Description
These Korean chicken quesadillas with kimchi yogurt sauce are made with a chicken, cabbage, carrot, ginger, and garlic filling. It’s loaded into tortillas with cheese. The quesadillas are then baked or fried in a skillet, then served with kimchi yogurt sauce.
Ingredients
Scale
Quesadillas
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon minced ginger
- Pinch of sea salt
- 1 pound organic lean ground chicken or turkey (organic if possible)
- 1/3 cup barbecue sauce
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons tamari
- 2 tablespoons gochujang or sriracha
- 4 cups finely chopped green cabbage, divided
- 2 medium carrots, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup toasted sesame seeds
- 4 large flour tortillas (8 inch)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded medium cheddar cheese
Kimchi Yogurt Sauce
- 1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup kimchi (liquid squeezed out before measuring)
- 1 teaspoon honey or maple syrup
- Juice of 1/2 a lime
Garnishes
- 1 ripe avocado, sliced
- Sliced cucumber
- Lime wedges
- Cilantro
Instructions
- Start by making the quesadilla filling. Warm the olive oil in a large skillet set over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, ginger, and a pinch of sea salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, for five minutes. Add the chicken and use a fork to break it apart into smaller pieces as it cooks. Brown the chicken, stirring occasionally, until cooked. Stir in the barbecue sauce, sesame oil, tamari, gochujang or sriracha, 2 cups of the cabbage, the carrots, and the cilantro. Cook for ten minutes, or until the cabbage and carrots are tender and the sauce has reduced substantially. Stir in the toasted sesame seeds.
- Assemble the quesadillas: Warm a bit of extra-virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. (Cast iron works well here.) Place two of the tortillas on a work surface. Sprinkle on some shredded cabbage. Top with up to half of the chicken filling (depending on how full you like your quesadilla) and sprinkle with half of the cheese. Top with the second tortilla. Repeat to make a second quesadilla. Cook each quesadilla in the hot skillet, adding more oil to cook the second one, for 4-5 minutes per side. Be very careful as you flip your quesadillas!
- Alternative to frying: Bake the quesadillas. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Follow the same directions as above, but lightly brush the outsides of the quesadillas with olive oil before baking. Bake for 17-20 minutes in total, gently flipping them halfway through.
- Meanwhile, make the kimchi yogurt sauce: In a blender, combine the Greek yogurt, kimchi, honey, and lime juice. Blend until smooth and transfer into a container until ready to serve.
- Serve the quesadillas with kimchi yogurt sauce, avocado, cucumber, cilantro, and lime wedges.
Notes
If you do end up with leftover chicken filling, store it in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple of days. It would be delicious warmed up and served over rice with some of the kimchi yogurt sauce and avocado for a quick and healthy lunch!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Korean
Keywords: Korean chicken quesadilla recipe