Easy Bean and Cheese Air Fryer Quesadillas Recipe

Make crispy cheese quesadillas in the air fryer to serve with your favorite toppings when you crave a comforting quick meal.

If you like this recipe, check out my Air Fryer Arancini next!

I love a quesadilla almost as much as I love a classic grilled cheese sandwich for a quick lunch. I consider quesadillas comfort food. But with the amount of butter I use in my skillet, a quesadilla has become too much of an indulgent treat. As always, my air fryer saves the day!

With just a little vegetable oil, I can make an indulgent quesadilla. Crispy on the outside. Oozing with gooey, melty cheese on the inside. They are so darn good. I love them simple with just beans and cheese. But you could add some rotisserie chicken too. These are perfect for an after school snack or an easy and satisfying dinner.

More easy air fryer recipes

• Air Fryer Fried Apples
• Frozen Biscuits in the Air Fryer
• Air Fryer Acorn Squash

Ingredients for air fryer quesadillas

• Tortillas – I prefer the texture and taste of flour tortillas. But you could use corn tortillas instead. A soft taco size tortilla fits well in my basket style air fryer. These are usually 6 – 8 inches in diameter.
• Refried Beans – I’m always looking to get more beans (and fiber in general) into my diet. Quesadillas are one of my favorite ways to eat beans.
• Shredded Cheese – Use your favorite variety. I like a Mexican cheese blend or monterey jack. Also if you use pre-shredded cheese, rinse it first so it will melt better.
• Vegetable Oil – Helps to crisp up the outside of the cheesy quesadilla. You could use olive oil too.
• Taco Sauce – Adds flavor. My personal favorite is the Taco Bell mild taco sauce.
• Toppings – I like a basic side of sour cream, tomato salsa and shredded iceberg lettuce.
• More favorite fillings – This recipe is for a bean and cheese quesadilla. But feel free to add cooked ground beef, rotisserie chicken, sauteéd bell peppers, etc. Or use black beans instead of refried beans.

Instructions for air-fryer quesadillas

Spread a thin layer of refried beans onto half the tortilla. Top the beans with about a tablespoon of taco sauce and spread it evenly to cover the beans. Evenly sprinkle about a 1/2 cup of shredded cheese over the beans and sauce. Fold over the tortilla to make the quesadilla. Press down to make sure it sticks together.

Brush both sides of the quesadilla lightly with vegetable oil. I use a silicone pastry brush to easily apply the vegetable oil.

Air fry the quesadilla at 350 degrees F for 7 – 8 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the outside of the quesadilla is golden brown. I did not find it necessary to flip the quesadilla over halfway through.

Slice the quesadilla into three wedges. Serve it with a side of shredded lettuce, salsa and sour cream. Keep scrolling to the bottom of the post for my free printable recipe card.

Serving suggestions

If you’d like to turn this into a more complete meal, try my Mexican Rice and Bean Soup to serve with your quesadillas. And here’s a few more recipe suggestions –

• Mexican Street Corn Chowder
• Bean and Rice Salad
• Mexican Tuna Salad

Storage directions

Let any leftover quesadillas cool to room temperature. Store in an airtight container. Quesadillas will stay fresh for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

Kitchen tools

• I used a Philips XXL Air Fryer to test all of my recipes
• I always use a silicone pastry brush to oil my air fryer or the foods that I air fry
• I avoid using cooking spray in my air fryer so as not to damage the nonstick coating
• Metal tongs for removing the quesadilla from the air fryer basket

Print Pin

5 from 6 votes

Air Fryer Quesadillas

Make crispy cheese quesadillas in the air fryer to serve with your favorite toppings when you crave a comforting quick meal.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword air fryer cheese quesadilla, air fryer quesadillas

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 8 minutes minutes

Servings 1

Calories 449kcal

Author Jill McOwen

Equipment

• 1 Air Fryer

Ingredients

• 1 flour tortilla soft taco size
• 3 tbsp refried beans
• 2 tbsp taco sauce
• 1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup shredded lettuce
• 1 tbsp salsa
• 1 tbsp sour cream

Start Cooking

Instructions

• Spread the refried beans evenly over one half of the tortilla.
• Spread the taco sauce evenly on top of the beans.
• Sprinkle the shredded cheese evenly over the top of the beans.
• Fold the tortilla in half and press down to seal.
• Use a silicone pastry brush to coat both sides of the quesadilla with vegetable oil.
• Place the quesadilla in the basket of the air fryer.
• Air fry the quesadilla at 350 degrees F for 7 - 8 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is lightly toasted.
• Slice the quesadilla into wedges and serve it with lettuce, salsa and sour cream.

Nutrition

Calories: 449kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 9g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 42mg | Sodium: 1241mg | Potassium: 340mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1067IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 742mg | Iron: 2mg

Foodtastic Mom is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program (Amazon Associate), an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Any highlighted, clickable Amazon links you see are affiliate links that I may earn advertising fees on when you click to purchase.

Thank you so much for being a faithful reader and supporter of Foodtastic Mom. Be sure to PIN to Pinterest and print this recipe! Like and tag ‘Foodtastic Mom’ on Facebook and Instagram if you make this recipe! And of course leave a star rating if you make any of my recipes and enjoy them!

Be sure and follow Foodtastic Mom on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram!

More easy dinner recipes

• Air Fryer Filet Mignon Dinner
• Hamburger Potato Casserole
• Easy Air Fryer Pork Chops