Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas

These Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas make great use of leftover shredded chicken for an incredibly delicious appetizer or tasty meal.

Allow me to start this post by stating that I think everything I put on my blog is good. I would never make something that sucks and then write about it as if it were good. But, one has to agree that there are always different levels of good. Good generally ranges from “meh, it was pretty good” to “dear Lord, what in God’s name is this heavenly food you are feeding me and please give me more”. Note: those were the clean versions. I’ve seen really good food cause a much-more-entertaining-but-not-necessarily-appropriate-for-all-ages response. These quesadillas created that kind of reaction.

These happened because I had leftover chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.  One little can will make a heck of a lot of chipotle flavored food. For example, I was able to make chipotle chicken wings and my cheesy chipotle bacon pull apart bread and still have enough left over for all these quesadillas just from one teeny weeny little can. So if you find yourself with extra chipotle chiles after making these quesadillas, you can make those things or some chipotle huevos rancheros or even some chipotle aioli, all of which are delicious.

This recipe was pretty darn easy to make. At first I thought the chicken mixture was going to be too spicy, but once you mix in all the ingredients and fold it into a crisp tortilla with melted cheese, then spritz it with a little fresh lime juice and dip it into some sour cream, the spice ended up being downright perfect.  Please let me know if you get the same “holy cow these are freakin’ good” reaction I got!

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Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas

These Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas make great use of leftover shredded chicken for an incredibly delicious appetizer or tasty meal.

Course Appetizer, main dish

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 50 minutes

Servings 6 quesadillas

Calories 612 kcal

Author Krissy Allori

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon oil I used avocado
• 1 medium red onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes with liquid
• 4 tablespoons chipotle in adobo minced
• 2 cups shredded cooked chicken white & dark meat
• 4 green onions thinly sliced
• 1 handful cilantro roughly chopped
• 6 large flour tortillas
• 24 ounces mexican blend cheese shredded (sharp cheddar, monterey jack, asadero, queso blanco, etc.)
• Serve with sour cream lime, cilantro, avocado, etc.

Instructions

1. In a large pan over medium heat, heat the oil and cook the onion until soft and tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so until fragrant. Add the chipotle peppers and the diced tomatoes with their liquid. Stir frequently and cook until the sauce thickens and the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 20 minutes. Stir in the chicken, green onions, and cilantro. Reduce heat to low just to keep mixture warm.
2. Heat a clean grill on medium heat. I like to put a touch of oil in the pan to make the tortilla extra crispy, but that's not necessary and is a matter of preference. Place tortilla on hot grill, cover with a layer of cheese, and then spread some of the chicken chipotle mixture over half. Once the cheese has melted, fold the tortilla over to make your quesadilla. Repeat with remaining tortillas. You can keep them all warm in the oven until you're ready to serve. Allow them to rest for a couple minutes before slicing to ensure everything doesn't ooze out.
3. Serve with fresh lime slices, sour cream, avocado slices, extra cilantro, and an ice cold beer or a margarita (or a beergarita).

Nutrition Facts

Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas

Amount Per Serving

Calories 612 Calories from Fat 351

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 39g 60%

Saturated Fat 20g 100%

Cholesterol 143mg 48%

Sodium 1393mg 58%

Potassium 454mg 13%

Total Carbohydrates 23g 8%

Dietary Fiber 2g 8%

Sugars 5g

Protein 40g 80%

Vitamin A 22.3%

Vitamin C 13%

Calcium 82.1%

Iron 16%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.