Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
These southwest crispy chicken wraps are delicious, easy to make, and so versatile! It’s no surprise they’ve been on our steady meal rotation for many years!
Considering these southwest crispy chicken wraps have been pinned nearly 2 million times (!!), I’d say the recipe is definitely worthy of your attention.
Well, actually, can I take that back?
I can give several pretty riveting personal testimonials about how recipes that have been pinned millions of times turned out with disastrous results for me.
Talk about a bad mood inducer.
So while hopefully we can agree that Pinterest alone may not be our best parameter for judging a successful outcome, I promise that in this case, these crispy chicken wraps really do live up to their pinned fame.
You can read hundreds of comments below if you don’t believe me.
Taken after the model of these delicious wraps, I threw these together for dinner one night nearly three years ago in a frantic attempt to feed my hungry family and use ingredients I already had on hand.
And the result was such a smashing success that we’ve continued to enjoy this recipe at least monthly since.
That’s saying a lot coming from the girl who doesn’t repeat many meals.
These crispy chicken wraps have been a staple this summer, in particular.
Thanks to the insane craziness that has been summer thus far (kind of funny since I think we “go” less than most people, but man, I feel busy), I’ve been calling on all my favorite quick and easy meals to save us.
At least once a week since June, we’ve made some variation of these wraps for dinner.
And by we, I mean my kids. Bless them.
They have become quite proficient at throwing together ingredients in the fridge for any number of crispy wrap variations.
Most super delicious, at least one slightly questionable, and all of them eaten with an open mind and heart (better that than going hungry).
Great for an on the go dinner, these crispy southwest chicken wraps can be made in less than 30 minutes, and they are infinitely adaptable.
No cooked chicken on hand? Make ’em meatless.
Forgot to cook or save leftover rice? Leave it out (less carbs that way anyway!) or use cooked quinoa (yum!).
Not a fan of cumin, cheese, black beans, bell peppers, life, humanity and food in general?
Well, by all means, make your own filling with whatever you have on hand and with whatever flavors tickle your fancy.
You really can’t go wrong here.
Um, actually, I should never use that as a disclaimer. I have a feeling I’ll get a comment saying I basically endorsed using marinated seaweed and bananas and for some reason the crispy wrap turned out soggy and nasty.
So use the versatility option with a little common sense and caution, ok?
If you haven’t let these crispy southwest chicken wraps be part of your life, what are you waiting for?
What To Serve With This:
Fresh seasonal fruit and vegetables
Mexican Corn and Tomato Salad
Crispy Southwest Chicken Wraps
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked rice, warm or at room temperature
- ½ tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon garlic salt or garlic powder
- 1-2 cups cooked, shredded chicken (or other leftover meat, like shredded pork or beef)
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 green onion, finely sliced (white and green parts)
- ½ red or green bell pepper, diced
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- Juice of 1 lime, about a tablespoon
- 2 cups shredded cheese, I use a combination of Monterey jack and sharp cheddar
- Sour cream, optional
- 6 burrito-sized flour tortillas
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Optional toppings:, sour cream, salsa, etc.
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the rice, chili powder, cumin and garlic salt (or garlic powder). Stir to combine.
- To the bowl, add the chicken, black beans, green onions, bell peppers, cilantro, and lime juice. Mix. Add salt and pepper to taste, if needed.
- Sprinkle cheese over tortillas, leaving 1/2-inch border around edges, then arrange chicken and rice mixture down the center of each tortilla.
- Optional: I like to dollop little spoonfuls of sour cream over the cheese before arranging chicken and rice mixture down the center – it makes the wraps delightfully creamy.
- Fold one side of the tortilla over the filling, followed by the other side. Press lightly to flatten.
- Heat a large non-stick skillet (or griddle) over medium heat for 1 minute (about 350 degrees on my electric griddle).
- Spray seam side of wraps with nonstick cooking spray. Arrange wraps, seam-side down (cooking this side first will help them not fall apart), in the pan or griddle and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2-4 minutes.
- Spray the top with nonstick cooking spray and flip. Cook for another 2-4 minutes until golden and the filling is hot.
- Serve with sour cream, salsa, or other toppings of your choice!
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: original recipe from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Recipe originally published Sept 2009, updated with new pictures, recipe notes, etc.
