You guys. I didn’t know if anything could ever top my Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas, but we now have a very strong contender! These Ultimate BBQ Chicken Quesadillas are packed with tender chicken pieces, creamy cheddar, spicy jalapeños, black beans, cilantro, and red onion, and drenched in the tangy goodness of Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce. They’re simply incredible.
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Flexible Filling Ingredients
This recipe is quite flexible, too. If you’re not into black beans, just double the chicken. Not into chicken (or want a vegetarian version), double the black beans. Jalapeños too hot or does cilantro taste like soap to you? Either one of them can be skipped and you’ll still have a really rockin’ quesadilla. Want to try something fun? Add some crushed (and well drained) pineapple!
What Type of Chicken Should I Use?
Any pre-cooked chicken will work for these BBQ chicken quesadillas. If you’re in the habit of buying rotisserie chickens, just use one breast (from one side) and chop the meat into small cubes. Grilled chicken also works great and lends an even smokier flavor. Or, you could make a batch of my Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken and use that. I used one boneless, skinless chicken breast that I cooked on my countertop grill, but you could also just cook it up quickly in a skillet if needed. Just aim for about 1.5 cups of cooked chicken.
You ready for this awesomeness??
Ultimate BBQ Chicken Quesadillas
Servings 5 2 quesadillas eachIngredients
- 1.5 cups chopped cooked chicken ($1.50)
- 1 15oz. can black beans, drained ($0.95)
- 1/4 red onion ($0.19)
- 1 jalapeño ($0.12)
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro ($0.23)
- 2 cups shredded cheddar ($1.99)
- 1 tsp chili powder ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 1/2 cup BBQ Sauce ($0.53)
- 10 7-inch flour tortillas ($1.58)
Instructions
- Add the chopped chicken and drained black beans to a large bowl. Finely dice the red onion. Remove the seeds from the jalapeño, then finely dice. Pull the cilantro leaves from their stems and roughly chop. Add the onion, jalapeño, cilantro, shredded cheddar, chili powder, smoked paprika, salt, and BBQ sauce to the bowl with the chicken and beans. Stir until everything is evenly combined.
- Place about 1/3 cup of the BBQ chicken mixture on each tortilla and spread it evenly over one half of the surface. Fold the tortilla closed. Cook the filled and folded tortillas in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, until the outside is brown and crispy, the filling has heated through, and the cheese has melted. Cut each quesadilla in half and serve.
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Nutrition
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How to Make BBQ Chicken Quesadillas – Step by Step Photos
Begin by chopping about 1.5 cups of cooked chicken into small pieces. You can use grilled chicken, rotisserie chicken, or even chicken that has simply been cooked in a skillet.
Finely dice 1/4 of a red onion. Remove the seeds from one jalapeño and also finely dice. Pull the leaves from the stems of about 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, and roughly chop them. Shred 2 cups of cheddar (if not already shredded).
Add the chopped chicken, one 15oz. can of black beans (drained), red onion, jalapeño, cilantro, and cheddar to a large bowl.
Add 1/2 cup Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce, 1 tsp chili powder, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, and 1/4 salt to the bowl.
Stir until everything is well combined and coated in BBQ sauce.
Place about 1/3 cup of the BBQ chicken filling on each 7-inch flour tortilla and spread it over one side. Fold the tortillas closed.
Cook the tortillas in a dry skillet over medium-low heat until they are brown and crispy on the outside, heated through, and the cheese is melted.
Slice each Ultimate BBQ Chicken Quesadilla in half and serve!
Serious flavor bomb!!
This is one I keep coming back to. So flavorful!
It is amazing how delicious these can be with so little effort—can’t recommend enough! When I ate meat I made the recipe as written, and now that I’m cutting down on meat, I substitute a can of pinto beans for the chicken. So good!
I swear this recipe has saved my life sometimes. It is my absolute go to for when I don’t have the energy to cook – it’s so fast and easy and flavorful.
Easy to prep: just mixing a bowl of the filling, and then for several evenings I’ll have dinner ready in a handful of minutes.
It hits that perfect sweet spot between low effort and high reward.
I cannot stop raving about these. Husband doesn’t like bbq sauce, so we did 1/4 cup just in the mix and none on the tortillas. We buttered the tortillas before cooking and used two 7 in tortillas per quesadilla (so no folding) . Amazing.
Fabulous! Needs a bit more cheese, but my family is super pumped! Love
I love this recipe. I have made it with chicken, but last time I made it I was batch cooking and accidentally added beef to the pan I cooked the onions in. I rolled with it and made this recipe with beef and it was just as good!
An easy crowd pleaser. Husband and kid-approved
This was amazing! I shredded the chicken and used Rudy’s Sissy sauce. Instead of making in the pan I baked in the oven at 375 for 10 minutes and froze the other quesadillas which I will bake at 375 for 15 minutes .. I will make bigger batches to freeze from here on out! Amazing!
