These chicken fajita quesadillas are a delicious meal ready in 30 minutes! All the flavors of chicken Fajitas tucked in between tortillas with lots of gooey melted cheese. We really love this spin on classic chicken fajitas.
What are Fajitas?
Fajitas is a popular Tex-Mex dish. The name is referring to a piece of skirt steak, that is cut into thin strips, as the real fajitas are made from beef. Chicken Fajitas (Fajitas de Pollo) is a popular variation of the dish. It’s most often served with flour tortillas, sauteed/grilled bell peppers and onion and such condiments like guacamole or pico de gallo.
We are making a spin on this recipe by using chicken breast instead of beef and putting the ingredients between tortillas with lots of cheese.
Where the Fajitas come from?
The name Fajitas originated from the Spanish word ‘faja’ meaning belt or a strip. Skirt steak used to be given to Mexican cowboys, working on ranch lands in South and West Texas, as part of their pay. They needed to find a way to cook this flavorful but tough piece of meat, so it was either quickly grilled or cooked over a campfire, then cut into strips against the grain. The dish became more and more popular in 1970′ – 1980′ in Texas’ Rio Grande Valley.
Ingredients
For this recipe, you’ll need a classic chicken fajitas trio: chicken breast, bell peppers (preferably colorful), and red onion.
We are seasoning them with an aromatic spice mix – I used my homemade Fajita seasoning, since store-bought Fajita seasonings are very often of poor quality. They contain mostly sugar and some artificial ingredients instead of just spices. It’s very simple to make – all you have to do is combine 6 spices, that you probably already have in your pantry. I haven’t tested this recipe with store-bought seasoning so please if you’re using it add a little less at the beginning, then taste when the chicken is cooked through and adjust to your taste – add more if needed.
I used cheddar cheese and Swiss cheese combo – this is what I like best. You could also use just cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend.
How to make it step by step
STEP 1: Prepare all the ingredients: shred the cheese, cut the chicken into strips, bell peppers and onion into slices.
STEP 2: Mix the ingredients with spices: Toss the chicken, bell peppers, and onion with 2 Tbsp of oil and spices.
STEP 3: Cook the chicken and veggies: Heat the remaninig oil in a pan and cook the chicken with veggies until browned on both sides (in 3 batches).
STEP 4: Make the filling: Transfer the chicken and vegetables into a large bowl, leave to cool slightly, then stir in the cheese and lime juice.
STEP 5 + 6: Assemble the quesadillas: Place the filling on one half of the tortilla, then fold the other half over to cover the filling.
STEP 7: Cook on both sides until the tortilla is golden and the cheese is melted. Cut in half then serve.
Enjoy!
How to cook quesadillas in the oven
If you’re making more quesadillas you can also finish them in the oven instead of on the stovetop. Here’s how to do it:
- Brush the quesadillas on both sides with melted butter.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake at 425°F/220°C for about 10 minutes or until golden.
Serving suggestions
- you can eat them on their own – they’re really good!
- if I want to serve them with something, my condiment of choice is this easy blender salsa: mix all the ingredients in a blender/food processor until just a little chunky: 1 can crushed tomatoes (14 oz/400ml), 1 handful fresh cilantro, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1 large clove garlic, 1 deseeded jalapeno or some hot pepper flakes to taste, 2 tablespoons lime juice, 1 teaspoon brown sugar, 1 small white or yellow onion, salt ,and pepper to taste.
- we also like this yogurt lemon garlic dip: 3/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 clove garlic, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste – stir in a bowl until combined
- what would be also great: guacamole or pico de gallo
Storage
This recipe is perfect to make ahead but make sure to store the filling and tortillas separately or the tortillas will be soft and mushy (they will absorb the moisture from the filling). You can store the filling for up to 3 days in the fridge or freeze it for 6 months. Fill the tortillas and fry them in a pan just before serving.
Chicken Fajita series
I have a couple of chicken fajita-themed recipes on my website! If you love chicken fajitas, try them all!
A recipe for chicken fajitas is included in almost every recipe since this is just cooked chicken with bell peppers and onions – this is the basic recipe that you could serve in many different ways. You can also make:
- Sheet pan chicken fajitas – chicken and veggies are baked instead of pan-fried.
