Taco Tuesdays!!! But not really…

There something about the mere mention of “Taco Tuesdays” that makes everyone smile. Tuesday as a day of the week is pretty humdrum; it doesn’t have the polarizing powers of Monday, nor does it offer the assurance that Wednesday aka Humpday provides that the week is almost over. What Tuesday does have however is tacos. Which is an extremely redeeming quality in my book. This particular Tuesday I offer you a recipe that’s not quite a taco. What I have instead is a quesadilla recipe that was inspired by a Chipotle burrito. Anyone who knows me knows that I have an unhealthy obsession  really enjoy Chipotle Mexican Grill’s burritos. Their burritos are fresh, delicious, inexpensive, and relatively  healthy when compared to other fast food options. The idea came for this dish when I decided that I would make my own version of a Chipotle burrito. I went to the store gathered my provisions, got home, then  realized forgot the lettuce and tomato. I decided that I could not make a suitable copycat recipe without all of the ingredients so I decided to do a quesadilla instead. Well enough yammering about my epic voyage to feed my stomach, i’ll get to what you came here for…the food.   

Ingredients

1 Pound of chicken

1  and ½ Yellow onions (Diced)

1 Green bell pepper (Seeded and sliced into strips)

1 Red bell pepper (Seeded and diced)

1 Yellow bell pepper (Seeded and slice into strips)

4 Flour Tortillas

2 Cups of shredded cheese (I usually use the Mexican Mix by Kraft or Monterey Jack cheese)

Olive Oil

4 Cups of water

2 Cups of brown rice

1 lime (zested and juiced)

½ Cup of chopped fresh cilantro

2 Cloves of garlic

Can of black beans

Can of whole kernel corn

Sour Cream (for serving)

Salsa ( for serving)

Directions:

1.     Season your chicken with salt, pepper, cumin, and paprika. Set aside  to marinate for 30 minutes.

2.     Heat table spoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken breast and sauté until done. Once chicken is done remove from heat and dice into cubes.

3.     Add tablespoon of olive oil in skillet warm until heated. Once oil is heated add 1 whole diced onion. Cook until tender, and then add the green, yellow peppers. Cook until vegetables have some color on them about 3-4 minutes. Remove from skillet, place them in a bowl and set aside. ( I like to make this a one pan meal, so I rinse skillet and reuse)

4.     Drizzle oil in skillet heat pan over medium heat. Once the pan is warm lay a flour tortilla in the skillet. Then add a layer cheese, peppers, chicken, cheese and top with another tortilla.

5.     Cook the first side until golden, then add a little more oil and flip the quesadilla and cook the other side cook until golden, remove from pan. Set aside cover in foil to keep warm  Repeat this process until you have four quesadillas.

*Cooking note* Cut quesadillas into quarters to serve.

Santa Fe Style Black Beans

1.     Into a pot add a can of black beans, small can of whole kernel corn, diced red peppers, ½ teaspoon of cumin, ½ teaspoon of paprika, and 1 clove of chopped garlic, salt and pepper to taste.  

2.     Heat ingredients over medium high heat to a boil, then lower heat to simmer and cook until vegetables are tender. (I usually cook the beans for about 30 minutes, sometimes I add a  stock cube to enhance a flavor)

Close up of the beans

Cilantro & Lime Brown Rice

1.     Bring 6 cups of water to a boil in a sauce pan, add brown rice. Reduce heat to a medium-low and cook until rice is tender about 40-45 minutes.

2.     Drain rice, transfer rice into a bowl, and allow to cool slightly.

3.     In a separate bowl mix together lime juice, lime zest, and oil. Pour this mixture over rice, add cilantro, and then stir. add salt and pepper to taste.

Close up of the cilantro-lime rice

Final plating, garnished with lime, I added sour cream, and salsa.

Another plating shot.

This dish is a nice way to mix up weeknight boredom. It takes about 45 minutes total to prepare and the leftovers make the perfect lunch the next day.  The cilantro and lime made the rice really fresh. The quesadillas were awesome, I like to think of them as Mexican grilled cheese. Have you ever tried to make a dish from your favorite restaurant at home? What are some of your favorite weeknight meals? Comment below, subscribe to get post directly to your inbox, show me some blog love on Bloglovin, or follow me on Instagram, basically stay in touch.