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BBQ Chicken Quesadillas | Crispy & cheesy quesadillas w/ BBQ sauce, chicken, chile, cilantro & onion. Taste like CPK BBQ pizza! Great way to use up leftover chicken or turkey. #quesadilla #chicken #leftover #bbqsauce #cheese #jalapeno #cilantro #tortilla #lunch #dinner #dinnerrecipe | The Missing Lokness
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BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

Course Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine Mexican Fusion
Keyword BBQ sauce, cheese, chicken, dinner, leftover, lunch, quesadilla
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Rest Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 50 minutes
Servings 2 people
Author Lokness

Ingredients

  • 2 bone-in chicken thighs (about ¾ pound)
  • 3 (10-inch-diameter) flour tortillas
  • 2 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese
  • 1 small jalapeno or Serrano chiles (remove stem and seeds, then minced)
  • 3 tablespoons onion (finely diced)
  • ½ cup cilantro (roughly chopped)
  • cup BBQ sauce
  • salt
  • ground black pepper
  • salsa (for serving)
  • guacamole (for serving)
  • sour cream (for serving)

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 400˚F.
  • Clean and pat dry the chicken. Season with salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and cook in the oven for 30 – 40 minutes until cook through. Remove from oven and let them rest for at least 20 minutes or until cool enough to handle. Remove and discard the skins. Shred the chicken with two forks into thin strips or bite-size pieces. Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
  • Reduce the oven heat to 200˚F. Place a clean baking sheet in the oven.
  • On a work surface, lay out the tortillas. Working on the bottom halves of the tortillas, sprinkle half of the cheese. Add chicken, chilies, onion, and cilantro. Drizzle about 1½ tablespoon BBQ sauce over each tortilla. Sprinkle rest of the cheese. Fold the uncovered tortilla over the fillings to form a half-moon shape.
  • Heat a large flat griddle pan or 2 large pans over medium-high heat. Place 2 quesadillas on the griddle or 1 quesadilla on each large pan. Cook until crisp & golden brown on both sides, about 5 – 7 minutes total. Transfer the quesadillas to the baking sheet in the oven and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining quesadilla.
  • Transfer the cooked quesadillas to a clean chopping board. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges. Place the wedges on serving plates. Serve with guacamole, sour cream, and salsa.

Notes

  1. The chicken can be cooked 1 day ahead. Cool, shred, put in a Ziploc bag and keep in the fridge. 
  2. If you have leftover or store-bought roast chicken or turkey, that would be perfect too. Just shred them with forks and they are ready to be used. 
  3. I used 1 small Serrano chile, which made mild quesadilla. Use more if you like spicy food.
  4. Remember to use latex gloves to cut chile. Burning fingers are no fun.
  5. Bull’s-eye is our favorite store-bought BBQ sauce. This is what I used in this recipe.
  6. If you don’t feel like getting or making too many dips, just get one. Salsa is refreshing and light, which works perfect with these quesadillas.
(Adapted from Curtis Stone)