Fajita Veggies

These Fajita Veggies have the restaurant flavor you love, made at home without a seasoning packet. Use them for vegetarian fajitas, or add steak, chicken or shrimp to the mix!

I have a complete recipe post for vegetarian fajitas, which include these fajita veggies, a creamy chipotle sauce and a special bean mixture, but today’s post is simply about the vegetables only.

You’ll love this Fajita Vegetables Recipe

If you also came of age in the 1980’s and 90’s, maybe you can relate: fajitas were (are!) THE BEST!

When I was a kid, and we went to a restaurant that served chicken or shrimp fajitas, I was definitely ordering them.

The excitement of them coming to the table in a sizzling skillet couldn’t be beat! A homemade fajita bar is also pretty exciting.

My family also made them at home quite a bit. And, as was typical for the time, we used a packet of “Fajita Seasoning Mix” to flavor our meal.

It tasted great, but upon closer inspection recently, I’ve realized the packet contained sketchy ingredients like “corn syrup solids” and “caramel color.”

You know what? I’ll pass. The good news is that now that I’m a confident cook with a well-stocked spice drawer, I don’t need the packet. 

What are fajita veggies?

My preference for fajita veggies are simply bell peppers and onions. I’ve seen quite a few recipes where people also include mushrooms.

Maybe that is a regional preference, but in the Midwest, we didn’t include mushrooms. However, I do like to have a variety of colors of bell pepper.

If I can find green, red, orange and yellow at the grocery store, I’ll buy one of each. However, just like with my Instant Pot sweet and sour chicken, a combination of red and green would be perfectly fine.

As far as onion, I’ll use red, yellow or white – doesn’t matter much to me, it’s just whatever is in my fridge.

What vegetables go with Fajitas?

While I’ve stuck with basic bell peppers and onions in the recipe card below, there are lots of options!

• Bell peppers – red, yellow and green are all good!
• Onions – red, yellow or white onions all work well.
• Mushrooms – some people love mushrooms in their fajitas.
• Zucchini or Squash – especially great in the summer when these veggies are in season.
• Jalapeños – for a spicy version of fajitas!

How to season Fajita Veggies

To season fajita veggies, you can use a combination of dried herbs and spices, as well as fresh garlic, to enhance their flavor. You can try this simple combination:

• fresh garlic
• chili powder
• dried oregano
• ground cumin
• kosher salt
• ground black pepper

After you’ve cooked the fajita vegetables until they are tender, sprinkle the veggies with the seasonings and toss them well to make sure everything is evenly coated. Cook for 1 minute to bring out the flavors from the spices.

How to make fajita veggies

My best tip here is to use a cast iron skillet if at all possible. The hot, even heat the skillet maintains really allows the vegetables to char in some spots (also perfect for blistered shishito peppers and dipping sauce), which is where a lot of that classic fajita flavor comes from. 

Also important  –  DON’T STIR TOO OFTEN. One mistake I see a lot of home cooks making when they saute vegetables (like blistered tomatoes) is that they stand over them and stir them almost constantly.

This isn’t risotto – take a chill pill. Make a lemon margarita while you resist the urge to stir.

You want to stir occasionally so that you expose all of the vegetables to the same amount of heat.

But if you stir TOO often, you’ll prevent anything from really browning, and you’ll basically just steam everything.

So allow your veggies to cook for about 3 to 4 minutes, undisturbed, between stirs. I know it’s hard to resist sometimes, but try!

Make Fajitas Veggies with ingredients you already have!

Here’s where we get to take most of the flavors from that seasoning packet but make it at home in a much healthier way.

If you have a well-stocked spice cabinet (which I always do so I can make things like kafta really easily), you’re good to go.

The herbs and spices are cumin, chili powder and dried oregano. Or, you can mix up a batch of fajita seasoning and keep it in a jar so you have it on hand whenever you need it.

We’re skipping any of the corn syrup additives because we don’t need added sugar in fajita veggies (trust me, you won’t miss it).

Instead of “lime juice solids,” we’re just going to roll with fresh lime juice. And then there’s salt and pepper, because there’s always salt and pepper. 

Other ways to use Fajita Vegetables

Of course, the vegetarian fajitas I mention at the top of the post. They’re also perfect tucked into mushroom tacos or on top of Sonoran hot dogs.

But if you have some left over after that? Chop them up and put them on top of a grilled chicken pizza or even to add extra pizzazz to a baked potato pizza. Stir them into taco mac and cheese or breakfast muffins.

Make some cheesy nachos with fajita vegetables (unless you’re in the mood for something Asian-inspired, and then go with wonton nachos instead!)

They’re always a good choice to fold into an omelet. They’re so good on top of my umami burger recipe. Or of course, put them on top of queso bratwurst!

Storing and Reheating Fajitas Veggies

To store leftover fajita veggies, allow them to cool and then place them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

To reheat fajita vegetables, you have quite a few options:

• STOVETOP: Heat a teaspoon of vegetable oil or olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add veggies and cook, stirring frequently, until heated through.
• MICROWAVE: Place fajita veggies in a microwave-safe dish, and cook on high, stirring every minute, until veggies are heated through.
• OVEN: Spread veggies in an even layer on rimmed baking pan and bake at 350 degrees F until warmed through.

 Can Fajita Veggies be frozen?

Yes, fajita veggies can be frozen for longer-term storage, although their texture may not be quite as good as when they were originally made.

To freeze, allow them to cool completely and then transfer them to a freezer bag or freezer-safe container. Freeze up to 3 months.

To reheat, allow to thaw in the refrigerator overnight and then reheat using one of the methods outlined above.

Fajita Veggie FAQs