Cumin Chicken Tacos with Lime
Thin-sliced chicken breast cooked with toasted cumin and sweet peppers, piled into warm tortillas and finished with a squeeze of lime. A fast, savory taco night for one.
- Total
- 17 min
- Prep 7 · Cook 10
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Searing · Toasting spices
- Savory
- Quick
- Mexican
- Stovetop
- Oven
Instructions
-
Slice the chicken breast across the grain into 1 cm strips and season with 0.25 tsp salt and 0.125 tsp black pepper. Halve the onion and slice it thinly. Core the peppers and slice into 1 cm strips. Cut the lime half into 2 wedges.
~6 min
Slicing across the grain shortens muscle fibers, making the chicken more tender; uniform strips ensure even cooking.
Slicing the chicken across the grain into 1 cm strips keeps it tender and lets it cook through in the same time the peppers soften.
-
Warm the tortillas in the dry skillet over medium heat, about 30 seconds per side, until soft and lightly blistered. Stack them on a plate and cover to keep warm.
~1 min
Warming tortillas makes them pliable and lightly blistered, preventing them from cracking when filled.
-
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in the skillet over medium-high until it shimmers. Add the onion and peppers and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and lightly browned at the edges, 4 to 5 minutes.
~5 min
Cooking vegetables first softens them and develops browning, building flavor before the chicken is added.
-
Push the vegetables to the sides of the pan, add the chicken in a single layer in the center, and cook undisturbed for 2 minutes to brown. Sprinkle the cumin over the chicken and vegetables and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant.
~2 min
Pushing vegetables aside lets the chicken sear undisturbed for Maillard browning; toasting cumin in the hot pan blooms its aromatic oils.
Toasting the cumin in the hot oil for just 30 seconds before it hits liquid is what gives this filling its warm, nutty depth; pull the pan off the heat if it starts to darken too fast.
Searing Sear the chicken in a single layer without moving it for 2 minutes to develop a brown crust. Avoid crowding the pan, which steams the meat instead of browning it.
Toasting spices Add ground cumin to the hot pan and stir for 30 seconds until fragrant. Watch closely and pull off the heat if it darkens too fast, as it can burn quickly.
-
Continue cooking, stirring, until the chicken is opaque and reaches 74°C/165°F in the thickest strip, about 2 minutes more. Squeeze one lime wedge over the pan and stir to coat.
~2 min
Cooking until opaque and 74°C/165°F ensures the chicken is safe to eat; lime juice adds acidity to balance the rich cumin.
-
Divide the chicken and pepper filling between the warm tortillas and serve with the remaining lime wedge for squeezing at the table.
~1 min