10 Minute Copycat Taco Bell Chicken Quesadilla

These copycat Taco Bell chicken quesadillas are loaded with melty cheese, grilled chicken, and a creamy homemade quesadilla sauce!! Perfect for a quick lunch or fun for a make-your-own family dinner.

 

Ingredients and Substitutions

• Burrito Size Tortillas: This recipe works with any size of flour tortilla, but I prefer the burrito size because you can stuff a lot more in them!
• Diced Grilled Chicken: Make your chicken any way you like! You can use my recipe for street taco chicken, slow cooker shredded chicken, instant pot chicken, or my cilantro lime chicken. You can also use leftover grilled chicken or shredded rotisserie chicken.
• Shredded Cheese: I prefer a Colby Jack, Monterey Jack, or Chihuahua cheese but you can use any melty cheese you like. A Mexican three-cheese blend or a mild cheddar cheese both work well too!
• Homemade Taco Bell Quesadilla Sauce: My copycat Taco Bell quesadilla sauce is a MUST for this recipe! Once you have a quesadilla with it, you’ll never want a plain quesadilla again! This quesadilla sauce is made with simple ingredients including mayo, sour cream, pickled jalapenos, jalapeno juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. It comes together in a food processor in just minutes and adds a delicious layer of flavor and a creamy texture to the quesadillas.

Instructions

Heat a large cast iron skillet over medium heat. Assemble the quesadillas by dividing the ingredients evenly between the 4 tortillas, adding the ingredients just to one half of each tortilla.

Fold tortillas over.

Cook quesadillas one at a time for a few minutes on each side or until they are golden brown on both sides. Slice each quesadilla into 4 triangles. Serve with extra quesadilla sauce on the side and enjoy!

Variations

Make it your own! These quesadillas are so easy to personalize with other flavors and fillings, making them the perfect go-to for family dinners. Before you fold the tortilla over, try adding other proteins or veggies like:

• homemade ground beef taco meat instead of chicken for a beef quesadilla
• sliced carne asada instead of chicken for a steak quesadilla
• pulled pork for a carnitas quesadilla
• black beans instead of chicken for a vegetarian quesadilla
• add fajita veggies for a chicken fajita quesadilla
• skip the protein all together for a delicious cheese quesadilla
• onions
• fresh tomatoes
• pickled jalapeños

Serve With

• 5-minute creamy avocado sauce
• easy chipotle sauce
• blender salsa
• chipotle slaw
• crockpot queso dip
• cheesy chicken and veggie taco casserole
• Pico de Gallo
• sour cream
• guacamole
• thinly sliced lettuce

Tips for Making the Best Chicken Quesadilla

• If you’re looking to feed a crowd, use these chicken quesadilla ingredients but use my sheet pan quesadilla cooking method! This way you can bake the quesadillas in the oven so you can cook several at one time! You could also cook a couple at a time on a cast iron griddle.
• Don’t skip the quesadilla sauce! My super quick and easy creamy jalapeno sauce comes together in just minutes and is made with simple ingredients including mayonnaise, sour cream, pickled jalapenos, jalapeno juice, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika.
• Be sure to warm the pan before adding the quesadilla. A warm cooking surface will ensure that the tortilla doesn’t stick to the pan.
• Add some oil or butter to the pan. When cooking these quesadillas add a splash of olive oil or a pat of butter to the large skillet after it’s heated. This adds another layer of crispy deliciousness to the quesadillas.
• Use a pizza cutter to slice your quesadillas. A sharp knife will work too, but if I’m making a big batch of quesadillas for the family, I love the ease of slicing through them with a pizza cutter.
• If you want to make mini quesadillas, try using the street taco size flour tortillas instead of the burrito size. You could also use my mini taco recipe and add the quesadilla sauce to it!

The Secret is in the Sauce

• The secret ingredient to getting the perfect copycat Taco Bell chicken quesadilla is the creamy jalapeno sauce!
• It’s perfectly creamy, slightly spicy, with just a hint of heat and plenty of jalapeno flavor.
• Once you try this homemade Taco bell quesadilla sauce, you’ll never want to make a quesadilla without it!

What comes on a chicken quesadilla from Taco Bell?

The classic Taco Bell quesadilla is made with a flour tortilla, a hearty layer of melted cheese, grilled chicken, and a creamy quesadilla jalapeño sauce. The best part about making this copycat Taco Bell chicken quesadilla recipe at home is that you can make it exactly how you like it! I like to add a little extra quesadilla sauce and then cook it til it’s SUPER crispy.

What is the sauce in Taco Bell quesadillas?

The sauce used in Taco Bell quesadillas is a creamy jalapeño sauce. Luckily, it’s super easy to recreate at home with pantry staple ingredients and a few key spices that you’ll likely have on hand! My homemade creamy quesadilla sauce is the key to taking your chicken quesadilla to the next level!

Make-Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

• Make-Ahead: Quesadillas actually work pretty well as a make-ahead meal. They’re even still good cold! Simply cook as directed, cut them into triangles with a pizza cutter, and store them in the fridge.
• Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
• Reheating: To reheat quesadillas, you can either crisp them up in a large saute pan on the stove over medium heat, or warm them in a 350-degree oven on a baking sheet until heated through. You can also microwave them for 20-30 seconds but they may become a bit soggy.

More Copycat Recipes

• Taco Bell Crispy Chalupa Supreme
• Taco Bell Cheesy Gordita Crunch
• Taco Bell Crunchwrap Supreme
• Noodles and Co Penne Rosa
• Noodles and Co Pasta Fresca
• Olive Garden Gnocchi Soup

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