Tex-Mex Chicken
Skillet
Butterflied chicken breast cooked golden in a skillet, diced and returned to a bold Tex-Mex mixture of zucchini, bell pepper, onion, black beans, diced tomatoes, and taco seasoning — all topped with melted cheese. A complete one-pan dinner that tastes like it took all evening and comes together in 30 minutes.
- Chicken
- 1 lb chicken breast, butterflied
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- Skillet
- ½ onion, diced
- 2 tbsp garlic, minced
- 2 zucchini, sliced
- 1 bell pepper, diced
- 1 can black beans, drained & rinsed (see lower-carb tip)
- 1 can diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
- 1 packet taco seasoning
- 1 tsp cumin
- Toppings
- ½ cup 2% reduced-fat shredded cheese
- — green onions, chopped (optional)
- — sliced avocado (optional)
- — fresh cilantro (optional)
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1
Cook the chicken
Butterfly the chicken breasts and season both sides with salt and pepper. Heat the olive oil in a large oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 4–5 minutes per side until golden and cooked through to 165°F. Remove to a plate and let rest for 5 minutes, then dice into bite-sized pieces.
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2
Sauté the vegetables
In the same skillet over medium-high heat, add the diced onion and cook for 2 minutes until starting to soften. Add the garlic, bell pepper, and zucchini. Cook for 3–4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender with a slight bite.
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3
Add the remaining ingredients
Return the diced chicken to the skillet. Add the drained black beans, diced tomatoes with green chiles, taco seasoning, and cumin. Stir everything together well. Cover and cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes until everything is heated through and the flavors have melded.
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4
Add cheese & broil
Sprinkle the shredded cheese evenly over the top of the skillet. If using an oven-safe skillet, slide under the broiler on high for 2 minutes until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Otherwise cover the skillet with a lid for 2 minutes to melt the cheese. Top with green onions, avocado, and cilantro if desired and serve immediately from the skillet.
- 4-5 minutes per side is plenty: Butterflied chicken breast is thin — 10 minutes per side would produce dry, overcooked chicken. Pull it at 165°F and let it rest before dicing so the juices redistribute.
- Same pan for everything: Cooking the vegetables in the same pan the chicken was cooked in picks up all the flavorful browned bits left behind — don't wipe the pan clean between steps.
- Lower carb option: Black beans add great heartiness and fiber but also bring more carbs — skip them entirely or replace with extra zucchini or diced mushrooms for the same bulk with fewer carbs.
- Broiler gives you better cheese: Two minutes under a hot broiler gives you properly melted, bubbly, slightly golden cheese — significantly better than just covering with a lid, though both work.
- Leftovers: This reheats beautifully for up to 4 days — add the avocado fresh each day rather than reheating it. A quick reheat in the microwave for 90 seconds brings it right back.