon to serve if the filling is juicy.
  • Strips of mixed red, yellow and green pepper give the best color.
  • Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours, in shallow covered containers. Reheat them on the stove or in the microwave until they reach 165°F. Do not reheat them in the slow cooker.

Food-safety sources

More chicken

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  • Honey Garlic Chicken Thighs Low 4 to 6 hours, or high 2 to 3 hours Freezer bag Boneless chicken thighs in a sweet, salty honey and garlic sauce, thickened at the end and served over rice.
  • Chicken Tortilla Soup Low 3 to 5 hours, or high 1½ to 2½ hours Freezer bag Chicken breasts, beans, corn and tomatoes with green chiles in a cumin-spiced broth. Top with crisp tortilla strips.
  • White Chicken Chili Low 3 to 5 hours, or high 1½ to 2½ hours Freezer bag Chicken and white beans simmered with green chiles and cumin, then finished with cream cheese for a creamy broth.