This cheesy chicken quesadilla recipe is bursting with flavour from plenty of chicken, black beans, hot peppers, corn and lots and lots of cheese. The finishing touch? Adobo sauce for that smoky heat. You’re gonna love these!
Hi friends!
Today I’m sharing a cheesy chicken quesadilla recipe that I think you’re going to love (well, I know we do!)
Quesadillas are something hubby and I regularly enjoy.
They not only taste delicious, but are super quick to whip up, which is why we enjoy them for busy weekday dinners or even for Friday night eats.
Some of our favourites include ground beef quesadillas, black bean quesadillas, turkey quesadillas and even breakfast quesadillas. Suffice to say, we are big fans of quesadillas.
I mean, what’s not to love? A crispy exterior with a cheesy, hearty centre? Sign me up!
Ingredients for this Cheesy Chicken Quesadilla Recipe
For this chicken quesadilla recipe, you’ll need –
- Tortillas (opt for about 7 to 8 inches in diameter)
- Cooked chicken
- Canned black beans
- Hot peppers
- Corn
- Shredded cheese
- Oil
- Any condiments that makes you happy!
How to Make It
For this recipe, I used cooked chicken so everything came together quite quickly.
All you need to do is distribute the chicken on half of each tortilla and top with everything else.
Fold over, brush with a touch of oil and bake (or pan fry) until they are heated through and the cheese is melted.
You may want to wait a few minutes before cutting, though, ’cause that cheese is all hot and melty … not that that’s a bad thing, if you ask me!
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Serving Suggestions
You know me and my garnishes and little sidekicks (love ’em). They’re what takes a meal from yummy to something special.
Some off my faves to serve with these chicken and cheese quesadillas are:
- Salsa
- Greek yogurt
- Sour cream
- Guacamole
- Lime
- Pickled red onion
- Cilantro
More Tips and Variations
Make sure your beans are rinsed, drained and patted dry so they don’t leak too much moisture into the quesadillas … same with the banana peppers.
Omit the chicken if you prefer a vegetarian option.
Speaking of chicken, if you don’t have leftover chicken, cook about 1 boneless skinless chicken breast and 2 boneless/skinless chicken thighs in a cast iron skillet in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 22 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Let cool slightly before chopping up for use in quesadillas.
Want something besides chicken in these cheese quesadillas? Shredded cooked pork or roast beef works wonderfully here too
Don’t have, don’t like or don’t want to use adobo sauce? Your favourite BBQ sauce works awesome too.
Cheddar cheese was used here, but you could use another variety if you prefer (or mix some). Just pick a nice melting cheese. Here are some great melting cheese options.
These make awesome leftovers. You can certainly reheat in the microwave, but they won’t have that same exterior crunch, but still taste delicious. If you want, you can reheat in the oven on 400 F for about 10 minutes or until heated through.
There’s two methods here for cooking these chicken and cheese quesadillas – oven or stovetop. While both are great, the stovetop method yields crispier results, which is always a good thing when we’re talking quesadillas!
More Recipes You May Enjoy
- Fish Fajitas – Made in about 20 minutes on one sheet pan. Flavourful and delicious!
- Oven Baked Fish Tacos – Panko coated white fish is oven baked and drizzled with a smoky chipotle sauce. Perfect for taco Tuesday (or any day of the week, really)!
Hope you love this easy chicken quesadilla recipe as much as we do!
If you make this cheesy chicken quesadilla recipe, be sure to leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed! Thank you!
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Cheesy Chicken Quesadilla Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 large flour tortillas (about 7 to 8 inches in diameter)
- 2.5 cups cooked chicken , cut into bite-sized pieces or shredded
- 2.5 cups cheddar cheese , shredded
- ¾ cup canned unsalted (or no salt added) black beans , rinsed, drained and patted dry of excess moisture
- 1 ear corn , kernels removed
- ⅓ cup banana peppers (squeezed with paper towel to remove excess moisture)
- 2 tablespoons adobo sauce (or more to taste if you want things spicier/smokier)
- ½ tablespoon olive oil (or cooking spray to grease pan)
Instructions
- Distribute cooked chicken evenly over tortillas (on one half of each tortilla).
