Mushroom and Chicken Quesadillas with Spinach
on Oct 17, 2017, Updated Apr 16, 2024
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This chicken and vegetable quesadilla is satisfying, substantial, and ready for adaptation!
These quesadillas have so much great stuff inside; every bite is awesome. These are substantial enough to be a real meal on their own, and though the veggies are built right in, you could pair it with a salad and feel like it’s a real dinner. Perfect for busy weeknights, perfect for stretching some leftover chicken into another meal. (Remember when Gloria [Rosie Perez] had to list 5 foods that begin with the letter ‘Q’ on Jeopardy in the movie White Men Can’t Jump? I don’t think any of them were quesadillas…)
If you’re looking for a vegetarian version of these, try making Cheesy Mushroom Quesadillas. Or, for a cheesy twist, make these Mushroom and Goat Cheese Quesadillas instead. There are so many possibilities when making quesadillas — the only limit is your imagination and what’s going on in the fridge!
Table of Contents
A substantial and delicious combo, an all-in-one-meal quesadilla recipe.
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Mushroom and Chicken Quesadillas Ingredients
- Sharp cheddar – Provides that amazing cheesy sharpness and so much flavor.
- Monterey Jack – A milder cheese that gives the quesadillas an amazing creamy, stretchy texture.
- Unsalted butter – A little bit of butter is used to toast the tortilla in each quesadilla.
- Mushrooms – Use whatever mushrooms you like, from easy-to-find inexpensive button or cremini mushrooms to any wild mushrooms you feel like including. And if mushrooms are not your family’s thing, leave those out, double up on the spinach, and then you have a chicken and spinach quesadilla.
- Minced garlic – Gets sautéed in with the vegetables.
- Spinach – Make sure to wilt the spinach before adding it to the quesadillas to prevent any soggy tortillas.
- Flour tortillas – I make my quesadillas by folding a single larger tortilla in half. If you get small taco-sized tortillas, just sandwich two of them together.
- Shredded cooked chicken – If you have leftover simply cooked chicken, use it here. You can use cooked dark meat or chicken breasts, whatever you prefer, whatever you have. And, this is what rotisserie chickens were made for!
- Black olives – The olives are optional, but my kids love them.
Recipe Variations
- Slice a whole onion thinly and add it in with the mushrooms when you sauté them. This may sound like a simple change, but it adds a ton of additional flavor.
- Substitute the two types of cheese for 3 cups of shredded Fontina cheese. I love fontina cheese in quesadillas and other Mexican dishes. It’s mild but has a lovely flavor and nutty, slightly fruity taste.
How To Make Mushroom and Chicken Quesadillas with Spinach
- Make the vegetable filling: Melt the butter and then sauté the mushrooms until they start to brown. Add the garlic, then add the spinach and season. Cook until the spinach is wilted. Set aside.
- Assemble the quesadilla: Heat a tortilla in a little melted butter and flip after 30 seconds. Then sprinkle on a little cheese, some chicken, and some vegetable filling. Finish with a little more cheese on top, and then fold the quesadilla closed.
- Cook: Cover the pan and cook until the cheese begins to melt. Then flip and cook uncovered until the quesadilla is browned.
- Repeat: Repeat the assembly and cooking steps with all of the quesadillas.
- Serve: Cut the quesadillas into wedges and serve with salsa and sour cream.
FAQs
You can keep the quesadillas warm on a baking sheet in a 250-degree oven for about 20 to 30 minutes. Cut them into wedges just before serving.
Either is fine. You just want to make sure the pieces are small enough so that they stay in place and don’t cause the quesadilla to fall apart.
Absolutely! Use dark or white meat or a combination. Make sure the flavors of the rotisserie chicken are simple or that they make sense with the flavors you are using in the quesadilla.
Pro Cooking Tip
When you sauté the mushrooms and spinach, keep cooking them until any liquid that has been released evaporates in the pan. This will prevent the quesadillas from getting soggy.
What to Serve With Spinach, Mushroom, and Chicken Quesadillas
More Quesadilla Recipes
- Beefy Chili Cheese Quesadillas
- Steak and Cheese Quesadillas
- Easiest Baked Chicken Quesadillas
- Cheesy Mushroom Quesadillas
- Cheesy Ground Beef and Vegetable Quesadillas
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Spinach, Mushroom, and Chicken Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar
- 1 cup shredded Monterey Jack
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (divided)
- 8 ounces sliced mushrooms (any kind, or a mix)
- ½ teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 cup roughly chopped spinach
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper (to taste)
- 8 8-inch flour tortillas
- 1 cup shredded cooked chicken
- ¼ cup chopped pitted black olives (optional)
- Sour cream and salsa (to serve)
Instructions
- Combine the two cheeses in a small bowl.
- Heat 2 teaspoons of the butter in a skillet with a cover over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the mushrooms and sauté for about 8 minutes. The mushrooms will soften and probably release some liquid as they cook. Continue cooking until all of the liquid has been released and evaporated, and the mushrooms start to brown a bit. Add the minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper, and sauté for two minutes until the spinach has wilted. Turn the vegetables onto a plate and set aside.
- Wipe out the skillet, then return it to medium heat and add a half teaspoon of butter. Place a tortilla in the pan and cook for 30 seconds, then flip the tortilla. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the cheese mixture over half of the quesadilla, and distribute about 1/8 (a couple of tablespoons) of both the sautéed vegetable mixture and the shredded chicken over the cheese. Top that with another 2 tablespoons of the shredded cheese. Flip the bare half of the tortilla over the filling, cover the pan, and sauté for about 2 minutes until the bottom is golden and the cheese has started to melt, then use a spatula to flip the half-moon quesadilla and continue to cook, uncovered, until all of the cheese is melted and the underside is browned, 2 to 3 minutes.
- Remove the quesadilla to a cutting board and let the quesadilla sit for a minute before you slice into 2 or 3 wedges. Repeat until all of the quesadillas are cooked. Serve with salsa and sour cream.
Notes
- If you have leftover simply cooked chicken, use it here. You can use cooked dark meat or chicken breasts, whatever you prefer, whatever you have. If not, this is what rotisserie chickens were made for.
- The olives are optional, but my kids love them. Use whatever mushrooms you like, from easy-to-find, inexpensive button or cremini mushrooms to any wild mushrooms you feel like including. And if mushrooms are not your family’s thing, leave those out, and then you have a chicken and spinach quesadilla (or leave out the spinach — and then you get chicken and mushroom quesadillas.
- When you sauté the mushrooms and spinach, keep cooking them until any liquid that has been released evaporates in the pan. This will prevent the quesadillas from getting soggy.
Delicious! A great recipe for Costco chicken. Something different. I added more garlic, some onion, and a little sriracha. Yummy! Thank you Katie.
Delish quick and easy dinner and love that it’s so versatile. I added a 1/3 cup chopped red pepper and used Kerry gold cheddar and mozzarella because they were begging to be used up. Thanks for the yummy recipe!
Added chopped bell pepper we needed to use and added sliced avacado and jalapeños while cooking on the tortillas. So good, will definitely make again!
Just made it for lunch, delicious. Used mild cheddar and some mozzarella string cheese that needed to be used. Will make this again, great for leftover chicken. Thanks!
Recipe sounds delicious. Please try to make it so that this one small recipe doesn’t take up two pieces of paper when printing. Thanks.
We just fixed that – it was fixed, but somehow re-broke – thanks for the heads up!!
YUM!!!
Making these tonight!
Thank You for the recipe!!