Very Easy Homemade Quesadilla with Salsa Recipe

I am a big fan of Mexican food. I remember back in college, my friend and I would usually have lunch at this small Mexican food joint near our school in Quezon City. I forgot the name of the place (I’ll update this post when I remember / Update: The name of the place is Miggy’s! Thanks to my college lunch buddy Garet for remembering) , but I so love their Churros and Quesadilla.

The owner makes a really mean salsa that complements their chicken quesadilla. I never forgot how it tasted. And since then, I was always open for an any-day meal at any Mexican restaurant I can find.

I’ve already tried Mexicali and Taco Bell. But, I’m going to try them again just so I can write something fresh about them. I remember Taco Bell’s Quesadilla and salsa being too bland for my taste, especially when I compare it to that Mexican joint I used to frequent in college.

A few weeks ago, I was really craving for some Mexican food and I wanted to try to make quesadillas at home. So, we scoured the Landmark supermarket in Trinoma to find the ingredients I need. Unfortunately, though, not all that I wanted were available but I made sure that the salsa ingredients were complete. For me, that’s the most important part of the whole quesadilla experience – the slightly bitter-sweet and spicy flavors of the salsa mixed with the bit of saltiness of the chicken and the cheese in the quesadilla.

Here’s my own recipe of the chicken quesadilla. It’s so simple, anyone can make it at home. I’m proud to say that I got the right flavors on my salsa that my brother and I forgot all about our limits. It was THAT good… well, for us. And I know you’re going to enjoy this, too.

Some may prefer guacamole or sour cream for their quesadilla. I love salsa though, but I’m going to try these other dips/sauces next time.

For the salsa, you can take out the cumin or garlic powder if you’re making this for your kids since they might not like these strong flavors. You can also click site here if you’d like to read reviews of the best quesadilla makers if you want to get a more authentic quesadilla look and feel.

Chicken Quesadilla and Salsa Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

For the Grilled / Baked Chicken

• 2 boneless chicken breasts, halved
  I had to bone the chicken breasts I bought myself because the supermarket didn’t have any more fresh boneless chicken breasts at 7:30pm.
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

 

For the Quesadilla:

• Cheddar cheese
  This was the only cheese available. If you can find Jack cheese, the better.
• Flour tortillas
  There were no flour tortillas at the supermarket so I ended up with just plain tortillas.

• Olive oil

 

For the Salsa:

• 8-10 medium-sized Tomatoes, chopped
  OR 1 can of whole peeled tomatoes. I used Capri (pictured on the right)
• 1 medium-sized red onion, chopped
• 2-3 red bell peppers, chopped
• 1 tbsp. garlic powder
• 1 tbsp. cumin
  Adjust these spices based on your preferred flavors. Be careful with the cumin as it might be too overwhelming to your taste.
• Fresh lemon juice (I only used 1 medium-sized lemon)
• Salt and pepper

 

PROCEDURE:

1. Grilled / Baked Chicken:

Marinade the chicken with salt and pepper. Coat the chicken breasts with 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil, then bake or grill them.

If you would like to add other spices or herbs like paprika, Rosemary, etc, it’s up to you. I focused on the salsa on this one so I only made a very simple chicken quesadilla.

Slice the chicken breasts into thin strips. You can slice them to thinner cuts, but I prefer chunky pieces. Set aside.

 

2. Prepare the Salsa:

Mix the tomatoes, red onions and red bell pepper in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, you can chop these ingredients ’til they’re sliced into tiny bits.

Add the lemon juice and blend.

Add a tablespoon of garlic powder and cumin.

Add salt and pepper into the mixture. Blend or mix well together.

TASTE: Add more of garlic powder, cumin, salt and pepper ’til you’re satisfied with the taste. Mine had a li’l more cumin, but it might be too strong for most people.

 

3. Prepare the Quesadilla:

Pour 1-2 teaspoons of olive oil on a frying pan on medium heat.

Place a tortilla and lay it flat on the pan. Flip it a few times, like every 10 seconds, until you notice small air pockets starting to form on both sides. You can brown it to your preference.

Top the tortilla with cheese and chicken strips.

If you would like to add mushrooms, green onions, black olives or other vegetables with your quesadilla, go ahead! But, don’t overdo it. Quesadillas are meant to be slightly thin.

You can opt to place the toppings all over the tortilla. Since I only used small tortillas, I only topped half of it with the fillings I wanted.

Reduce the heat to low and cover the pan. This is to help melt the cheese and to brown the tortillas to your liking.

Once done, flip the other side of the tortilla and press on the quesadilla for a few seconds just to flatten it.

They’re now done and ready to serve. You can then choose to cut them into wedges. I didn’t have to cut the ones I made ’cause the tortillas were already too small.

Now, dip the quesadilla into the salsa and enjoy the flavors of Mexico right at the comforts of your home! 🙂

I’m going to try other ingredients mixed with my chicken quesadilla recipe next time and use sour cream or guacamole as dips. Will let you know how they’d go. I know they’re going to be delicious, but I’ll tell you which dip I prefer with my quesadilla.

If you’ve done chicken quesadillas at home before, share the ingredients you’ve already tried and I’ll add them to my list, aight? Thanks! 🙂

Image credit: Churros