Fajita Veggies Recipe: Perfectly Sauteed Peppers and Onions for Fajitas

Great news for vegans - you can enjoy the delicious fajita veggies Chipotle offers from the comfort of home and for a fraction of the price! It takes virtually no time to whip up these grilled fajita peppers and onions for an easy weeknight dinner at home. 

Fajitas are the star of the show at many of our favorite restaurants, served piping hot on a sizzling cast-iron pan brought right to the tableside. 

One of my first jobs was serving at a restaurant that had them on the menu, and they were a top-selling dish. The tantalizing aroma of these sauteing vegetables would fill the room, and everyone would want to order "whatever smells so good."

I still remember the impending terror I felt when a child ran full-speed into my knees while I carried two scorching hot trays of fajitas on my hands. Luckily, no children were harmed that day.

But, I digress. These fajita onions and sweet bell peppers get seasoned and sauteed to perfection in this effortless dinner - it takes less than 20 mins total between prep and cooking time. 

Cook up some rice or throw them in some flour or corn tortillas, and you have yourself a healthy, filling, vegetarian dinner that even the kids will look forward to eating. 

Prepping these fajitas makes it easy to be vegan on a budget while eating meals that rival any Mexican restaurant. 

Follow the fajita recipe below and learn how to cook fajita vegetables to a perfect char every time.

How to Make Fajita Veggies: Vegan Fajita Recipe

This recipe provides a solid foundation for vegetable fajitas with the classic combination of sweet bell peppers and grilled onions. 

Once you've mastered the basics, you can swap out and add extra veggies or other ingredients of your choosing or play around with tweaking the spice blend. 

We use a cast-iron skillet for cooking our fajita veggies because you can safely cook at high heat and give your veggies a smoky sear that's a bit charred. 

The fajita vegetable seasoning is a simple mixture of cumin, chili, salt, paprika, and dried oregano, which gives the dish a genuinely Tex Mex feel. 

Vegan Fajitas Recipe - FAQ

Vegan Fajitas Serving Options

There are plenty of ways to serve our vegan fajita vegetables other than in the traditional tortillas - though we do love a good tortilla stuffed with veggies!

Here are some of the more traditional ways to serve these vegan fajitas, and a few of our favorite out-of-the-box options:

• Scooped onto mini corn or flour tortillas and topped with sour cream, Greek yogurt, or cashew cream
• Added into a giant burrito wrap or burrito bowl, served over steamed rice
• As a nutritious and flavorful topping on all of your favorite sandwiches
• Atop a green salad or taco salad with guacamole, tomatoes, and crushed corn chips
• In a breakfast scramble with chopped hash browns and scrambled eggs or tofu
• Folded into an omelet
• In a Mexican-inspired pasta or on rice noodles, stir-fry style
• Piled high on a plate of vegan, vegetarian, or meat-based nachos 

Prepping Ahead

This recipe comes together quite quickly and simply, but you can speed up the process even more by prepping your fajita vegetables beforehand. 

Chop the veggies of your choice and place them in an airtight container in your fridge. You can prepare the vegetables the morning before or up to 3 days beforehand, depending on your veggies' freshness. 

How can I up the protein in these fajita veggies?

These vegetarian fajitas are full of fiber and nutrients, but they're a little lower in protein than traditional recipes that often include steak or chicken in the mix. 

You can up the protein content in vegetable fajitas recipes with plant-based protein sources, like soy. 

Tofu

Tofu is a nutrient-dense, plant-based soybean curd that significantly ups the protein content. Its flavor is mild and light, so it won't compete with or alter your other ingredients' taste. 

Press a block of extra firm tofu, chop it into cubes, then fry with the rest of your fajita veggies. For extra crispy tofu, cook it alone in the pan beforehand so that each cube makes full contact with the pan's bottom. 

Cook 3-4 mins per side, then remove the tofu from the pan. Fry up the rest of your fajita vegetables, then add the tofu to reheat right before adding in your seasoning. 

Soybean Curls

Some prefer this handy soy-based protein over tofu, as it comes in a convenient format and tastes a little like chicken. Soybean curls are non-GMO and come dehydrated from the grocery store, resembling dried mushroom stems before preparation. 

Simply soak your soybean curls in water or broth for 10 mins, and you'll have plump strands of soy protein. Saute them in a hot pan as you would tofu, then add them into your fajita veggies immediately before seasoning. 

You can also add de-shelled edamame, black beans, or sliced mushrooms to your fajitas to efficiently pump up the protein. Keep in mind that mushrooms are a lot softer than peppers and onions and require less time to cook, so you should add them into the pan at least a few minutes later than your harder fajita veggies. 

Seasoning for Sauteed Vegetables

Most Mexican spice blends start with a classic - chili powder. From there, we add in garlic powder, salt, paprika, and a few other ingredients to intensify and deepen the savory flavor. 

The seasoning we use in our fajitas is more of a Tex Mex style than an authentic Mexican blend. It contains many of the ingredients you'll find in a packet of taco seasoning, without the MSG or chemical additives. 

Cumin is a common ingredient in taco seasoning found north of the border in Texas, whereas most traditional Mexican spice blends don't contain this flavor.

If you want more traditional Mexican-spiced fajita vegetables, omit the cumin and add extra chili powder.  

Fajita Ingredients

Here are some of our favorite flavorful add-ins for veggie fajitas:

• Sweet bell peppers of any color
• Onion, red is preferred, but cooking onions work too
• Jalapenos de-seeded and sliced for a little heat
• Sliced cremini or portobello mushrooms
• Freshly sliced tomatoes or whole cherry tomatoes
• Fresh Herbs - cilantro is our favorite
• Pickled Onion as a tangy topping after cooking
• Zucchini and broccoli to up the nutrition and vary the flavors

Is this recipe gluten-free?

This recipe is vegetarian, dairy-free, and entirely gluten-free naturally, though you may use some sides that contain gluten.

If you're looking for gluten-free fajitas, use corn-based tortillas or those labeled gluten-free from the supermarket. 

Are vegetarian fajitas healthy?

These veggie fajitas are incredibly good for you, as vegetables are some of the most nutrient-dense foods on earth. They contain a small amount of vegetable oil, which is perfectly fine to consume in moderate quantities, and much less salt than you'll find in a packet of taco seasoning. 

If you're particularly concerned about your sodium intake, you can omit the salt and add to taste as you're eating the fajitas. 

Some of the sides can be a little heavy - try eating just 1-2 small tortillas and enjoying the rest of your fajita veggies on their own to cut down on extra calories. Avocado is an extremely nutritious but high-fat food, so keep the guacamole servings to a moderate size. 

Final Notes: Fajita Vegetables Recipe

Don't be afraid to experiment with these veggie fajitas - it's tough to make this recipe taste bad. 

It's a great way you can use up any extra veggies that are on their last legs, kicking around the bottom of your refrigerator. 

Enjoy your veggie fajitas!