Chicken Quesadillas- la magia de México

If you ask me what my favourite cuisine is...id have to admit its Mexican. The ribs, enchiladas, fajitas, buffalo wings and of course Quesadillas which i can have at any given time. London has a lot of fancy restaurants, i admit, but i just haven't found one single decent Mexican joint other than Chiquito which is nowhere nearby. The American chain Chili's shut down their UK restaurants when recession hit and so now I have to make these at home to quench my craving. I still remember the Southwestern Egg Rolls from Chili's, which for some strange reason wasn't on the menu in any of the UK Chili's, but were a favourite among a lot of my cousins and friends back in US.

I was doing an impromptu grocery stop at Tesco and saw a Mexican dip platter with Sour Cream, Salsa and Guacamole. That aggravated my craving and so decided to make Quesadillas that night for dinner. The original Quesadilla recipe doesn't involve any of the dips, but i just couldn't resist it. Pair it with a chilled glass of margarita and you have the perfect BBQ dish.

Flour tortillas- 4, or if you are using chapathi's, about 6

Boneless chicken breasts- 250 to 300 gms, cut into bite size pieces

Onions- 1, sliced lengthwise

Any brand Fajita/Enchilada spice mix- 3 tsp (can be substituted with a mix of chilli pwd, pepper pwd, paprika, cumin pwd and salt)

Ginger garlic paste- 1 tsp (optional)

Cheddar or any grated cheese- 1 cup or more if you are not so concerned about your waist line

Pickled Jalapenos- 2 or 3 per Quesadilla as they are quite spicy (optional)

Oil- 1 tbs

Salt- to taste (if required)

Marinate the chicken pieces with the fajita spice mix and Ggp. Keep aside.

In a frying pan, heat the oil and sautee onions till they become glazed. To this add the chicken pieces and fry it well. Chicken should be lightly brown. You can add more salt and spice if its not enough, at this stage. Transfer to a dish and keep ready.

Set the oven to the grill mode and preheat to about 170C. Line an oven proof pan with baking paper and keep it ready. Place the tortillas/chapathis on a plate and generously spread the sour cream, salsa and guacamole. Layer the chicken pieces on top, sprinkle some cheese and jalapenos, cover with another tortilla/chapathi and press a bit to make it like a sandwich. Repeat with the second set, place them on the pan and into the oven for about 5 minutes or maybe even less depending on the oven. Its just to melt the cheese and heat the tortillas/chapathis. Serve with rest of the dips.

Notes: This is a perfect dish if you have left over chicken breasts and even chapathis. You can replace the chicken with sausages, bacon etc.

If you do not get the ready-made dips, then mayo or thick yogurt is good enough, or you can chuck that altogether and go on a healthy regime.