Crock Pot Chicken Fajitas

I was having a chat with my Momma when she was in town the other week. She was showing me some amazingly yummy recipes from some of my fellow food bloggers. Crazy-good looking videos and photos! That conversation got me thinking some time later. There really are food websites out there for just about every type of food, diet, region or sweet tooth! But it also helped me to clarify (in my own mind anyway) where my blog stands in the huge food world universe. A majority of my readers are in the 25-40 year old range. Many are young folks who never learned how to cook food for themselves. Still more are working parents. These are people that are leading extremely busy lives but still want to make food – and have it turn out good. But I’m not sure a whole lot of them would identify as “foodies.” Unless “foodie” means: “I just want to make and eat simple and yummy food without 500 dirty dishes and have to know what “chiffonade” means.”

There is food that is beautiful to look at (but if we are being honest with ourselves, we aren’t really making it – we’re just looking at the pretty window dressings.) And then there is the food we actually make for ourselves and our friends and family. The latter is where I come into play. This is real-world food here folks. And I am a teacher by nature so I’m not just handing out a recipe, I am taking you through it, step-by-step to show you how. You don’t have to rewind a video to keep up. You just prop up your phone or tablet on the counter and scroll up and down without missing a beat!

I went to a kitchen supply home party one time. Y’all know the kind I’m talking about. And they were selling quite a few neat items that were made out of a material that could not be put in the dishwasher. And I love how people say “Oh, but it’s so easy to wash by hand!” My inner-response was “Um, I get that I could wash it by hand. I’m not an idiot – washing dishes isn’t exactly hard. But I don’t want to. And I ain’t got time in my life to be fussing over diva bowls and cookware.” So that right there sums me and this website up in a heart beat.

I try out new products and new ingredients all the time. If it is not something that is going to be absolutely useful nearly everyday to the budget-conscious home cook, I’m not going to share it on here. For example, I tried out the new Instant Pot. I love how they call it an Instant Pot. It’s a pressure cooker! That’s clever marketing though since folks reel back at the sound of “pressure cooker.” It’s a fun little thing. There are lots of fun little kitchen things out there. But it is a very expensive kitchen appliance that takes up a lot of space if you are not using it at least twice a week. Your average working family on a budget may struggle to afford that and I didn’t find it so special that I would say it’s a must-have. It’s fun but you can get the same results with a slow cooker for $20. I mean, if you have the money to spend – go for it! You’ll enjoy it. But my husband and I have been broker than a joke – like seriously BROKE – several times in our marriage. I know that struggle! We have a small kitchen with not a lot of storage space. I ain’t got time, money or space for stuff that is not going to be useful everyday to me!

If you are a foodie who owns a sous-vide machine and you describe yourself as a gourmet who loves to experiment daily in your kitchen and likes to look at pretty food- then this probably isn’t going to be the place for you. But if you love to eat, and want to learn to cook, and want simple but super good recipes – then I am here for YOU! I will help make you look like a super-star in your kitchen and I won’t make you feel bad if you have to Google the words “sous-vide and chiffonade.”

So now, onto this recipe. During the summer months, I get a ton of requests for crock pot (slow cooker) meals. Folks don’t want to crank on their ovens, then crank up the air conditioner just to eat some cooked food. They are usually fairly simple. You can pop the ingredients into the pot before you head off to work, and come home to your house smelling AMAZING and ready to dig in! This one turned out heavenly! You can switch out the chicken for beef strips too. Whatever your family would enjoy! Serve with a salad and some Spanish rice and dinner is served!

1 (each) red, yellow & green bell pepper, sliced in strips*

1 yellow onion, sliced*

4 cloves garlic, minced*

1 (16 oz.) jar salsa

2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 packet fajita seasoning

2 tbsp. fresh lime juice

flour or corn tortillas

sour cream

salsa

shredded cheddar cheese

*Cook’s Note: Sometimes in the produce section of the grocery store, you can find a “fajita blend” of peppers and onions that are already pre-sliced. You can also sometimes find it in the freezer section too (if you need to save on time.) In addition, feel free to use the minced garlic in a jar to make this even faster to prepare.

Sprinkle the tops of the chicken breasts with packet of fajita seasoning.

Top chicken breasts with remaining salsa, peppers, onions.

Serve with a salad and some Spanish rice for a complete meal!

Enjoy!