Easy to make and insanely flavorful chipotle chicken, sweet corn, and cheddar cheese tucked between two flour tortillas and grilled to golden, melty perfection. Top with the most delicious, creamy Avocado Lime Crema and lots of fresh garnishes!
The chipotle chicken is super easy to make! It can be cooked in the slow cooker, instant pot, or on the stovetop! The recipe below includes instructions for all cooking methods. The chicken is seasoned with a blend of spices and chopped chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, which you can find at your local grocery store. Cook the chicken until it's ready to shred, then mix in frozen sweet corn for a pop of sweetness, and you're ready to assemble the quesadillas. Sandwich the chicken and corn mixture between two flour tortillas with lots of cheddar corn and grill to golden, melty perfection.
This chicken is a little spicy but, in my opinion, just the right amount. Not too hot and not too mild. You can adjust the spice level by reducing or adding chipotle peppers in adobo.
The avocado lime crema is a nice balance to the chipotle chicken. It's creamy, smooth and full of flavor. The crema is similar to guacamole, but creamy and made with sour cream and pickled jalapeños extra flavor! Don't skip out on making avocado lime crema!!
Ingredients.
Chicken breasts. One pound of thawed chicken breast, about 2-3 breasts.
Chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. These are canned peppers that you can find at just about any grocery store in the Mexican food isle. They are quite spicy, so you'll only use about a quarter of the can.
Yellow onion. If needed, you can substitute whatever onion you have on hand or use 1 teaspoon of onion powder.
Garlic cloves. If needed, you can substitute 1 teaspoon garlic powder.
Spice blend. Oregano, cumin, paprika, sugar and salt to season the chicken.
Chicken broth. To cook the chicken. I always like to use low sodium chicken broth.
Corn. I like to use frozen corn, but canned corn will also work.
Tortillas. Your favorite flour tortillas. In the photos, I used burrito size tortillas, but smaller fajita size tortillas also work great.
Cheddar cheese. Or your favorite kind of melty cheese. I always recommend shredding your own cheese because it melts better than pre-shredded.
Avocados. Two ripe avocados for the avocado lime crema.
Sour cream. You can substitute unflavored greek yogurt, if you prefer.
Lime juice. Fresh squeezed or from a bottle.
Fresh cilantro. To make the avocado lime crema and more for garnishing.
Optional toppings: Fresh cilantro, lettuce, and pickled red onion (recipe in the notes).
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Ingredients
Chipotle chicken
- 1 pound chicken breasts, thawed
- ⅓ cup chipotles in adobo sauce (about 2-3 peppers + sauce)
- 1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon each oregano, cumin, paprika, sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup chicken broth
- ¾ cup corn (frozen or canned)
Avocado lime crema
- 2 small avocados
- ¼ cup sour cream (or plain greek yogurt)
- ¼ cup lime juice
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- 4-5 pickled jalapeno slices
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon salt
Quesadilla ingredients
- 8-12 flour tortillas
- 2-3 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
- olive oil or fyring oil
Optional garnishes
- shredded lettuce, fresh cilantro, pickled red onion (recipe in notes)
Instructions
Chipotle chicken
- Slow cooker: Add all ingredients except the corn to the slow cooker, cover and cook on high for about 2-3 hours or low for 3-4 hours, or until you can shred the chicken.Instant pot: Add all ingredients to the instant pot, seal and cook on high for 30 minutes. Quick release when it's done.Stovetop: Add all the ingredients plus an extra ½ cup of chicken broth to a skillet with tall sides, cover, and simmer over medium-low heat for 45-50 minutes, or until you can shred the chicken. If needed, add more chicken broth so that there's always liquid in the pan.
- Shred the chicken and return to slow cooker, instant pot or skillet. Mix in the corn.
Avocado lime crema
- Before you assemble the quesadillas, make the crema. Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth.
Make the quesadillas
- Heat a large fry pan over medium heat with a drizzle of oil. Once heated, lay one tortilla in the pan and top with about ¼ - ½ cup of the chicken and corn mixture, leaving behind the liquid. Sprinkle with about ½ cup cheese and cover with another tortilla. Cook for about 2-3 minutes or until golden, then carefully flip and cook another 2-3 minutes until golden and melty. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
- Serve warm with avocado lime crema and your favorite garnishes!
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