Fajita pasta is a rich and tasty favourite among home cooks in Scotland, but I hadn't made it myself until this year. I was recommended the recipe while searching for something to do with a bag of frozen cooked chicken, a useful frozen ingredient but one I had never used before. I've since made this dish countless times, eventually landing on my own recipe that is both economical and indulgent.
Step 1
Defrost your frozen cooked chicken pieces in the fridge overnight, or from morning to evening.
You can also cook the chicken from frozen, but I find defrosting first makes for a nicer texture and easier cooking experience.
Step 2
Grate or mince your garlic, then slice your pepper and onion into slices of similar thickness.
I like to use sweet peppers as you don't have to cook them for long to get a good flavour out of them. However, regular bell peppers work perfectly well and are easier to slice.
Step 3
Warm your oil (and butter, if using) over a medium heat in a wide-bottomed frying pan and throw in your onions and peppers. Fry for a few minutes or until the onions start to soften.
Use this time to chop up your chicken pieces into bite-sized chunks if necessary.
Step 4
Add the garlic with a splash of water, followed by your fajita spice mix. Stir and allow everything to heat up for a few seconds, then throw in your chicken.
I often find it necessary to throw in another splash of water at this point to loosen everything up.
Step 5
Stir in your double cream and handful of cheese. Taste, and season accordingly. Usually all I need to add here is some pepper, and a handful of chopped coriander if I happen to have some around.
Step 6
Combine your cooked pasta with the sauce, and serve! I like to then have a bowl of grated cheese on the table so people can garnish their fajita pasta with as much or as little as they like.
- Some popular additions to fajita pasta include: sliced mushrooms, sweetcorn, fresh chilli, and (my favourite) chopped fresh coriander.
- In my experience, penne works best with this recipe. Tagliatelle also works, but it's harder to combine evenly with the chicken pieces, making it trickier to serve.
- If you're tempted to use real chicken for this recipe, be my guest. But I'd also encourage you to make your fajita pasta with frozen cooked chicken instead to see how you like it as you'll find yourself pleasantly surprised!
- If your pan is roomy enough, add the pasta to the sauce rather than vise versa. This will help you put every last drop of sauce to use.
