Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Cheesy, crispy, and surprisingly balanced – cheeseburger quesadillas are a delicious and easy twist on everyone’s favorite comfort food. This tasty weeknight dinner is always a crowd-pleaser and ready in less than 20-minutes. You’ll also love my crispy beef tacos, easy chicken enchiladas, and taco cups.
An Easy And Protein-Packed Twist On A Classic
Quesadillas are the perfect weeknight dinner because they’re so easy to make and always super satisfying – and this simple cheeseburger quesadilla is no exception. Here’s why you’ll love it too:
- Satisfying, but surprisingly balanced. Your family would never know these cheesy quesadillas are high-protein and surprisingly nutritious.
- Ready in under 20-minutes. You’ll have this simple dinner on the table in under 20-minutes with minimal chopping and clean-up.
- Easy to prep in advance. To save even more time and energy on hectic weeknights, you can prep the filling in advance and simply assemble your quesadillas when you’re ready to eat.
Key Ingredient Notes
- Large tortillas: You’re looking for tortillas about 8-10 inches in diameter. The exact size doesn’t matter, as long as they’re big enough to fit the filling and cheese.
- Lean ground beef: I recommend lower fat meat drained of excess fat to reduce saturated fats and keep your quesadillas crisp.
- Burger condiments: Your simple filling is flavored by mayonnaise, Ketchup, and mustard – and you’re welcome to adjust the ratios to fit your taste. Just don’t use too much or you’ll have soggy quesadillas.
Scroll down to the recipe card for the full ingredients list and detailed recipe.
How To Make Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Step 1: Brown, crumble, and season beef.
Step 2: Combine beef with condiments and seasonings.
Step 3: Add beef filling and cheese to your quesadilla and fold to close.
Step 4: Brown both sides, slice, and serve!
Want more tasty dinners with ground beef? Try my healthy bell pepper nachos, one-pot philly cheesesteak pasta, or high-protein beef chili.
How To Prep Ahead
Prep your ingredients ahead for super quick assembly at dinner time! Make your cheeseburger filling at the start of the week, and store in the fridge for up to three days before serving. When you’re ready to eat, gently heat the beef filling in the microwave, and assemble and toast tortillas as normal.
You could also cook the quesadillas in advance and re-heat in the microwave or air fryer later.
Make It Lighter
As a dietitian, I always encourage you to make swaps and modifications to fit your dietary needs! Here’s how you could make this dinner lighter and more nutritious:
- Use a whole wheat or high-fiber tortilla.
- Use low-fat cheddar cheese.
- Use light mayonnaise in your beef filling.
- Choose a lower calorie dip like Ketchup or my healthy burger sauce.
How To Serve Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Pair your quesadilla with your favorite burger condiment or dip like big mac sauce, Ketchup, or yellow mustard. You could also add a side of sweet potato fries, potato wedges, or chopped veggies.
Common Questions
Yes! Scroll up for instructions on how to do a partial meal prep – this works best if you still want to assemble and toast your quesadillas fresh each night. Or, you can cook all your quesadillas in advance and re-heat them daily. To do this, let your quesadillas cool before slicing, then store in the fridge for up to four days. When you’re ready to eat, re-heat in the air fryer (3-5 minutes at 350 F), toaster oven, or microwave (45-60 seconds).
You can use any tortilla you enjoy! Just make sure it’s big enough to fit the beef and cheese. I recommend an 8-10 inch tortilla (usually labeled as “large”). For extra nutrition, choose a whole wheat, carb balance, or high-fiber tortilla.
You’ll have just under 4 cups of beef filling to split between your four tortillas. Measure a slightly heaping ¾ cup of filling for each quesadilla.
More Healthy Dinner Ideas
Need more nutritious dinner recipes? Here are my favorites:
- Marry Me Chicken Soup
- Sweet Potato Turkey Chili
- Ground Beef Fried Rice
- Greek Salmon Bowls
- Tuna Rice Bowls
If you tried my Cheeseburger Quesadilla recipe, leave a ⭐️ star rating below, and share a photo on Instagram!
Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- salt, to taste
- black paper, to taste
- 1 Tbsp ketchup
- 2 Tbsp yellow mustard
- 2 Tbsp mayonnaise
- ½ cup small diced white onion
- ⅓ cup small diced dill pickles
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp onion powder
- cooking spray, optional
- 4 large tortillas, I use whole wheat but any type works
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar, divided
To serve
- healthy big mac sauce, optional
- Ketchup or other condiments of choice, optional
Equipment
- large non-stick pan
Instructions
- Place your pan on the stove and heat to medium. Add beef and season heavily with salt and pepper. Cook and crumble until browned, with no pink remaining.
- Turn off the heat and drain excess fat. Transfer beef to your large mixing bowl. Clean the pan you used to cook the beef – we’ll use it again when assembling and toasting the quesadillas.
- To the same mixing bowl, add ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, onion, pickle, garlic powder, and onion powder. Stir until combined. Taste, and adjust condiments and seasonings as desired. Your mixture should be moist but not wet to ensure crispy quesadillas.
- Return your clean pan to medium heat. If desired, coat the pan with a thin layer of cooking spray – I prefer to toast my quesadillas dry, but it depends on your pan!
- Add a tortilla to the pan. On one half, add ¼ cup of cheddar. Spread ¼ of the meat mixture directly on top. Finish with another ¼ cup of cheddar. Fold the tortilla in half and press down firmly. Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until both are golden brown and crisp. Remove from the pan and transfer to a cutting board. Repeat for all quesadillas.
- Slice each quesadilla into triangles. Enjoy immediately with condiments of choice!
Notes
- Use gluten-free tortillas and condiments if needed.
- You’ll need about 3/4 cup of the beef mixture in each tortilla.
- Ways to keep it lighter: use a whole wheat or high-fiber tortilla, use low-fat cheese, use light mayonnaise.
- Watch the heat on your pan. If it’s too hot, your tortilla could burn. If it’s looking too hot, turn down the heat and run your pan under cold water.
Fantastic! Easy to make and tasted delicious. Served with sour cream and pico. Adding to our dinner rotation for sure.
These are so easy and even more delicious! These are going to be on regular rotation here.
Thanks for a great recipe!
Obsessed with this recipe! We have made this several times and it’s always a hit!
So quick and easy for a weeknight! Simple and affordable ingredients are a bonus! Definitely adding to the recipe pool 🙂