Thai Chicken Quesadillas

Stuck for an idea to use up that leftover chicken?  Try these tasty treats! If I had any bean sprouts or peanuts on hand, I would have included those as well.  I contemplated dicing some water chestnuts into the mix in place of the sprouts but figured if I did that, the next time I needed water chestnuts, I would forget that I had used them already.  Yup, that's me ... I've got a brain like a sieve!  Never know what I'll retain and what will slip through those little holes.

INGREDIENTS : 

2 c torn chicken
1 carrot, julienned
3 T red bell pepper, diced small
3 T onion, minced
3-4 T fresh chopped cilantro
1 c shredded cheese blend
3 T peanut butter
2 T hot water
3 T soy sauce
2 t sesame oil
2 t ginger
1 t chili flakes or crushed red pepper
Flour tortillas
Canola oil

In a large bowl, toss together the chicken, carrot, red bell pepper, onion, and most of the cilantro (reserve some for garnish).

In a small bowl, stir together the peanut butter and hot water until smooth, then stir in the soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger and chili flakes.

Stir about half of the peanut sauce into the chicken mixture until nicely coated, then decide if you want to add more.  Be sure to reserve some for dipping and/or drizzling.

Heat 1t oil over medium heat, and lightly brown a tortilla on one side.

Flip the tortilla and, acting somewhat quickly to make sure you get it filled before it browns too much, sprinkle some cheese on one side, top with chicken and more cheese, then fold the top over.

Let it brown on one side, then flip to brown on the other.  You can lift it with a spatula to check on the color.

Slice into wedges and drizzle with additional peanut sauce, topping with a sprinkle of cilantro...maybe a dollop of sour cream and some crushed peanuts or additional red bell pepper, etc.

You could also brown a tortilla on one side, remove it from the pan, brown a second tortilla on one side, flip it and top it with cheese/filling/cheese, then put the already browned tortilla over it (browned side down), and flip the whole thing to brown the other side.  With my luck, even with all that gooey cheese, if I tried to flip it that way, I'd toss half the filling across the kitchen.  The half-moon is the traditional quesadilla shape.

I made two well-stuffed quesadillas with this mixture and had more left over, so I used that in a salad the next day.