Campfire Chicken Fajita Foil Packet

This campfire chicken fajita foil packet recipe is quick, loaded with flavor, and packed with protein!

Fajitas are one of our favorite meals, so we obviously had to find a way to easily make them while at camp! Enter: the foil packet.

Foil packets have become one of our easy go-to campfire meals. They not only are simple to put together, but they are easy to clean up and cook without much work. You simply put them over some hot coals and the enclosed packet creates a steam that cooks the items inside, all while containing the flavors.

In this campfire chicken fajita foil packet recipe you only need a handful of ingredients (plus some fun extras!) to make a quick, tasty, Mexican inspired meal while camping. Just wrap it in foil and toss it on some coals for the perfect healthy and high protein dinner! 

Chicken Fajita Foil Packet Ingredients

One great thing about these chicken fajita foil packets is that there is a lot of flexibility to customize it to your own preferences. While there are a few required ingredients, you can easily modify the amount of protein and veggies, plus have a lot of choices for toppings.

Chicken breast

We prefer to use chicken breast for these chicken fajita foil packets. Since we are big fans of protein, we use one chicken breast each, but you could split up a full breast among multiple packets.

Taco seasoning

The most crucial ingredient is taco seasoning. This will give the foil packet a good chunk of its flavor. You can either buy a taco seasoning packet at the store or make your own! 

Olive oil

Olive oil not only helps add some moisture to the foil packet, but it helps create a paste with the taco seasoning, ensuring that the flavor adheres well to the other ingredients.

Bell pepper

Fajitas aren’t complete without bell pepper. Any color will work great for these!

Onion

Another must-have item for these chicken fajita foil packets is onion. We used a red onion, but a white or yellow will work as well. If you’re an onion hater (like Kathryn), feel free to skip this and put more bell peppers, or another veggie of your choice.

Salt (optional)

Since most taco seasoning has salt in it, you may not need to add salt to this recipe. But if you buy a lower sodium option or just prefer a saltier taste, we suggest packing a little to add on at the end.

Lime (optional)

While not required, we think squeezing some lime on these fajitas, after cooking, is a must. It adds a zesty little tang!

Guacamole (optional)

We also are big fans of topping these chicken fajita foil packets with guacamole, once they are off the fire. This is totally optional, but it helps make it a bit more filling and adds a nice creaminess.

Salsa (optional)

Salsa is another tasty addition to these chicken fajita foil packets. Not only does it add an additional flavor, but also some freshness. Any type of salsa will do! Or you could use hot sauce if that’s easier.

Cilantro (optional)

For us, no Mexican dish is complete without cilantro. It adds the perfect extra burst of herby flavor. If you’re one of the unlucky campers that thinks cilantro tastes like soap, feel free to skip this!

Tortillas (optional)

Want to bulk up the meal a bit more? Serve these fajitas on some tortillas.

Other Items Needed for Chicken Fajita Foil Packets

Aluminum foil

You will need some aluminum foil to make these chicken fajita foil packets. We suggest getting heavy duty, to ensure it withstands the handling and being over the campfire. And make sure you pack enough!

Cutting board

Having some sort of cutting board will be very helpful to cut up the chicken and veggies for this foil packet. Make sure to bring something to sanitize it with after putting raw chicken on it! We share some must-have cleaning items in our guide to the ultimate car camping kitchen.

Sharp knife

A sharp knife is crucial to be able to cut up the chicken and veggies. 

Heat resistant gloves

Having heat resistant gloves will be extremely helpful to place the foil packets over the fire, flip them, and remove them. Alternatively, you could use large tongs. 

Meat thermometer

Since you’re cooking raw chicken, you will want to make sure it’s cooked thoroughly. While we often just check the chicken visually, a meat thermometer will help you keep track of the meat’s temperature easier. To check it, you will want to fold back the foil and place it into the meat, as putting the thermometer through the foil will create a hole that will prevent the foil packet from working properly.

Silverware

Make sure to pack some silverware! While you don’t necessarily need a plate or bowl to eat this meal, you will want a fork, spoon, and knife.

How to make Chicken Fajita Foil Packets

Step 1: Prepare your campfire

The first step to making these chicken fajita foil packets is to prepare your fire. You do not want these foil packets going directly over flames, but rather on coals. These coals can be created by letting the fire burn for a bit and calm down. You’ll know the coals are ready when they are glowing red and there is no flame. 

