These ground turkey quesadillas are seriously cheesy, hearty and straight-up delicious! They’re super easy to prepare and can be enjoyed as is or with guacamole, salsa and sour cream and your favourite side dish!
Hi friends!
Today I’m sharing another easy quesadilla recipe: ground turkey quesadillas, to be exact!
If you follow Girl Heart Food you know how we love quesadillas. A couple of our faves are these cheesy ground beef quesadillas and black bean corn quesadillas.
I mean, crispy tortilla, hearty protein and plenty of melty cheese. Sounds yummy, right?
Plus, these are totally do-able for a simple weekday dinner (hello taco Tuesday!) or Friday night eats. The recipe can easily feed up to 6 people when combined with a side. And, if you don’t feel like sharing, there’s always leftovers to be had!
I love to serve with a big helping of homemade guacamole and maybe a frozen margarita, if I’m feelin’ extra fancy, LOL. What’s your favourite thing to enjoy with quesadillas?
Why These Ground Turkey Quesadillas Are Great!
- Made with lean ground turkey
- Jam-packed with veggies and hearty beans
- They’re super simple to prep
- Reheats well
- Of course, they’re totally delicious!
Filling for Quesadillas
Full details are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
- In a skillet, cook some onion in a little olive oil until softened.
- Next, add ground turkey and break up any large clumps into crumbles with a spoon or masher.
- Mix in your veggies, beans and seasonings. Cook until turkey is cooked through.
- Stir in tomato paste and broth. This will kinda make things stick together for one delicious quesadilla filling. Give it a little cook.
- Now, everything is ready to be used in your turkey quesadillas!
Assemble & Pan Fry
Full details on how to make turkey quesadillas are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
- Spread half of your cheese onto one half of each tortilla. The cheese acts as a ‘glue’ to keep everything together. Plus, it’s yummy!
- Top with your cooked ground turkey mixture.
- Then, pile on more cheese.
- Fold over your tortillas so they are a half-moon shape.
- Cook quesadillas in batches in a greased pan.
- Flip to cook other side. They’re done when the outside is golden brown and crispy and the cheese is nice and melty inside!
- Cut in half and enjoy these super scrumptious turkey quesadillas!
Hungry for more? Subscribe to the Girl Heart Food Newsletter!
Best Cheese To Use
Use a good melting cheese. A marbled cheddar was used, but you can opt for mozzarella, fontina, Gruyère, provolone, Monterey Jack, Gouda, Asiago, or regular Swiss. There’s pretty much a bunch of different options here. If you want to go all out, use a combo of your faves!
Another delicious add-in is crumbled feta cheese (in conjunction with a melty cheese). Feta doesn’t melt well but does add a lovely salty flavour. Queso Fresco would another yummy option.
What to Serve With Quesadillas
Classic dips or sauces for quesadillas are salsa, guacamole or sour cream. Honestly, though, the possibilities are endless! Other delicious goodies are:
- Greek yogurt
- Hot sauce
- Wedges of lime
- Corn and black bean quinoa salad
- Rice
- Even dressing up some greens with a simple vinaigrette would be yummy
Reheating Quesadillas
Quesadillas are crispiest when they’re freshly made. Having said that, if you can’t devour the whole batch in one sitting, you can totally reheat leftovers!
You can reheat leftover quesadillas in a non-stick pan on the stovetop over about medium-low heat (this will yield the crispiest reheating results) until the cheese is melted and everything is heated through.
Alternatively, place quesadillas on a sheet pan in a 375 degree Fahrenheit oven and heat for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and everything is heated through.
Another option is to place leftover turkey quesadillas on a microwave-safe plate and heat on 30-second intervals until heated through.
Just keep in mind that the oven or microwave will not yield the same crispy results as pan-frying. Your quesadillas will be softer.
More Tips & Variations
It’s better to have your pan over a lower heat setting and cook these gently. They crisp up fast (and can burn quickly) so don’t have your heat too high or leave ’em!
Cook quesadillas in batches (about two at a time), while keeping the cooked quesadillas warm in a preheated oven.
Though there is cayenne powder in the taco seasoning, these are not overly spicy. If you want to add a little heat, add an extra pinch or so of cayenne or a drizzle of your favourite hot sauce.
No salt was added to this recipe because the taco seasoning has salt in it, but you can add some to taste if you wish. And, if you use a ‘no salt added’ seasoning, you may want to add some salt anyway.
You can totally omit the beans if you like. They add a little heft and nutrition but can be omitted.
Don’t have canned corn? Use frozen corn instead.
Try corn tortillas instead of flour.
Speaking of tortillas, the number of turkey quesadillas you yield may vary if the tortilla size differs slightly from the ones used here.
More Delicious Recipes You May Enjoy
Hope you love this turkey quesadilla recipe as much as we do!
If you make these cheesy ground turkey black bean quesadillas, be sure to leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed!
Let’s Be Social!
Follow Girl Heart Food on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter for all the latest delicious eats! Oh, and don’t forget to subscribe to our newsletter!