- Top chicken with cheese, black beans, corn, banana peppers and adobo sauce. Fold over top so you have half moon shapes. Cook per either method below.
Stovetop Method (preferred method)
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit (to keep quesadillas warm while preparing batches). This is optional.
- Brush top of tortilla with olive oil (or spray a non stick pan with cooking spray).
- Place 2 half moons in pan at a time, cook on medium heat about 2 to 3 minutes per side until golden brown and crispy, being careful not to burn.
- Once golden and cheese is melted, place quesadillas in oven on a sheet pan to keep warm while finishing batches (3 batches in total). Lest rest for about 5 minutes before cutting in half. Makes 12 pieces. Serve with salsa, Greek yogurt, guacamole or sour cream. Enjoy!
Oven Baked Method
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Brush top of tortilla with olive oil. Bake for about 10 minutes until heated through and cheese melted. Lest rest for about 5 minutes before cutting in half. Makes 12 pieces. Serve with salsa, Greek yogurt, guacamole or sour cream. Enjoy!
Notes
- Make sure your beans are rinsed, drained and patted dry so they don’t leak too much moisture into the quesadillas….same with the banana peppers.
- Omit the chicken if you prefer a vegetarian option.
- Speaking of chicken, if you don’t have leftover chicken, cook about 1 boneless skinless chicken breast and 2 boneless/skinless chicken thighs in a cast iron skillet in a 400 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 22 to 25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through. Let cool slightly before chopping up for use in quesadillas.
- Want something besides chicken in these cheese quesadillas? Shredded cooked pork or roast beef works wonderfully here too
- Don’t have, don’t like or don’t want to use adobo sauce? Your favourite BBQ sauce works awesome too.
- Cheddar cheese was used here, but you could use another variety if you prefer (or mix some). Just pick a nice melting cheese.
- These make awesome leftovers. You can certainly reheat in the microwave, but they won’t have that same exterior crunch, but still taste delicious. If you want, you can re-heat in the oven on 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes or until heated through.
- There’s two methods here for cooking these chicken and cheese quesadillas – oven or stovetop. While both are great, the stovetop method yields crispier results, which is always a good thing when we’re talking quesadillas
Nutrition (ESTIMATE ONLY)
Nutrition estimate (if provided) is based on 1 Serving.
Nutrition information (if provided) is provided as a courtesy and should be considered an estimate only. Ingredients can vary and Girl Heart Food makes no guarantees to the accuracy of this information. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are guidelines only.
Michelle
I love quesadillas!! These look so bomb, Dawn!! 😀
Girl Heart Food
Me too! Thanks so much, Michelle 🙂
Sasha @ Eat Love Eat
Oh. My. Gosh. These look amazing. The perfect weeknight dinner!! I think my husband would love it if I add these into our dinner rotation!
Girl Heart Food
Thank you Sasha! They are a favourite around here 🙂 Can’t beat chicken and lots of cheese!
Christine @ Happy Veggie Kitchen
I don’t make quesadillas nearly enough – but your photos are reminding me why I need to be. So beautiful, melty and packed with yummy stuff. Fantastic idea to bake them, and to use BBQ sauce if you don’t have adobo sauce (which I don’t – Mexican ingredients can be weirdly hard to come across in the UK)
Girl Heart Food
Thanks so much Christine! Every time I have them, I always think I need to make more often. Can’t beat something with lots of cheese, if you ask me 😉
Sarah
I always forget about adobo sauce, but it’s SO GOOD! This looks delicious- I need more cheesy quesadillas in my life!!
Girl Heart Food
So so good! You really do 😉 Thanks Sarah!
Miriam
Hot & melty cheese with chicken – this is right up my alley! They look so delicious, would love to have one right now despite the fact that I just had breakfast 😉 Have a wonderful weekend ahead, my friend!
Kevin O'Leary
I already have everything I need for these! They look amazing.
Christina
Yep, I’m drooling. Quesadillas are one of my husband’s favorite meals. I pinned the pics of this post before even reading it. I thought, “Whelp, my hubbers needs to see this, he’s going to approve!” 🙂
Seriously, lovely pictures and kick butt recipe!
Thao @ In Good Flavor
These look delicious, Dawn! And yo can’ beat it in the quick and easy category either! I’ve never made quesadillas in the oven before. I don’t know why it never occurred to me to bake them. It’s such a time saver!!
