Taco Tuesday Leftover Quesadillas

Got tons of taco meat and tortillas left over from Taco Tuesday and looking for creative ways to use them? One of my favorite ways to reuse leftovers from Taco Tuesday is to make quesadillas. My home always has tortillas and cheese…I live in Texas so that is pretty much required. I buy fresh tortillas from the bakery at my local H-E-B, but if you don’t live in Texas and can’t find these, you can buy your favorite brand of tortillas or buy them in bulk from your favorite locally owned restaurant.

One of the best things about this recipe is it is versatile. No matter the type of protein you had for your Taco Tuesday dinner, it can easily be made into a quesadilla. I have made these with ground beef, steak, grilled chicken, shredded chicken, pork, beans and veggies. You can really make this your own!

For the quesadillas pictured, I used grilled chicken as my protein along with some leftover refried beans. This week, I didn’t have as much chicken leftover as usual so using the leftover beans allowed me to make the chicken stretch a bit more.

First, I put my cast iron griddle to warm on the stove over medium heat. I recently purchased this cast iron griddle, and let me tell you, it was a great investment! It honestly made making these quesadillas even easier. And, I also think it cooked them more evenly which contributed to that awesome golden color!

While my griddle was warming, I spread about a tablespoon of beans on one tortilla and sprinkled some shredded cheddar on top of the beans. You can really use whatever cheese you have on hand. I always have cheddar so it is what I used. Once the griddle was warm, I spread butter on the griddle and carefully placed the tortilla with beans and cheese on the griddle. Next, I layered the sliced grilled chicken and more cheese (because we love it) and placed another tortilla on top.

Next, you just patiently wait for your tortilla to get golden and delicious. This usually takes about 3 minutes. You don’t want your griddle too hot because then the tortilla will be golden, but your cheese won’t melt. So, pay attention and adjust the temperature, if needed. Once the bottom tortilla is golden, give it a good flip and allow the other side to cook until golden.

Once both sides are golden, remove the quesadilla from the griddle and allow it to rest for about a minute before cutting. You can serve this with guacamole, sour cream, salsa or my kids favorite ranch dressing and chipotle tabasco sauce. Don’t knock that until you try it…both are staples in our house!

Another good thing about this meal is it is quick…dinner can be ready in about 5-10 minutes! You can also make as many (or as few) quesadillas as you want.

A quick video of how I made these quesadillas can be found here.

Ingredients (for one quesadilla)

2 flour tortillas

Shredded cheese (as much or as little as you like)

1 tablespoon of refried beans

2-3 oz of protein (as pictured, chicken)

Directions:

Warm griddle/skillet over medium heat. While griddle is warming, spread refried beans on one tortilla and sprinkle with cheese. Once skillet is warm, carefully place the tortilla with beans and cheese on the buttered pan and top with more cheese and another tortilla. Cook for two minutes or until tortilla is golden and cheese begins to melt. Then, flip it and allow the quesadilla to cook until golden on the other side. Remove it from pan and allow it to rest for 1 minute before cutting. Enjoy!