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This Chicken Sheet Pan Quesadilla recipe is easy to make, full of great flavor, and the perfect fun party food to feed a crowd!
It’s Super Bowl week…and our hometown team is playing this year! (Go Chiefs!!) ♡
Barclay and I will be rooting for them in our dreams, since kickoff takes place in the middle of the night over here in Barcelona. But I wanted to leave you with some fun Super Bowl recipes in advance this week that you can cook up some good eats for the big game, including today’s fun party-size recipe for chicken sheet pan quesadillas!
Or technically, I should probably say sheet pan quesadilla (singular), because this fun method makes one huge party-sized quesadilla!
I’ve loaded this quesadilla up with a hearty-yet-simple filling of creamy chicken, bacon, cheese, veggies, beans and some zesty seasonings. But the options to customize your sheet pan quesadilla here are pretty limitless, so feel free to swap in whatever ingredients you happen to love best. (See options below to make this recipe gluten-free and/or vegetarian if you’d prefer.) I would definitely recommend whipping up a batch of my favorite guacamole to serve with it, as well as some pico de gallo, salsa, sour cream, or ranch sauce for dipping. And while you can easily prep the components of this quesadilla in advance, I also highly recommend baking it just before serving so that you can slice it up nice and hot while the cheese is still melty.
I’ve written this recipe to fit a large standard-sized half sheet pan, which yields a dozen good-sized servings and makes it perfect for a party, but you can easily scale it a bit smaller if you’re serving a smaller group this year. However you make it, this is a really fun sheet pan meal and the perfect game day food for rooting on your favorite team. Let’s make some sheet pan quesadillas!
Chicken Quesadilla Ingredients:
Before we get to the full recipe below, here are the ingredients I like to use to make this chicken quesadilla recipe…
- Chicken: To save time, I just shredded a large rotisserie chicken to make these quesadillas. But alternately, you could use any leftover cooked or shredded chicken that you have on hand, or cook and dice some boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound).
- Bacon: I also love frying up and crumbling some bacon to add to the mix, and also use the leftover bacon grease to sauté the veggies. (Although you are welcome to leave the bacon out if you prefer, and just use oil for the sauté.)
- Veggies: I used a mix of scallions, red bell pepper, jalapeño and garlic in these chicken quesadillas, but feel free to add in any other veggies that you prefer.
- Cilantro: I also like adding in lots of finely-chopped cilantro to the filling to freshen up those flavors. But if you’re not a fan of cilantro, just leave it out.
- Seasonings: I kept things simple with a mix of chili powder, ground cumin, salt and pepper to help season the filling. Alternately, you could just use taco seasoning, to taste. Or if you like smoky chipotle flavor, you could also add in some chipotle chili powder.
- Beans: I added in one can (each) of black beans and pinto beans to give these quesadillas some extra protein.
- Sour cream: I also tossed the chicken filling mixture in a cup of sour cream to make it a bit more creamy and give the filling a bit of tang.
- Cheese: You can really use just about any kind of shredded cheese that you love best in these quesadillas. I recommend a good-quality Mexican blend or a zesty Pepperjack.
- Tortillas: Feel free to use any type of soft tortillas that you love best for these sheet pan quesadillas. If using a 13 x 18-inch half sheet pan, you will need about 16 (10-inch) tortillas or 24 (8-inch) tortillas to fill the whole pan. I also recommend brushing the tortillas with butter before baking so that they will be extra golden and crispy.
- For serving: Finally, I highly recommend serving these quesadillas with some guacamole, plus pico de gallo, red salsa, salsa verde, and/or sour cream for dipping/drizzling.
How To Make Sheet Pan Quesadillas:
Full instructions for how to make sheet pan quesadillas are included in the recipe below, but here is a brief overview of the process with a few of my best tips…
- Cook the bacon (optional). First, go ahead and fry up the bacon in a large sauté pan, and then reserve a bit of grease in the pan to sauté the veggies in the next step. (If you are cooking raw chicken instead of using pre-cooked chicken, I would also recommend cooking it in some of the leftover bacon grease for extra flavor if you’d like!)
- Sauté the veggies. Next, we’ll sauté the scallions, bell pepper, jalapeño, garlic, and seasonings in the same sauté pan.
- Combine the chicken filling. Once the veggie mixture is ready to go, we’ll toss it with the cooked bacon, cooked chicken, beans, sour cream, and cilantro in a large bowl and toss the filling until combined.
