Southwest Chicken and Bean Quesadillas are a quick and easy meal to prepare. They can also be a fantastic appetizer when entertaining. This is a meal that can be ready in about 30 minutes. It’s quick and it’s delicious.
Ingredients & Heating Up the Filling
Quesadilla’s can be so much more than cheese and a tortilla shell! These quesadillas have chicken, black beans, a little spice from the green chilis and the taco seasoning, and the yummy creaminess of Monterey jack cheese.
The canned chicken helps make these quick to put together. Drain the canned chicken, break it up a bit, and put it in a medium sized saucepan. If you have chicken that you shredded that can be substituted.
To the saucepan add the packet of taco seasoning, the water, lime juice, green chilis, and black beans. Gently mix them together and heat over medium heat. Stir it occasionally to prevent sticking ad burning.
Once the filling mixture is warmed up, remove it from the burner.
Assembly
There are two ways to assemble and cook these Southwest Chicken and Bean Quesadillas. You use two tortilla shells and cook them together or you can fold one filled tortilla shell in half and cook it. I will explain both methods.
Method 1: Two Tortilla Shells
With this method you will use one full shell on the bottom, fill it, and then top it with another shell before you cook it frying pan. I typically use this method. It’s a little trickier to flip, but it can be done without too much issue.
Let’s get to explaining this one.
On a tortilla shell, sprinkle on a little bit of shredded cheese, top it with 1/2 cup of the meat mixture, and top with another sprinkle of cheese. The cheese acts as a glue that melts and hold the top and bottom shells together.
Method 2: One Tortilla Shell Folded
With this method you will use one shell and put the cheese and meat filling on half of it then fold the other end on top before cooking it.
On one tortilla shell, sprinkle on a little bit of shredded cheese on half. On that same half top it with 1/4 cup of the meat mixture, and top that with another sprinkle of cheese. Fold the empty half of the shell over the filled half and lightly press them together. Again, the cheese is your glue to make everything stick together.
Cooking
Heat up a medium saucepan to a low to medium heat. You will cook your quesadillas dry. So do not put any oil in the pan. do not even use cooking spray. Place the assembled tortilla in the pan and press the top shell down. Cook it for about 1-2 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Then using a spatula, flip it over. Cook the other side for 1-2 minutes or until lightly golden brown. This cooking will crisp up the tortilla shells.
Be sure to watch the tortillas closely as they cook. They cook fast and can burn quickly if your pan is too hot. To check for doneness, use the spatula to lift a corn and take a peek under it to see how it looks. Flip when you think it looks good.
Serving
After both sides have been cooked, remove it from the heat, and let it set for about 5 minutes before cutting. I use a pizza cutter or a kitchen shears to cut them.
I like to serve them with sour cream, salsa, and guacamole. These dip clips are perfect for serving these Southwest Chicken and Bean Quesadilla. It makes them so much more fun to eat, even for adults!
If you want a side dish to serve with them Spanish rice would be prefect! Other great sides would be Strawberry Fluff or Red, White and Blue Berry Fluff.
Happy Cooking!
Southwest Chicken and Bean Quesadillas
Equipment
- 1 Medium saucepan
- 1 Large Fry Pan
- 1 Metal Spatula
Ingredients
- 2 7 oz cans Chicken Breast Meat Drained
- 1 packet Taco Seasoning
- ⅓ cup Water
- 1 tsp Lime Juice Optional
- 1 4 oz can Green Chilis
- 1 15 oz can Black Beans Drained and rinsed
- 10 8 inch Flour Tortilla Shells
- 2 cup Monterey Jack Cheese Shredded
Instructions
- In the medium saucepan add the chicken. Break the chicken chunks up. Add in the taco seasoning, water, lime juice, green chilis, and black beans. Heat up over medium heat, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat.
- Method 1: Take a tortilla shell and sprinkle a little bit of cheese over the entire shell. Top with ½ cup of the meat mixture and sprinkle on a little bit more cheese. Top with another tortilla shell. ORMethod 2: Take one tortilla shell and on half of it, sprinkle a little bit of cheese, top with ¼ cup of the meat mixture and sprinkle on a little bit more cheese. Fold the plain half of the tortilla shell over the other half.
- Heat up a fry pan on low to medium heat.
- Add the quesadilla to the dry pan. Do not use any oil. Using the spatula press the top of the tortilla down. Heat for 1-2 minutes or until the bottom tortilla shell is lightly golden brown. Flip and heat for 1-2 more minutes until that side is lightly golden brown. Watch them closely since they cook fast and can burn quickly if you pan is too hot.
- Remove from the pan and allow to cool for about 5 minutes before slicing. Use a scissor or a pizza cutter to cut into wedges.
- Tastes delicious when served with sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole.