Cheesy Ground Turkey Quesadillas (with black beans)
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion , peeled and minced
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 bell pepper , cut into small dice
- 1 cup canned unsalted (or no salt added) black beans , rinsed and drained (about ½ a 540 millilitre can)
- 1 cup canned corn , drained
- 1.5 to 2 tablespoons taco seasoning
- 2 teaspoons chipotle powder
- 3 tablespoons tomato paste
- ¼ cup low sodium chicken broth (or low sodium vegetable broth)
- 12 ounces shredded cheddar cheese (about 3 cups)
- 10 flour tortillas (each about 7 to 8 inches in diameter)
- Cooking spray or oil (to grease pan)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit (to keep quesadillas warm while cooking batches).
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat.
- Add onion and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 3 to 5 minutes.
- Add ground turkey and break up into crumbles with a wooden spoon or potato masher. Add bell pepper, beans, corn, taco seasoning and chipotle powder, stirring to combine everything. Cook, stirring occasionally, until turkey is completely cooked through, about 10 to 12 minutes.
- Stir in tomato paste and broth and cook 1 to 2 minutes.
- Distribute half of the cheese among all tortillas (on one side of them).
- Distribute ground turkey mixture on top of cheese (about half a cup per tortilla). Then, sprinkle remaining cheese on top of ground turkey. Fold over each tortilla so it's a half-moon shape.Note: If your tortillas are smaller or larger than the size used here, the quantity you yield may vary.
- To cook quesadillas, grease pan with cooking spray or oil. Heat over medium-low heat.Note: Cook the quesadillas in batches, two quesadillas at a time, adding more cooking spray oil to the pan between batches.
- Place 2 quesadillas in the pan. Cook quesadillas for about 2 minutes or so on one side.
- Carefully flip the quesadillas to the other side and continue to cook for another 2 minutes or until they're golden brown and crispy on the outside and the cheese is melted inside (carefully watch to ensure they don't burn). Transfer cooked quesadillas to a baking sheet and place into a preheated oven to keep warm while you are continuing to cook the remaining quesadillas.
- Repeat process to cook remaining quesadillas.
- When all quesadillas are cooked, cut each half-moon (quesadilla) in half so you end up with 20 pieces. Serve with salsa, guacamole and/or sour cream (if desired). Enjoy!Note: If you have any leftovers, properly store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and use within 2 to 4 days, reheating when ready to enjoy.
Notes
- It’s better to have your pan over a lower heat setting and cook these gently. They crisp up fast (and can burn quickly) so don’t have your heat too high or leave ’em.
- Cook quesadillas in batches (about two at a time), while keeping the cooked quesadillas warm in a preheated oven.
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.
Lori Garcia
So delicious! My only change was to use whole canned pinto beans instead of black beans. My husband doesn’t like black beans…but these were just so good! I make quesadillas all of the time but never with meat. this was a huge hit and heated up leftovers in air fryer! Thank you —this is definitely a keeper!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Thank you so much, Lori!!! So happy you both enjoyed!! The pinto beans sound like a delicious substitution for the black beans and awesome that they reheated well in an Air Fryer!
Jan Dewitt
Easy and delicious!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Thanks so much, Jan! Happy you enjoyed the recipe!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop
I love it when quesadillas are turned into a full meal! These are bursting with goodness. I love mine with an extra serving of guac! Perfect for lunch or dinner. 🙂
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Right? Me too! Thank you, Kathy.
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers
For some reason I always forget about quesadillas! These look so delicious and such an easy and delicious lunch or dinner. I will be trying these 🙂
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Hope you enjoy, Jennifer! They’re on regular rotation for us!
MaryAnn | The Beach House Kitchen
I literally want to gobble up the whole stack by myself Dawn! Is that bad?! I hope not because I wouldn’t feel one bit guilty! Pinned!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Lol…not at all. 😉 Thank you, Mary Ann!
Marissa
You make the best quesadillas, Dawn! I happen to have everything on hand for these, so they look like weekend lunch to me! Thank you for the inspiration!
Shashi at SavorySpin
These look so delicious Dawn! My mouth is watering over here – and my cup of coffee isn’t cutting it! Hoping y’all have a fantastic weekend! XOXO
Ashlyn @ F5 Method
The cross section photo of these quesadillas is drool-worthy! These look so flavorful and delicious Dawn!!
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Thank you. Ashlyn!
David @ Spiced
We didn’t get to enjoy Cinco de Mayo this year, but we have plans to catch up on that this weekend. (Better late than never, right??) Mexi beers, guacamole and these quesadillas sounds like a pretty awesome menu plan if you ask me! I’m with ya on turkey here, too. Ground turkey is great at absorbing other flavors, so it works particularly well with taco seasoning. I’m thinking this is a great Friday night meal…oh, and hey, it’s Friday night! 🙂
Dawn - Girl Heart Food
Totally!! I like the way you’re going with this. 😉 Hope you have a good one, my friend!