2nd time making these – they are delicious!! How long do you think the “filling” will keep in the fridge?
Probably about 4 days or so, but it can depend on several factors, so that’s a very general estimate. :)
Honestly so so so easy and quick! AND yummy….seasoned well, had plenty for leftovers!
Just made this again for the 4th(?) time but this time with leftover turkey!! Definitely a good way to have thanksgiving leftovers! Didn’t have cilantro or jalepaneo but still yummy!
Left out the cilantro and onions just for preference—but loved this recipe! I second it tasted like restaurant quality. The only thing I found was it is easy to burn the quesadilla on the outside, so make sure to flip consistently. Overall great recipe!!
Amazing amazing i have no words allof my family members says its not a home food looks u order from restaurant thanx
This recipe is so amazing. The first time i made it it had too much onion aftertaste for me, also i dont like jalapeño or chili powder so i didnt add those and it was still very delicious. The 2nd time i made it i omitted onion, added some corn and mozarella cheese and less bbq sauce, it was perfect!!
Super easy, but flavourful! I liked that you can customize it for each person. I made two different version since my boyfriend is the pickiest eater. One with all the ingredients and another with just chicken, peppers and cheese.
I made these for dinner on the beach and everyone loved them. I prepped the filling earlier in the day. Then I lined baking sheets with foil and sprayed with canola oil. I loaded them and folded them and placed on the sheet. Then I sprayed the tops of the quesadillas with canola spray. I baked at 375 for about 10 minutes or until golden. I cut them in half and pit them in a foil pan. I walked a block to the beach and voila. They held up well and were also great cold. It made more than 5 servings. I will definitely make this again for ladies night.
Do you know if this filling would freeze well?
I was thinking it might be nice to make a double batch and then portion and freeze half of it so it can be thawed and cooked another time. Can’t wait to try it!
It will probably freeze okay! The fresh cilantro and onion might wilt a bit, so you may get a little bit of water seepage.
Is it possible to make up the quesadilla filling and then keep it in the fridge in Tupperware to make the quesadillas fresh throughout the week?
Yep! That should work great.
Excellent meal for those nights you don’t want to fully commit to cooking a full dinner. Great if you have leftover chicken, however alternatively you can buy pre cooked chicken strips at your local supermarket. Served with some Pico de Gallo and sour cream, these were a hit.
You can’t just buy 1/4 of a cup of BBQ sauce. So they meal is more expensive than you think.
Nor do you buy an entire bottle of bbq sauce every time you need to use some. If I use something that is already in my fridge or pantry, I don’t consider that free, therefore I use the cost of only the amount of the ingredient used. I show the prices for example purposes only, so people can see how different ingredients can have different effects on the overall cost of a meal. The true cost will be different for everybody, depending on several factors.
Yeah when I clicked on this I was actually expecting the real price of a cheap dinner but when I go to buy this stuff for the recipe it’s going to cost a whole lot more then $7 bucks lol
Absolutely loved this! Followed the recipe to a T and my boyfriend said it was restaurant quality :) super easy and quick and definitely adds some variety to our dinner routine. I plugged this into a calorie counter and each serving is roughly 368 cals. Will 100% make again!
I have one fantastic recipe , same like this and more taste: https://www.sooperchef.pk/baked-chicken-quesadilla-recipe/
I have to say that I prefer Beth’s!
Holy millions of ingredients Batman! Yes, I prefer Beth’s too. It was BOMB!
These are great! I caramelized my onions with some peppers and added a roasted poblano in place of the jalepeno. We loved it!
I am not sure I would have made this recipe myself, but I asked my husband what he wanted done with some chicken. He said how about BBQ? I asked if he wanted BBQ Chicken Quesadillas (because I do trust your recipes), and the answer was yes! So I did, and it was a big success! There were some alterations (didn’t have Sweet Baby Rays, so my 16 yo daughter made her “Abby’s World Famous” BBQ sauce, and I made my own Instant Pot black beans with a hint of cumin), but followed the recipe overall. Thanks for another success! I’m not sure I’ve made one of your recipes that didn’t make it into the “keeper” list.
Do you think you could freeze these and cook them like your freezer bean quesadillas?
I do think that would work. :)
Love this recipe! Though we usually sub out the barbecue sauce for enchilada sauce.
I have the worst time thinking up sides for entrees, what would you suggest with this?
Honestly I’d just eat this one by itself. It has so many ingredients inside so you’ve got a lot going on. Maybe some sweet potato fries?
Spanish rice, refried beans and a salad.