Shashi at SavorySpin
Oh my – Dawn – I so love how chunky these quesadillas are! When my daughter was younger, quesadillas happened often in our kitchen but we haven’t had them in way way too long. I had forgotten how easy and comforting they can be and looking at these reminds me of how tasty they are too!
We had a long weekend – but my daughter and I made it a long week+3 days and headed to Seattle and the Oregon coast for a vacay – so glad to be back catching up with your delicious eats on your blog and not just on Insta! Happy Wednesday to you and your hubs!
XOXO
Girl Heart Food
Thanks Shashi! You’re always so sweet! Quesadillas always hit the spot – we love ’em around here 🙂 Hope you’re having a lovely weekend, my friend! XOXO
Jolina
Hi Dawn! How are you? These quesadillas look bomb. We regularly make quesadillas too and your recipe looks packed with so much yummy stuff! Red usually whips up a sour cream/chipotle sauce for it. I am excited to try adobo sauce too. We’ve been enjoying (or maybe I’m the only one enjoying haha) a heatwave these past few days. Hope you’re having a lovely week!
Girl Heart Food
Hey Jolina!! Thanks you so much! I’m sure you’ll love the adobo sauce and these quesadillas! Send along some sunshine, would ya 😉 Hope you’re having an awesome weekend!
Marissa
Confession: I could eat quesadillas a few days a week, every week, and be perfectly happy. Especially when they’re paired with so many different dips and toppings. SO. GOOD. Loving everything about these, Dawn.
Girl Heart Food
Me too, Marissa!! Thanks so much, my friend 🙂
Leanne | Crumb Top Baking
Quesadillas are a go-to in our house too, and we always make them in the oven. So quick and easy! Love the chicken and cheese combo. That’s a classic I never get tired of!
Girl Heart Food
It is quite the tasty combo 😉 Thanks Leanne!
Kelsie | the itsy-bitsy kitchen
Dawn, your process shots are amazing! (Which feels like a weird compliment to me but I struggle with them so I’m super impressed!) I’m not sure if you’re aware of just how often I eat quesadillas, but it’s a lot. Like, almost as much as I eat peanut butter :). These are going to make it into my rotation for sure!
Girl Heart Food
Thanks Kelsie!! I eat them a lot too…they’re just too dang tasty!! Hope you love ’em as much as we do 🙂
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
Love quesadillas for a quick and easy meal and these look perfect! A great way to use up leftover chicken 🙂
Girl Heart Food
Thanks Jennifer! We love them too!
Milena
I don’t think I’ve ever made quesadillas in the oven. So much easier and time saving and such a great way to use up rotisserie chicken leftover meat. I will be sure to load mine with lots of extras! Pinned!
Girl Heart Food
SO easy!! Thanks Milena! Hope you guys love ’em 🙂
[email protected]
Quesadillas always hit the spot!! This is a meal I can never get enough of! They look incredible! YUM!! Have a great week, my friend! XOXO
Girl Heart Food
Most definitely! Thanks Annie! Have a great week too! XOXO
Lisa | Garlic & Zest
Who doesn’t love quesadillas? These look absolutely incredible — and your photos have me wanting them right now at 8:30 in the morning.
Girl Heart Food
Right?! Thanks Lisa…I think I could eat these for breakfast too 😉
Demeter
These quesadillas look fully loaded! Such a great dinner option!
Girl Heart Food
They sure are 🙂 Thanks Demeter!
shelby
I love making quesadillas for a quick and easy dinner too! I love the banana peppers in this recipe, I love that tang and can never get enough of them!
Girl Heart Food
Same here! We always have them on hand 🙂
Neli Howard
yessss! This is the perfect recipe for me. Love everything about this recipe! I want to eat it every day! I’m sure this is very tasty. Looks incredible! Thank you!
Girl Heart Food
Thanks so much Neli! It is quite taste and a favourite around here 🙂
Chris Collins
Okay these might just be the most beautiful quesadillas I’ve ever laid eyes on. Chicken and cheese is the BEST combo, I need these in my face.
Girl Heart Food
Well, so happy to hear that! Hahaha -you definitely do need these in your face! Thanks Chris!