I absolutely agree with Carolyn. Besides, the crispiness of them was one of my favorite parts. 🙂 If you don’t want to use Pam, use a *little* EVOO instead and you’ll get the same result while still keeping it healthy.
Lisa, you’re not frying them in any fat – you’re heating them in a frying pan. The fat that makes them crispy is already in the tortillas, so you’d be eating it either way. You don’t need to add any cooking spray. They brown perfectly without adding anything to the pan. Your comment doesn’t make sense to me, but maybe I’m missing something. Glad they were good without the pan-crisping. I wouldn’t recommend leaving that step out to others – that melts the cheese and warms everything up perfectly.
Wow!! I just made these and they were delicious!! I didnt fry them cause im trying to stay away from fried food and they still turned out great…will definetly make again..thankyou…
cant wait to try
Wow! These would be even better with guacamole, but divine as they are! Thanks!!
Just made these, and they are amazing! Thank you for sharing the recipe. I was directed to your site through Pinterest.
Just made these for a dinner/late night snack and they were delicious! I forgot to buy a bell pepper so I left that out. Also I thought the lime might have been alittle too tangy but it actually enhanced the flavor of everything, the cilantro especially! Thumbs up. 🙂
Just made these! Vegetarian version, I simply replaced the meat with 1 cup of corn!
I think this is exactly what I was looking for for tonight…got beans in the crockpot right now!
Yummmm
OMG, this is making me so hungry right now! I’m adding this to my recipe box.
Really, really tasty. I doubled the recipe. We used a bit more than three chicken breasts, added only one can of beans to the mixture and my bf fried/cooked the other with garlic & chili peppers. We used sliced alvocado, fresh salsa, and good cheddar as our toppings. Had supper and lunch and the other half we froze. Def on the ‘make again’ list!
Found you on Pinterest the other day, made these tonight, altered them a tad, and they were Delicious! And Super Quick and Easy(something I’m thankful for when I get home late most days)! So glad I have leftovers! Definitely something I will make again.
Made these tonight and they didn’t disappoint.. as none of your recipes ever do! I didn’t have a few things on hand.. but today was my shopping day.. sadly, my car has a dead battery. So I had to make it without the peppers/cilantro.. still really good. I wonder how it would be with diced green chilies? ok seriously, I put those in everything. haha.
Thank you so much for the recipe!!! Made these last night and they were amazing, keeping this in my recipe archive for sure
These are AMMMMMMMmmmmMMMmmAZING! Thank you for sharing! My hubby says he would love these at least once a week. I did add a little more kick to it with some extra seasoning, lime juice and cayenne. I am going to dice up fresh jalapenos next time. Just wonderful!
love love these…. So easy to make .. Buy a store bought rotisserie chicken and it is even easier…
Made these tonight for my family and sister’s friends. TOTAL success!
These are fantastic! I made them tonight for dinner but used leftover turkey breast and I doubled the recipe for my family of six, everyone loved them. THANK YOU!
These are DELICIOUS! This will definitely be a repeat recipe in my house 🙂
I made these last night, i make shifted a little, my husband loves flavor, so i added a can of rotel to the rice, the cumin, black beans, the lime and a little taco seasoning, i also added some salsa to the sour cream and grilled the chicken my family devoured it!.. thank you so much yummy
Made these tonight and after our poor rolling technique due to our too small tortillas, we found out these are also great as quesadillas! We added corn, salsa, and some diced jalepeno for some extra pizzaz! Loved it!
Found this recipe on Pinterest, not that I’m one to necessarily eat “healthy” but this recipe sounded delicious, so I made it tonight. My only problem was that I can’t eat flour tortilla’s b/c of my Lap Band surgery, so I had to use corn, and corn is so small that it didn’t really make an actual wrap, just kind of an open faced, soft corn tortilla toastada. But… Still delicious. Next time I’ll marinate my chicken, it was a little bland. And I grilled my chicken, green bell pepper, and yellow onion, on my indoor grill.
I made these tonight, I used a white onion cause I forgot the green onion. But my husband and I LOVED them! They were amazing!!! My favorite item that I’ve made this year! It was filling but not heavy! So happy. Found this!
I made this tonight. It was absolutely DELICIOUS! Thank you for the recipe!