Yum-Yum-YUM!!!! Made this for supper last night and wow was it good!! I swapped out the jalapeno for a couple T of chopped green chiles and skipped the cilantro (hubby is not a fan) and loved the result! Full of flavor and just the right amount of “heat”. Did I mention this was yummy?? :)
This recipe has become one of my go-to recipes. I love it. It’s easy and quick and taste like you actually put a lot of effort into it. Thanks!
Really nice recipe! I hate jalapeno and cilantro so I substituted with a bell pepper and green onions. Really yummy! Thank you for another great recipe :)
Sooooo delicious! Like everything on your site, of course! My family is loving these so much that we’ve been eating them for snacks every day for two weeks!
These are amazing! They freeze so well and reheat perfectly in the toaster oven so I don’t even have to wash a pan (I freeze them wrapped in foil – then can just unwrap and reheat on the flattened foil)!
First off thank you for all of your recipes, I’ve loved every one I’ve tried! I have some shredded chicken to use up and was unsure what to make, these are now on the menu for dinner : )
Instead of chicken I put in some broiled pineapple and they were quite delicious! I was excited to eat these for lunch all week!
Hi Beth! These look great. Do you think they freeze well? :)
Yep, I think they would freeze great. :)
Tweaked it a bit. Grilled the onions, shreded the chicken, and added some corn for extra flavor. They were delicious!
I love your recipes, and this one sounds good. I’ll substitute the Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce for one that doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup in it. I steer clear of that stuff. Barbecue sauce doesn’t have to be so unhealthy to taste good.
My family LOVED these! (Followed the recipe exactly, using a Costco rotisserie chicken. ) The recipe makes a generous amount so we had them for dinner one night and lunch the next day. Thank you!
These were AMAZING. I diced white onion and red pepper and sauteed it with jalapeno because I’m not a fan of raw onion, and we left out the cilantro….you are right, this recipe is really flexible, and it was SO GOOD. Everyone loved it, what a great way to use leftover rotisserie chicken!
Fabulous! I replaced the dead bird body parts with white beans. I call these Black and White BBQ Quesadillas. Thanks for another winner!
You ate dead bean body parts?!!!!
How well do you think these would freeze?
These should freeze great. What I do is fill and fold them, then stack them with parchment between each (you can do two quesadillas per layer, so they’re like a complete circle). Then place that into a freezer bag. Take however many you want out of the freezer at a time and heat in a skillet over medium-low. The lower heat gives them a chance to thaw and heat through before the outside browns too much.
Will this freeze as well as your black bean quesadillas? (which i eat for lunch nearly every day of my life!)
They should, yes! :)
Love your recipes! I wish you had an option to pin it on Pinterest, it’s the easiest way for me to keep track of recipes I want to come back to
You can pin using the buttons at the top or bottom of the post, or hover over any image until the big black pin button shows up (if on mobile, click the image once instead of “hovering”).
Thanks, you are a star ;)
One of the Staples in our house is your hearty black bean quesadillas plus chicken. (Or the Mediterranean…or the chicken pineapple, lol) Back when we ate sugar…I LOVED sweet baby Ray’s… Thanks for this recipe… My memory center just enjoyed a meal… 👍👍👍 Quesadillas for lunch! And dinner… Maybe even breakfast. Thanks again, awesome blog!
Made these tonight, vegetarian style, and they were so delicious. We kept all of the ingredients except for the chicken and it was really filling. Only thing we wished was that we had some ranch dressing or guacamole to dip them in. I have NEVER been disappointed by this website and am always excited about new recipes. Keep them coming!
A DRY skillet?! *gasp!* Haha my quesadillas are usually slathered in softened butter for the rich golden crispiness :)
The Hearty Black Bean Quesadillas are a STAPLE in my house. I make a double-batch at a time, and always have some in the freezer for a quick, healthy dinner. I can’t wait to try these and have a second, just-as-easy-and-tasty option. Thank you!
I’m a HUGE fan of the Sweet Baby Ray’s Buffalo Sauce. Their barbecue sauce is addicting!!! Looks like I’ll have to make the chicken quesadillas very soon!!! :-)
I love me some Sweet Baby Ray’s. Every now and then if I’m mixing it into something I also add just the lightest drizzle of honey. Try it, you wont regret it 😉 That 3 layer picture looks fantastic.
Sweet Baby Ray’s is my favorite BBQ sauce. These quesadillas look AMAZING
I meant maybe make my own sauce.
What a great concept. Since I have to watch my sugar intake, I’ll have to check the label and make my own sauce but I appreciate your great ideas. I really miss buying pocket sandwiches but I have plans to make and freeze some of your quesadillas and burritos. Probably less expensive and much easier to control sugar and salt. Thanks.
Agreed on making your own BBQ sauce! This is a great recipe, but SBR sauce has HFCS (last time I looked at the label), which I stay away from. Making your own sauce is so cheap and easy! I love BBQ, so I’m excited to adapt this concept for quesadillas!