Hey guys….it’s another freezing cold weekend in most parts of the country, so you’re probably indoors and looking for something satisfying to eat. Well, here are some quesadilla recipes I posted on Grub For Guys a few months ago. These are all super easy and really good…I mean, I don’t mean to toot my own horn but you’ll see what I mean if you try any of them. Thanks for reading!
Quesadillas are versatile, easy to make and can be filling man-food too. Here, we give you a breakfast version, a spicy chicken quesadilla and a cheeseburger version that will remind you of those trips to McDonald’s as a kid (or now, if you’re like many guys). Each recipe makes one quesadilla (one tortilla with filling, so two wedges), so multiply out as you see fit, if you’re hungry as hell, or if you are feeding a bunch of your buddies. Oh, and use a good quality tortilla, preferably one of those Mexican brands.
Basic Breakfast Quesadilla
After a night of drinking, or even if you’re craving some good protein in the morning and don’t want it with a side of grease, this egg based quesadilla is just what you need. Serve it with salsa for dipping or just pour some salsa all over the top.
Ingredients
1 large flour tortilla
Cooking spray
1 large egg
A few slices bell pepper—can be green but preferably red or yellow
2-3 Tbsp. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper
Salsa
Directions
Heat a medium, non-stick skillet over medium heat and spray with cooking spray, and crack the egg in a small dish, and beat with a fork. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and then pour into skillet. Cook for 1-2 minutes, or until set and firm, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Remove to bowl and keep warm. Spray skillet again and add pepper slices. Stir fry until crisp-tender, about 2-3 minutes. Then wipe out skillet (carefully, you bonehead!), and then return to heat. Quickly assemble by placing egg, pepper slices and cheese in tortilla. Fold over and place in sprayed skillet. Spray top of quesadilla with cooking spray. Cook for about 2 minutes or until tortilla is brown, then flip over and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes or until tortilla is brown and cheese has melted. Serve with salsa or hot sauce.
Spicy Chicken, Corn & Jalapeno Quesadilla
This is a good summer quesadilla with the abundance of corn, or even into September or October. Most guys like spice, too, so you can’t go wrong with this one.
Ingredients
1 large flour tortilla
Cooking spray
½ chicken breast half, lightly pounded into ¼ inch thickness
Salt and pepper
½ ear corn, cooked and cut from cob
1 jalapeno pepper
2-3 Tbsp. shredded Mexican blend cheese
Salsa
Sour cream
Directions
Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat and spray with cooking spray. Sprinkle chicken breast with salt and pepper and cook, turning once, until browned and cooked through (no longer pink in middle). Cut into pieces and set aside. Slice jalapeno pepper, spray skillet with cooking spray again and cook pepper slices for 3-4 minutes. Wipe out skillet, and assemble quesadillas by placing chicken pieces, jalapeno, corn and cheese in tortilla. Fold over and place in sprayed skillet. Spray top of quesadilla with cooking spray. Cook for about 2 minutes or until tortilla is brown, then flip over and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes or until tortilla is brown and cheese has melted. Serve with salsa or salsa and sour cream.
Cheeseburger Quesadilla
Seriously, this one was a home run when we tried it. It tastes like a fast food cheeseburger, but much healthier because, well, you made it yourself.
Ingredients
1 large flour tortilla
Cooking spray
¼ lb. Ground beef
Salt and pepper
2 Tbsp. chopped onion
4 dill pickle slices
2-3 Tbsp. shredded American cheese
1-2 squirts of ketchup
Directions
Heat medium nonstick skillet over medium heat and place beef and onion in skillet. Brown beef and onion, sprinkling with salt and pepper, about 5 minutes or until no longer pink, and then remove to a bowl to keep warm. Wipe out skillet, and assemble quesadillas by placing beef and onion mixture in the tortilla. Add pickle slices, cheese and the ketchup. Fold over and place in sprayed skillet. Spray top of quesadilla with cooking spray. Cook for about 2 minutes or until tortilla is brown, then flip over and continue cooking for another 1-2 minutes or until tortilla is brown and cheese has melted. Serve with extra ketchup for dipping.
The next night we had dinner with some of Dave’s relatives that live there. We went to a local pub and I saw something on the menu that caught my eye–charred chicken tenders. But not only could you get plain grilled tenders, you could get them fried like traditional tenders, and THEN grilled. And with Buffalo sauce already on, if you prefer. I could not not try this, and they were remarkably kickass. They were crispy, full of wing sauce flavor and then had this amazing, well, charred taste from the grill. That’s something I need to try at home–maybe next spring when I fire up the grill again.
Finally, we recorded at a small studio in Eudora, Kansas–a very small town west of KC and just east of Lawrence. When we decided to get some take-out for lunch, we just had to try the place a few doors down in the center of town–Jasmin Restaurant, known for that all-American combo of….wait for it….Chinese & Mexican. I had a quesadilla and fried wontons, because I could!