Alternatively, you could use charcoal coals and have a section of these placed under the campfire grill, to the side of your wood campfire.

We suggest starting your fire about 30-45 minutes before you want to start cooking, as it can take time for the coals to be ready. And once it is ready, you want to be prepared to put the foil packets on, to ensure you have hot enough coals.

Step 2: Cut up your ingredients

As your fire gets ready, cut up your chicken, peppers, and onions. Although you could leave the chicken breast whole, we think it cooks better and is easier to eat if it’s cut up in advance. We suggest doing bite sized pieces for the chicken, as well as the peppers and onions.

You can use as much of each ingredient as you’d like, but we personally use a full chicken breast, a full bell pepper, and then a handful of onion. The nice thing about foil packets is that you can make them small or large, depending on how many ingredients you have. So it’s up to you on how much you want!

Step 3: Assemble the foil packet

Once you have your meat and veggies cut up, it’s time to assemble your foil packet! To do this, get a large piece of foil, about 18 inches or so. Then, put your chicken, peppers, and onions in the middle. 

Drizzle about ½ tablespoon of olive oil and 1.5 tablespoons of taco seasoning over the top. Using your hands, mix it all together with the chicken, peppers, and onions, ensuring each piece is properly coated.

Make sure that once mixed together, the ingredients are spread out and not in one giant pile. This will help it cook more evenly.

Stoked to Camp tip: To make things easier, you could cut up and mix your ingredients (steps 2-3) in advance, before heading to your campground. 

Step 4: Fold up your foil packet 

Next, fold up your foil packet, making sure that all of your ingredients are covered. While you could just do one piece of foil, we like to then wrap it again with another (smaller) piece, to ensure it’s fully sealed. For this second piece, we wrap it opposite of how we did the previous one, so that none of the flaps overlap.

Step 5: Put it on the campfire

Now it’s time to cook! Place the foil packet on your campfire ring’s grill grate, over the coals you prepared. If there is not a grill grate, you can put them over the coals directly, but this will be hotter and you will need to keep an eye on it more. 

The cooking time really varies for foil packets, as it depends on how hot your fire is, how much chicken you used, how thick your ingredients are, etc. When we made these chicken fajita foil packets, ours cooked for about 20 minutes. 

We’d suggest flipping the foil packet after 10 minutes and checking the chicken after 20 minutes and going from there. Be very careful when opening the foil pack, the steam will be very hot!

Can you make these chicken fajitas on a camp stove?
Absolutely! While we prefer how easy this is to make in foil packets, you can make these on a camp stove. You can still follow the instructions above, but simply cook in a pan instead!

Step 6: Add toppings

Once the chicken is fully cooked, take the foil packets off the campfire and let cool for a few minutes. Then, add any toppings you’d like, such as lime, cilantro, salsa, and guacamole. Plus any extra salt you may need. You can either eat it straight out of the foil packet, put it on a plate or bowl, or add it to tortillas!

Campfire Chicken Fajita Foil Packet

Print Recipe

This campfire chicken fajita foil packet recipe is quick, loaded with flavor, and packed with protein!

Equipment

• Aluminum foil
• Cutting board
• Sharp knife
• Meat Thermometer
• Silverware

Ingredients

• 1 Chicken Breast sliced into cubes
• 1.5 tablespoons Taco Seasoning
• 1/2 tablespoons Olive oil
• 1 Bell Pepper chopped into cubes
• 1/4 Onion sliced

Optional Toppings

• Salt
• Guacamole or avocado
• Salsa
• Lime
• Cilantro
• Corn Tortillas

Instructions

• Prepare your campfire
• Cut up chicken, bell pepper, and onions
• Assemble foil packet. Lay out a sheet of aluminum foil, place chicken, bell pepper, and onions in the middle. Then, drizzle olive oil and taco seasoning on top and mix all ingredients together.
• Fold up foil packet and wrap with another similarly shaped piece of foil
• Place on campfire and cook for 10 minutes on each side. After 20 minutes, carefully open the foil (be careful of steam!) and check for doneness.
• Add toppings and enjoy!

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