I’m currently back in New York City between international foodie adventures, cooking up a storm in “The Little Kitchen that Could.” Yes, this is my entire kitchen and dining room. Though it’s small, the kitchen’s top-of-the-line appliances pack a mean culinary punch. I’ve turned out some delicious food in this tiny space, including one of my favorite at-home meals: chicken fajitas.

First off, I’d like to clarify that this is not some crazy complex recipe designed for Top Chef contestants or molecular superstar wannabes. It’s not really even a recipe, more like a hungry cheater’s guide to a quick foodie fix. These fajitas are one of my favorite dinners to make when I’m between trips and haven’t seen my friends in a while. I advertise “fajita night” on my Facebook page and suddenly the phone is ringing off the hook and SHAZAM! I’ve got instantaneous dinner guests with bonus booze in tow.

This recipe isn’t from scratch. I use a pre-bought marinade, pre-sliced veggies (they’re cheaper from my grocery delivery service than buying whole vegetables) and packaged tortillas. Lazy lazy lazy pants. Trust me though, this recipe is amazing. If you want, you can totally get fancy and concoct your own triple-threat marinade or press your own flour tortillas. These fajitas are as culinarily highbrow as you want them to be. Me, I want to impress my friends and whip up something that’ll make me swoon at first bite — in 20 minutes or less.

Enjoy my lazy-pants fajitas. If I can make them, anyone can.

Ingredients

Fajitas:

• 1 pound of chicken, cleaned and sliced into thin strips about 1/2 inch wide.
• 1/2 cup fajita marinade*
• 3 bell peppers, sliced (I use yellow, red, green for the variety of flavors and colors)
• 1 small red onion, sliced
• 8 eight-inch flour tortillas

Accompaniments:

• avocado
• cilantro sprigs
• shredded cheese
• sour cream
• salsa
• ????

*I use Fresh Direct® brand fajita marinade. Ingredients include soy sauce, worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, jalapeño, salt, garlic, chili powder, dried cilantro.

Directions

Brush the fajita marinade over the chicken and place it in the refrigerator for about an hour. Start daydreaming about fajita time.

Heat a skillet on the stove at medium-high heat, adding a dash of extra virgin olive oil. When the pan is hot, add the chicken. I like to cover the pan because the chicken cooks faster. The sliced chicken should take about 6 minutes to cook. Make sure the meat is cooked all the way through. It should take on a solid, white hue with no pink in the middle. I usually check by cutting the thickest pieces in half. The chicken should easily break apart. If it seems difficult, it may not be thoroughly cooked.

Transfer the cooked chicken to a plate. I like to use a paper towel-covered plate to soak in any moisture.

Keep the pan hot and add the sliced veggies. They should cook fairly quickly – about 2-3 minutes. When the vegetables are cooked, they will become soft and look like this:

Transfer the chicken back into the pan and add 4 tablespoons of marinade. Toss the chicken and vegetables in the pan until they are evenly coated. Your fajita mix will sizzle and smell amazing. Time to turn off the stove and break out the fun toppings.

I use 8″ flour tortillas for my fajitas. I wrap them in aluminum foil and heat them in the toaster oven. You can use whatever toppings you’d like for the fajita fixings bar. I’m a fan of fresh cilantro, shredded cheddar/monterey jack cheese, sliced avocado, sour cream, pico de gallo and my favorite hot sauce from Honduras – Don Julio.

This is a super-fast and delicious recipe to whip up for/impress a small group of friends. Total prep and cooking time is about 20 minutes – great for people on the go. These fajitas are also the perfect recipe for everyone’s inner chef lazy-pants. Kick back, grab a cold one and enjoy!