I made these tonight and they were DELICIOUS!! This is the first time in a long time that I’ve tried a recipe and my entire family of six LOVED it! Thanks so much for the recipe 🙂
Just made these tonight — and they are AMAZING! Thank you for sharing!
Oh Mmm Gee!! I made these tonight and they are SO good. They taste similar to Chili’s Southwest Eggrolls. Yum!! The only thing I did different was to sauté the bell pepper/onion beforehand and double the spices. Maybe the latter was because I ended up with more rice. I used a cup (before cooking.) So yummy. A HUGE family hit – even with my picky 10 y/o!
Hey Mel….made these for supper last night and crisped them up in my Hamilton Beach grill….. They were awsome. Thanks again for another keeper. My husband said I need to make these all the time as well, so for me thats enough right there. Can’t wait for lunch, cause guess what we’re having…
Debbie.
These are also wonderful to freeze! If you make 2 batches – they freeze perfectly and warm up perfectly! 2 minutes in microwave while covered in a damp papertowel – great backup for busy nights, yet still delicious 🙂 Thanks for a revamp from my old burrito recipe!
Made these last night–added beans & corn to the mix & a fresh avocado–DELISH! Thank you!
These were sooooooo great and easy! I added a little bit more of the cumin and chili powder and spread sour cream on the tortilla shell like you suggested. I also used pepperjack cheese in there too for a little more kick! Thanks for this recipe!! It makes a TON too!!!
I was searching frantically for something quick to make for dinner tonight when I came across this on pinterest.com. We whipped it up super quick and LOVED it. Can’t wait to make it agin and share the recipe with family. Thanks for the wonderful dinner!
Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe! I made it tonight and it was a hit. Love how flavorful and easy these are. Thanks again!!
Erika – I’m not familiar with this product so I’m not sure if it would freeze and reheat well. You might try googling or looking on Tyson’s website to see if they have any additional information.
Hey all!!?? So I have a lot of those packages of tyson pregrilled chicken! I thought it would be awesome to use in this recipe, but will it be safe to freeze and reheat????
I found this recipe on Pinterest, and I just wanted to hop over here to tell you that these are amazing; my hubby and I love them! I made a big batch and we froze the extras! 🙂
These look so tasty and I bet they freeze great too. Can’t wait to try this recipe.
Just wanted to let you know I found this on Pinterest and it is AMAZING. Browning the tortillas is brilliant. Thanks!!
Mel, I’m using this model for my freezer cooking class on Thursday. Thanks for the inspiration!
PS – Just blogged about these here:
http://cottoncupcakegallery.blogspot.com/
Just made these for supper……YUM! Seriously tastes like restaurant food 🙂 Thanks SO much for the recipe, glad I ‘pinned’ it on pinterest!! Blessings!
I just saw these on Pinterest – Yum! I am putting the ingredients on my grocery list right now! 🙂
These were SO VERY AWESOME! The only thing I did different was add 1 can (drained) of Rotel to add some extra kick! Super easy and super yummy, what more could you ask for?!
These are absolutely mouthwatering! Wow, we are going to have to try them and so easy too.
SO amazing. We had them for dinner tonight and they were a hit. I’d never even thought of grilling wraps before. Seems so simple, yet it was incredibly tasty. Thanks.
These were DELICIOUS!! I had left-over white rice from a few nights ago(always do, but end up throwing it out). Quickly boiled a piece of frozen chicken and TADA. :o) I used Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses. My daughter said this was one of her favorite meals. Definite Keeper!!
These look phenomenal. I’ve been obsessed with wraps lately, definitely have to try these.
I just made these and they were amazing! My 5 year old would not touch them (not surprising) but my 2 year old ate 2 of them! I froze 4 extras and cant wait to heat them up for a quick lunch. I have been looking for an easy recipe like this for awhile and I will definitely be making these again!
I had to laugh just now when I looked up this recipe. I have been making these, from your site, for months now. We love them!! They are one of our go-to dinners when there isn’t much time or other preparation. The funny thing is I only just now noticed that they have CHICKEN in them! All this time I have been making them without. I guess I will have to try a little chicken next time, but if anyone is wondering, it is delicious without! Also, we have made them many times with quinoa instead of rice and that is equaly delicious and even more healthy!