Sheet Pan Fajitas

Tanya Eisenwasser

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A low histamine sheet pan fajita dish with chicken breast, bell peppers, onion, oregano, and cumin.

Prep 15 min

Cook 25 min

Serves 4

Gluten-freeDairy-free

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breast, sliced into 1/2 inch strips
• 2 bell peppers, seeded and sliced thin (see notes)
• 1 large onion, halved and sliced thin
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley, to finish
• 8 cassava flour tortillas, warmed

Instructions

Heat the Oven

1. Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C) and line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.
2. Slice the chicken across the grain into strips about 1/2 inch wide, and slice the peppers and onion to roughly the same width so everything cooks at one rate.

Season and Spread

1. In a large bowl, toss the chicken strips, peppers, and onion with the olive oil, garlic, oregano, cumin, and salt until evenly coated.
2. Spread the mixture over the sheet pan in a single layer. If it is piled up, split it between two pans.

Roast

1. Roast for 15 minutes, then take the pan out and stir everything with a spatula.
2. Return to the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through and the onion edges are browned.
3. Check the thickest strip of chicken. It is done when it reads 165°F (74°C) on an instant-read thermometer.

Serve

1. Scatter the parsley over the hot pan and toss once.
2. Warm the tortillas in a dry skillet for about 20 seconds per side.
3. Bring the pan to the table and let everyone fill their own tortillas while it is hot.

Tips & Substitutions

• Bell peppers sit in the moderate range on the food list. They are the ingredient that makes this dish taste like fajitas, but tolerance varies more with peppers than with most vegetables here. If they do not work for you, use two sliced zucchini or a second onion in their place and the pan still works.
• No citrus, no chili powder, no tomato. Standard fajita seasoning is built on citrus juice, chili powder, and often tomato powder, and all three are off the list. Cumin and oregano carry the flavor instead, with garlic doing the rest.
• Cumin does the heavy lifting. It is generally considered low histamine, though individual tolerance varies, and it is what makes this taste like fajitas rather than like roasted chicken and peppers.
• Do not crowd the pan. A crowded pan steams and the vegetables go limp. Two half-full pans beat one full pan every time, and the onion browning at the edges is where the flavor comes from.
• Slice thin and slice evenly. Thick chicken strips finish long after thin pepper slices burn. Aim for the same 1/2 inch width across everything on the pan.
• What to serve it in. Cassava flour tortillas hold up well to a wet filling, and a simple green salad rounds out the plate. If you buy the tortillas rather than making them, check the label for oils, gums, and preservatives.

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Why This Works

Chicken breast. Commonly tolerated when bought fresh and cooked the same day. Cutting it into strips means it roasts in under 25 minutes, which keeps the cooking window short.

Bell pepper. Classifications differ from one histamine food list to the next, and tolerance varies from person to person. Some people handle a portion with no trouble and others do better leaving it out entirely. Try a small amount first.

Onion and garlic. Both are generally considered low histamine. They give this dish its backbone with no acid involved.

Cumin and oregano. Generally considered low histamine spices and the closest plain substitute for a packaged fajita blend, which usually carries chili, anti-caking agents, and other additives.

Storage

Fajitas are best straight off the sheet pan. Eat it the day it is made, since freshly made is the version most people tolerate best. Portion any extra and freeze it the same day, within an hour of cooking, rather than refrigerating it. Reheat it from frozen in a covered skillet until the chicken is steaming hot all the way through and reads 165°F (74°C), roughly 5 to 7 minutes. If you know in advance you will not finish the pan, roast half the chicken and freeze the raw remainder instead, which keeps the second meal as fresh as the first.