Chili Garlic Breakfast Quesadilla
A while back I posted my delicious Egg Florentine Quesadillas and many of you seemed to enjoy them just as much as I did. Although they are wonderful, I don’t always have creamed spinach in my fridge (and not for lack of wanting) so the recipe has since morphed into these delicious Chili Garlic Breakfast Quesadillas. They sill have spinach (fresh rather than creamed) and instead of red pepper flakes I smear a bit of garlic chili paste onto the tortilla. Anyway, you can make one of these in about 10 minutes and they’re very portable… not to mention delicious. These quesadillas have been my breakfast for WEEKS (well, when I’m not eating my Indian Spiced Oats, that is).
Chili Garlic Breakfast Quesadilla
Chili Garlic Breakfast Quesadilla
Ingredients
- 1 large egg ($0.15)
- 1 small tortilla ($0.08)
- 1 tsp chili garlic paste ($0.05)
- 1/4 cup shredded cheddar ($0.25)
- 1/2 cup fresh spinach ($0.08)
Instructions
- In a small non-stick skillet, fry your egg until it is set. I like to leave the yolk just slightly runny but beware: the runnier the yolk, the less portable the quesadilla (and there is nothing worse than dripping egg yolk down the front of your shirt before you even get to work. Trust me).
- While the egg cooks, smear 1 tsp of chili garlic paste on one half of the tortilla. Top that side with 1/4 cup of cheese. When the egg is finished, place the egg on top of the cheese (the heat helps it melt) and then put the spinach on top of the egg. Fold the tortilla over and return it to the pan (keep the heat on).
- Cook each side of the quessadilla until it is golden brown and crispy (1-2 min each side). Be careful not to spill the contents of the quesadilla out as you flip it. The spinach likes to escape.
- Wrap your crispy quesadilla in a paper towel and enjoy on the go!
Nutritional values are estimates only. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Step By Step Photos
This is the chili garlic paste that I use. Sriracha (rooster sauce) can be used in it’s place although it is a touch sweeter.
I put the cheese in between the chili sauce and the egg so it melts.
Top the cheese with the cooked egg and the fresh spinach. Fold the tortilla over top and return it to the pan.
I like to use my spatula to hold the top over when cooking the first side. The spinach is so springy that it likes to pop the tortilla open.
By the time you cook the second side it should be stiff enough to hold closed by itself.
Plate up (or hand up) and enjoy!
Can these be frozen and reheated?
They would probably freeze just okay. Eggs will always cook further upon reheating and when they do they expel water, so that might be an issue during reheating.
I can’t get chilli garlic paste in my country so I used whatever hot sauce I had in the pantry and these were so delicious! Really easy to put together with just a few ingredients, pretty healthy too!
Beth! Honestly, I’ve seen this here for ages and always thought, “not sure how I feel about breakfast quesadillas.” I made this this morning because I was starving and needed something to eat before my run- had all the ingredients on hand obviously. So easy and delicious! I’ll be building into the breakfast routine! Thanks!
Love, love, love this! I’ve been alternating between this and the Hummus Breakfast Mug for the past couple of weeks. It is a great way to get a little bit of veggies in at the beginning of the day and I’ve had good luck with whatever variety of shredded cheese I have on hand. The only thing I do differently is put the quesadilla in the pan spinach side down first, so that I don’t need to stand there and hold it shut.
Thanks for such a simple and tasty recipe. I consider myself a pretty good cook but I’m severely lacking in the creativity category. I never would have come up with this on my own!
Had this for breakfast this morning and it was so good! I split the cheese so that some was between the chili garlic sauce and the egg and the rest was between the spinach and the other half of the tortilla to try to make it stay together a little more. Took about 10 minutes (helped by the fact that I washed the spinach last night) and was easily able to eat it as I walked out the door to start my morning commute. Thanks for another great recipe, Beth!
Hi Beth, just thought I’d stop by and say how happy I am to have found your website, all the way in Manchester, England! I’m a nurse living alone on a very tight budget, and always on the look out to find reasons to actually cook myself something decent to eat at the end of the day instead of just heating up a can of soup….. And these quesedillas look fantastic for tonight’s supper- thank you!
OMG, I’m in love. This is soooo good. Thank you.