- Chicken Fajita Pasta – chicken fajitas served with pasta.
- Chicken Fajita Soup
- Chicken Fajita bowls – use the basic recipe for chicken fajitas and serve the chicken and veggies over rice.
- I’ve also made chicken fajita pizza, which is also pretty delicious! Top your pizza dough with pizza sauce, then raw spiced chicken and veggies, and shredded cheese, bake until golden.
- Fajita seasoning – I used this simple spice mix for all my chicken fajitas-themed recipes!
- Chicken Fajita Salad
- Chicken Fajita Bowls
More quesadilla recipes
- BBQ Chicken Quesadillas
- Mushroom quesadilla with caramelized onions
- Easy breakfast quesadilla recipe
- The Best Vegetarian Quesadillas (sweet potato and black bean quesadilla)
- Zucchini Quesadilla
- Broccoli cheddar quesadillas
- Chicken quesadilla recipe with mushroom bell pepper and corn
Check out all my quesadilla recipes here.
Did you make this recipe? RATE THE RECIPE or tell me in the COMMENTS how you liked it! You can also add a photo of your dish. It would make me very happy and will help other readers. Thank you!!
Chicken fajita quesadillas
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons frying oil
- 3 tablespoons homemade Fajita seasoning
- 1.5 lbs (675g) chicken breast
- 3 bell peppers
- 1 medium red onion
- 5 oz (140g) sharp cheddar cheese
- 4 oz (110g) Swiss cheese (Emmentaler cheese)
- juice from 1 lime
- salt and pepper to taste
- 8 medium/large tortillas
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Instructions
- Cut chicken breasts into 3/4-inch (2cm) strips. Cut the bell peppers and onion into thin slices (about 1/4-inch (5mm)). Add into a large bowl.
- Mix Fajita seasoning with 2 tablespoons of oil, toss with chicken and vegetables until coated on all sides. Season with salt and pepper.
- Heat the remaining oil in a large frying pan (preferably a non-stick pan). Cook the chicken with vegetables in 3 batches over high heat until the chicken is nicely browned on both sides and vegetables slightly soft but still crunchy. Transfer into a very large bowl, leave until slightly cooled (you can shred the cheese on the big holes of a box grater while they are cooling).
- Add the shredded cheese and lime juice to the bowl with chicken and vegetables, stir everything together.
- Place about 3 tablespoons of filling on one half of the tortilla, then fold the other half over to cover the filling. Don’t overfill the tortillas or they will be difficult to eat (the filling will fall out).
- Heat a small amount of oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. When hot, add two folded in half tortillas. Cook on both sides until tortilla is browned on the outside and the cheese is melted (about a minute per side).
- Transfer to a chopping board, cut in half.
- Serve with tomato salsa or yogurt lemon dipping sauce (recipes are below in the notes section) or just on their own.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- What to serve it with:
- you can eat it on its own – it’s really good
- if I want to serve it with something, my condiment of choice is this easy blender salsa: mix all the ingredients in a blender/food processor until just a little chunky: 1 can crushed tomatoes (14 oz/400ml), 1 handful fresh cilantro, 1/4 teaspoon cumin, 1 large clove garlic, 1 deseeded jalapeno or some hot pepper flakes to taste, 2 tablespoons lime juice, 1 teaspoon brown sugar, 1 small white or yellow onion, salt, and pepper to taste.
- we also like this yogurt lemon garlic dip: 3/4 cup plain yogurt, 1 clove garlic, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, salt, and pepper to taste – stir in a bowl until combined
- what would be also great: guacamole or pico de gallo
- I haven’t tested this recipe with store-bought seasoning so please if you’re using it add a little less at the beginning, then taste when the chicken is cooked through and adjust to your taste – add more if needed.
- Storage: This recipe is perfect to make ahead but make sure to store the filling and tortillas separately or the tortillas will be soft and mushy (they will absorb the moisture from the filling). You can store the filling for up to 3 days in the fridge or freeze it for 6 months. Fill the tortillas and fry them in a pan just before serving.
- Calories = 1 serving (1/4 of the recipe). This is only an estimate!
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