This is the last dish I’m featuring as part of my Tex-Mex feast for the husband. And it’s probably the most difficult recipe to write because I’m so fussy when it comes to handling tortilla wraps as I like mine crispy to a certain extent on both sides so I was pretty meticulous during preparation. I hope the steps below are not too confusing. I will feature step-by-step pictures the next time I make these again =)
Bacon Ranch Chicken Mushroom Quesadillas Recipe
Ingredients (makes 4-5 quesadillas)
8-10 pieces tortillas (I use Mission brand flour tortillas)
500g mix of white & red cheddar cheese, grated
home-made ranch dressing (recipe below)
200g chicken breast, diced
200g back bacon, chopped
200g button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, diced
salt and pepper to taste
For the ranch dressing:
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup low fat mayonnaise
1 small onion, minced
1 tsp minced garlic
small handful of parsley, chopped
salt to taste
Instructions
1. Whisk together all ingredients for the ranch dressing. Chill in fridge till ready to use.
2. Brown the bacon in a pan without adding oil till it turns crispy. Then pan-fry the chicken in the same pan, followed by the button mushrooms and bell peppers separately. Season with salt and pepper if required. Set all aside.
3. Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium high heat. Grill a tortilla on both sides (flipping regularly so you don’t burn it) till air pockets start to form and the exterior becomes slightly crispy. Grill a second tortilla. Turn the heat off once done.
4. Place one of the ready tortillas back into the pan and spread the ranch dressing evenly on the top surface. Sprinkle a small handful of cheese over the top. Add the chicken, bacon, mushrooms and peppers and sprinkle more cheese on top. Turn the heat back on and place the second tortilla on top, pressing down with a frying spatula. Once the cheese at bottom layer starts to melt, flip the entire quesadilla so the heat can melt the other layer of cheese and hold the ingredients in place. Repeat for the rest of the tortillas.
5. Using a pizza cutter, cut each quesadilla into quarters and serve while it’s hot.
The tricky part of the whole process is at the end when you need to flip the quesadilla. The first time I did it, the ingredients fell out including the cheese that burned almost immediately. The second time, I first removed the quesadilla onto a flat plate and then flipped the plate onto the pan. It landed beautifully with no mess.
The tortillas had a beautiful golden brown exterior and a good crunch. The inside was very cheesy (cos’ I added lots of cheese!) and the respective ingredients added layers of texture to the quesadilla. It’s like pizza in a wrap! Enjoy!
These look wonderful, can’t wait to give them a try. Thank you for sharing!