Filled with savory precooked chicken, bacon, ranch, cheddar cheese and broccoli, these delicious and easy Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas are a delightful twist on a Mexican-inspired favorite!
Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas are so easy to make, and while I wouldn't exactly consider them to be a copycat recipe, they are similar to Chili's Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas--but with much healthier ingredients.
With low-fat Mexican blend shredded cheese, light ranch dressing, bacon bits (yes, they work quite well in this) and fresh cuts of broccoli, you get all the great flavors of the restaurant version--plus an added vegetable bonus--without all the guilt!
And, just like Chili's, our Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas get even better when served alongside Pico de Gallo, sour cream and ranch! We also enjoy these with a side of Mexican Rainbow Coleslaw and Mexican Street Corn Pasta Salad.
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👪Why you'll love it
| Great for leftover or rotisserie chicken- Cut your meal prep down significantly by using precooked chicken. This recipe is a great way to use up leftovers. Find more ideas for leftovers: Easy Leftover Chicken Recipes That You Don't Want to Miss Great use for flour tortillas bought in bulk- Maybe you have a lot of tortillas in your pantry from that last club store visit. Why did you buy so many? So you could try a new quesadilla recipe like this one! Kid-friendly quick meal- Kids love melted cheese sandwiched between tortillas and usually don't mind the added bonus of broccoli, which makes this dinner a winner--especially since each quesadilla cooks in 15 minutes or less! |
🥘Ingredients
- flour tortillas- use fajita size
- cheddar cheese- this recipe takes a shortcut by using pre-sliced sandwich size cheese
- precooked chicken breast- you can also use Rotisserie chicken
- fresh broccoli florets- may substitute with defrosted frozen broccoli
- bacon flavored bits- or a few strips of crispy bacon
- light/reduced fat ranch salad dressing- I like Hidden Valley Ranch for this recipe
- reduced fat shredded Mexican cheese blend- or reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
- Canola or olive oil cooking spray
🔪Instructions
For more detailed instructions, see the printable recipe card below
- Place one plain tortilla on a clean workspace.
- Arrange cheddar cheese down the center.
- Add chicken, broccoli, and bacon.
- Drizzle ranch dressing over the ingredients, then sprinkle with shredded Mexican cheese.
- Place a plain tortilla on top; spray the top with cooking spray.
- Add the assembled quesadilla to frying pan, lightly coated with cooking spray.
- Cook for 5-8 minutes over medium heat; flip and cook 5 minutes more.
- Repeat steps for additional quesadillas.
Hint: As your skillet gets warmer, you may find that the additional quesadillas you make might not take as long to cook.
🥣Substitutions
Tortillas: Use whole wheat for more nutrition.
Cheese: Choose your favorite cheese to add to the quesadilla. Some reader favorites are cotija and queso fresco, and Oaxaca, which melts really well.
Meat: Make the quesadillas with leftover turkey. You could also use turkey bacon crumbles.
📖Variations
Spicy Chicken Bacon Ranch: Add chili powder or cayenne pepper to the dressing; alternatively, you could use a spicy ranch dressing. Use diced jalapeño instead of broccoli. Swap the cheddar for Pepper Jack cheese.
Buffalo Chicken Bacon Ranch: Use buffalo ranch dressing (Hidden Valley makes it). Swap the cheddar for Monterey Jack. Instead of shredded cheese, add bleu cheese crumbles on top with the bacon.
🍽Equipment
- large cutting board
- chef's knife
- frying pan
- large spatula
- pizza cutter
🍶Storage
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate. Enjoy within 3-4 days.
Reheating instructions: Arrange in a single layer on a prepared pan, cover loosely with foil and bake at 300 degrees for 6-7 minutes. Uncover, flip and bake an additional 2-3 minutes or until quesadillas are heated through.
💭Top tip
Keep cooked quesadillas warm by either loosely covering them with foil or by placing them in a second frying pan on your stove over very low heat, flipping and reordering occasionally. They can be layered to keep warm without stacking them entirely on top of each other (think of a lopsided pile of pancakes). This is to avoid them getting soggy while the remaining are assembled and cooked!
🗨️FAQ
Cheddar, Monterey Jack and any Mexican cheese blend works well for this recipe. While I admit that shredded cheese does not melt the same as block cheese, I often use shredded to save time. This recipe uses sliced cheddar and a shredded Mexican blend for a variety of cheese flavor and melted texture.
Definitely a frying pan. Quesadillas don't take long to cook and the tortillas turn a nice golden brown from a little oil in the pan, giving them a tasty, crisp texture. You won't get the same results from the oven. The quesadillas will taste more like a baked dish, won't be as crisp, and the tortillas could potentially dry out.
Yes. It's the only way to achieve a light, crisp texture on both sides and the best way to make sure that all the ingredients are heated through.
🥄Related
Looking for other recipes like this? Try these:
🍴Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas:
📋Recipe
Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 8 fajita-sized flour tortillas
- 4 slices cheddar cheese pre-sliced sandwich size
- 1 cup pre-cooked chicken breast cut into bite-sized pieces
- 1 cup fresh broccoli florets diced
- 4 tablespoon bacon flavored bits
- 4 tablespoon light ranch dressing Hidden Valley Ranch recommended
- 1 cup reduced fat shredded Mexican cheese blend Sargento's Reduced Fat 4 Cheese Mexican Blend recommended
- Canola cooking spray
Instructions
Prep:
- Dice pre-cooked chicken and broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
Quesadilla Assembly:
- Place one plain tortilla on a separate workspace. This could be a large plate, additional cutting board, or even a piece of wax paper or foil for quick cleanup.
- Cut one slice of cheddar cheese in half. Then lay the two pieces lengthwise in the center of the tortilla.
- Place ¼ cup of the chicken on top of the cheese.
- Place ¼ cup of broccoli on top of the chicken and then sprinkle on 1 tablespoon of the bacon flavored bits.
- Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the ranch dressing over the ingredients.
- Sprinkle ¼ cup of the shredded cheese on top. This cheese will serve as the "glue" when it melts to help keep your other tortilla connected (see next step)!
- Place another plain tortilla on top and spray it (the top of your quesadilla) lightly with your cooking spray.
- Lightly spray frying pan. Then, using your large spatula, carefully transfer the assembled quesadilla to the prepared pan.
- Place pan on stovetop. Cook over medium heat for 5-7 minutes. Reduce the heat slightly, then use your large spatula to flip the quesadilla over and cook an additional 5 minutes.
- The quesadilla is finished cooking once you can see that the cheese towards the edges is melted and both sides of the quesadilla are light to medium golden brown.
Repeat steps 1-10 for additional quesadillas.
- As your skillet gets warmer, you may find that the additional quesadiilas you make might not take as long to cook.
Serving:
- Place one cooked quesadilla at a time on the cutting board. Use a pizza cutter to cut it into quarters, then plate!
- Some tasty and fun dip ideas for Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas include sour cream, extra ranch dressing, pizza sauce and/or melted cheddar.
Enjoy it again!
- Store in an airtight container, refrigerate and enjoy any leftovers within 3-4 days.
- Arrange in a single layer on a prepared pan, cover loosely with foil and bake at 300 degrees for 6-7 minutes. Uncover, flip and bake an additional 2-3 minutes or until quesadillas are heated through.
Lori M. says
The ranch dressing really adds a nice touch to these tasty quesadillas.
Kitchen Ready Betty says
Thank you. I like using dressings in my frying pan quesadillas because it gives them more flavor. The ranch is also good as a dip for these Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadillas!