We’re in the Whole30 home stretch! When we started this thing 4 weeks ago, I imagined Day 31 to be a monstrous carb fest: a deep-fried french fry sandwich in a tortilla.

(Possibly battered and deep fried again.)

But here we are, 29 days later and I’m all like “Eh.” Don’t get me wrong, it’s going to be really nice to have a tortilla on fajita night. But what I really want:

Goat cheese. (I’ve already pulled it out of the freezer!)

In place of tortillas, we’ve been having “lettuce wrap” fajita nights. Or just grabbing a knife & fork and forgoing the wrapping vehicle entirely.

We’ve relied pretty heavily on our go-to TexMex chicken marinade/wet-rub these last 28 days. Because when your mind already knows something is missing (like tortillas), it’s really easy to start picking things apart, looking for other “flaws.” But the wet rub is super flavorful and requires zero resting time – and almost impossible to find something to complain about.

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Lettuce Wrap Chicken Fajitas

A lighter twist on chicken fajitas that doesn't skimp on flavor.

Ingredients

• For the wet rub:
• 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ancho chili powder (optional)
• Juice of 1 lime
• For the fajitas:
• 1 lb chicken breasts, pounded to even thickness
• Olive oil
• 1 onion, sliced in 1/4-inch rounds (rings left in tact)
• 2 bell peppers, sliced in 1/4-inch rings
• Whole romaine or butter lettuce leaves

Instructions

1. Heat grill to high.
2. Place a piece of foil over half the grill and drizzle with olive oil.
3. Add the onions and peppers and cook for ~8-10 minutes before flipping/stirring. Remove when the veggies are nicely charred.
4. Whisk the wet rub ingredients together in a bowl. Add the chicken, turning to coat on each side.
5. Place the chicken on the grill and cook ~6-8 minutes per side, or until juices run clear.
6. Let chicken sit 5 minutes before slicing.
7. Serve chicken with whole lettuce leaves, topped with grilled vegetables.

Notes

Yields: 2-3 servings

Wet rub slightly adapted from My Husband Cooks

Estimated time: 30 minutes