- Assemble the quesadilla. Then it’s time to get going on assembly! Lightly brush the bottom of a 13 x 18-inch half sheet pan evenly with melted butter. Arrange tortillas overlapping around the perimeter of the pan so that half of the tortillas overhang the rim (see photos above), with two additional tortillas layered in the center so that the entire bottom surface of the pan is covered. Spread the chicken filling evenly over the tortillas, followed by an even layer of the cheese. Place two tortillas overlapping in the center of the pan (similarly to how you arranged the bottom layer), then fold the overhanging tortillas back towards the center until all of the chicken filling is covered. Brush the tops of the tortillas evenly with melted butter.
- Bake. Place another large baking sheet on top of the quesadilla to weigh it down. Transfer the stacked baking sheets to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the top baking sheet and bake for 5 more minutes, or until the tortillas are lightly golden.
- Serve. Slice the quesadilla into your desired size/shape of pieces and serve warm with your desired toppings and sauces.
Possible Recipe Variations:
As I said earlier, the options for customizing these chicken sheet pan quesadillas are pretty limitless, so please feel free to swap in whatever ingredients sound good! For example, you could…
- Use a different protein: Beef (ground or shredded), pork (ground or shredded), chorizo, or shrimp would also be delicious options in these quesadillas.
- Make them vegetarian: Or nix the meat altogether and just make these vegetarian sheet pan quesadillas.
- Make it spicy: If you would like to kick up the heat, feel free to add extra jalapeños or a few shakes of cayenne to the chicken filling. Or of course, douse your individual serving with hot sauce!
- Make a smaller batch: You can easily adapt this recipe to use a smaller-sized sheet pan with fewer ingredients if you prefer. Baking time should be roughly the same — just keep an eye on it.
More Favorite Game Day Recipes:
Looking for more winning game day recipes? Here are a few of my all-time faves…
Description
This party-sized Chicken Sheet Pan Quesadilla is easy to make, full of great flavor, and perfect for feeding a crowd! See notes above for possible ingredient variations.
Scale
Ingredients
- 6 slices bacon (optional)
- 4 scallions, thinly sliced with the white and green parts separated
- 1 large red bell pepper, cored and diced
- 1 large jalapeño pepper, cored and diced
- 6 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- fine sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
- 1 pound (about 4 cups) cooked* shredded or diced chicken
- 2 (15-ounce) cans pinto or black beans (or one of each), rinsed and drained
- 1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
- 1/4 cup finely-chopped fresh cilantro
- melted butter
- 16 (10-inch) flour tortillas or 24 (8-inch) flour tortillas
- 3 to 4 cups shredded Mexican blend or Pepperjack cheese
- for serving: guacamole, pico de gallo, red salsa, salsa verde, and/or sour cream
Instructions
- Cook the bacon (optional). Cook the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat until it reaches your desired level of crispiness. Transfer the cooked bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate, leaving about 1 tablespoon of bacon grease remaining in the sauté pan (discard any excess).
- Sauté the veggies. Increase heat to medium-high and add the white parts of the scallions, bell pepper, and jalapeño. Sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, a generous pinch of salt and black pepper and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Combine the chicken filling. Transfer the sautéed veggie mixture to a large mixing bowl. Add cooked bacon, chicken, beans, sour cream, cilantro, the green parts of the scallions, and toss the mixture until evenly combined. Taste and season with extra salt and pepper, if needed.
- Prep oven and baking sheet. Heat oven to 425°F. Lightly brush the bottom of a 13 x 18-inch sheet pan evenly with melted butter.
- Assemble the quesadilla. Arrange tortillas overlapping around the perimeter of the pan so that half of the tortillas overhang the rim, with two additional tortillas layered in the center so that the entire bottom surface of the pan is covered. Spread the chicken filling evenly over the tortillas, followed by an even layer of the cheese. Place two tortillas overlapping in the center of the pan (similarly to how you arranged the bottom layer), then fold the overhanging tortillas back towards the center until all of the chicken filling is covered. Brush the tops of the tortillas evenly with melted butter.
- Bake. Place another large baking sheet on top of the quesadilla to weigh it down. Transfer the stacked baking sheets to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the top baking sheet and bake for 5 more minutes, or until the tortillas are lightly golden.
- Serve. Slice the quesadilla into your desired size/shape of pieces and serve warm with your desired toppings and sauces.
Notes
Chicken options: I shredded a large rotisserie for this recipe to save a step, but you could use any leftover cooked diced or shredded chicken that you have on hand. Or you could bake or sauté some boneless skinless chicken breasts and add them to the recipe. You will need about 1 pound (roughly 4 cups diced or shredded) cooked chicken.
