5-Ingredient Chicken Tikka Masala Quesadillas Recipe

While the origins of chicken tikka masala are a bit of a mystery, everyone can agree that it is delicious. Incredibly popular in many countries, chicken tikka masala it is a bit of a fusion dish already, combining traditional Indian cooking and spices with a more British type of tomato gravy. We are adding even more fusion here with this 5-Ingredient chicken tikka masala quesadillas recipe.

This quesadilla recipe from developer Jessica Morone is a perfect blend of Indian flavors and Mexican comfort food, all with just five simple ingredients. Combining chicken, flavorful tikka masala simmer sauce, melty cheese, fresh cilantro, and soft tortillas, this dish offers a fun twist on the classic quesadilla. The tikka masala sauce infuses the chicken with rich, aromatic spices and doesn't require the time and energy to make the sauce yourself. With minimal ingredients and prep work, it's an ideal choice for busy weeknights when you want something tasty without too much of a hassle. Serve these with your favorite dipping sauce or sour cream and enjoy a fusion treat that's sure to become a new favorite. 

As the title suggests, there are only five ingredients necessary for this recipe. To make these quesadillas, you will need to grab boneless, skinless chicken breasts, a jar of tikka masala simmer sauce, flour tortillas, Mexican blend cheese, and cilantro. You will also need some nonstick cooking spray for the pan and olive oil for cooking (since these are things that most people have in their kitchens, they aren't counted toward the five ingredients).

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the chicken and cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Add the simmer sauce to the skillet and stir until the chicken is coated in sauce.

Bring the sauce to a simmer, cover the pan, and then simmer on low for 20 minutes.

While the chicken simmers, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Lightly grease a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray.

Place a tortilla on the baking sheet. Cover one half with roughly 3 tablespoons shredded cheese.

Add one fourth of the chicken on top of the cheese.

Sprinkle one fourth of the cilantro over the chicken.

Top with roughly 3 tablespoons shredded cheese.

Fold the tortilla in half so that the filling is covered by the other half of the tortilla.

Brush the top of the tortilla lightly with olive oil. Repeat steps 7–12 with the remaining tortillas and filling ingredients.

Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes.

Flip the quesadillas over, then continue cooking for an additional 5 minutes, until golden brown.

Slice the quesadillas and serve hot with sour cream or the sauce of your choice.

While simmer sauce is originally intended for use in a pan, it can be used in a lot of different methods of cooking. For an even more hands-off way to make this recipe, you can put the unsliced chicken breasts and the simmer sauce in a slow cooker, heat this on low for about 3 hours, then shred the chicken in the sauce and continue with this recipe as written. Cooking the chicken in a slow cooker will infuse the chicken breasts with even more flavor than when you use a pan because it cooks for so much longer. You could also consider covering the chicken in the sauce and baking it in the oven. Just place it in a baking pan covered in foil at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes. 

However, you should not try to put anything saucy in an air fryer. The hot air can cause the liquid to splatter everywhere and damage your air fryer. Stick to a pan on the stove, a slow cooker, or the oven for this recipe, and there are plenty of other air fryer recipes out there!  

You can change up these quesadillas to suit your tastes in a variety of ways. You can cook some onions or bell peppers and add these to the simmer sauce and chicken mixture for extra flavors and textures. If you aren't a fan of cilantro, you can swap it out for parsley or mint. If you'd prefer to use a different cheese or blend of cheeses in these quesadillas, then go for it. 

One of the best ways to change up the flavors in these quesadillas is to swap the simmer sauce with a totally different flavor. There are a lot of options out there, such as sweet and sour, pad Thai, or coconut curry. Using a different flavor can also inspire you to change up the other ingredients in the quesadillas. For example, if you use the pad Thai sauce, maybe you will want to add some peanuts to the filling for an extra crunch. You can really make this recipe all your own!