Apple, caramel, and brie.

September 6, 2014 8:00 PM

29 life-changing quesadillas you need to know about. Buzzfeed, gloriously cheesy list on one page.
posted by smoke (51 comments total)

Is it still a quesadilla when there is no quesa?
posted by the jam at 8:07 PM on September 6, 2014 [2 favorites]

Given the definition (which of course should be the end of all discussions) here I would say no.

But then it goes on to talk about "Mexican Quesadilla" and the article says "While Oaxaca (or string) cheese is the most common filling, other ingredients are also used in addition to or even substituting cheese."

So, it seems a bit brash to say the Mexican's don't know how to make a proper quesadilla.

So, in summary, yes, it is still a quesadilla without the quesa (you know you want to try the blueberry quesadillas).
posted by el io at 8:27 PM on September 6, 2014

This is why I tend to keep tortillas in the house and not bread. I don't think it should really be that shocking that if you can put something between two slices of bread, you can in fact do the same thing with a flour tortilla. To me, this all sort of boils down to someone's shocked revelation that zomg a folded tortilla is JUST LIKE A SANDWICH.
posted by Sequence at 8:29 PM on September 6, 2014 [4 favorites]

Every once in awhile I find myself at Applebees (shut up) and the only thing I like there is the quesadilla cheeseburger. It is so wrong, but so delicious.
posted by xingcat at 8:31 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

I was in Mexico City this spring and was gratified to see that the US/Norteño-style quesadilla with flour tortillas, melted cheese and meat has actually made its way back into interior Mexican taqueria menus. Down there, they call them "gringas", I guess because of the flour tortillas.
posted by strangely stunted trees at 8:32 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

Sequence: I couldn't agree more. And I would gladly pay obscene amounts of money for a tortilla maker that is equivalent to my breadmaker (put ingredients in, get tortillas out). Please don't point me to a tortilla press, or I will be very sad.
posted by el io at 8:34 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

An "open faced quesadilla" is a goddamn tostada, you food wangs. And they are delicious.
posted by boo_radley at 8:37 PM on September 6, 2014 [20 favorites]

Nom! I'm hungry after reading that, particularly when I think of the glories of doing that with different kinds of flour tortillas (like the ancho chile or smokey cheddar they serve at my local burrito place).
posted by immlass at 8:42 PM on September 6, 2014

No te preocupes amigo mio! My candycorn quesadillas only look like the nauseating confections!
posted by batfish at 8:44 PM on September 6, 2014

A tostada is a pizza. There, I said it!
posted by blue_beetle at 8:49 PM on September 6, 2014 [2 favorites]

My life... is still the same.
posted by koeselitz at 8:59 PM on September 6, 2014 [20 favorites]

A tostada is a pizza. There, I said it!

...so then a quesadilla is a Chicago-style tostada?
posted by nebulawindphone at 9:02 PM on September 6, 2014 [5 favorites]

On behalf of Chicago, I humbly accept culinary custody of the quesadilla.
posted by Iridic at 9:14 PM on September 6, 2014 [6 favorites]

Some of those were good, but others were genuinely nauseating to look at, I can't imagine eating them.

...so then a quesadilla is a Chicago-style tostada?

More like a calzone, no?
posted by Dip Flash at 9:24 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

I couldn't agree more. And I would gladly pay obscene amounts of money for a tortilla maker that is equivalent to my breadmaker (put ingredients in, get tortillas out). Please don't point me to a tortilla press, or I will be very sad.

For some time I've been eyeing one of these things, but I don't know if they truly make it easier to make tortillas or if it's just a glorified press.
posted by zardoz at 9:27 PM on September 6, 2014

This is why I tend to keep tortillas in the house and not bread. I don't think it should really be that shocking that if you can put something between two slices of bread, you can in fact do the same thing with a flour tortilla. To me, this all sort of boils down to someone's shocked revelation that zomg a folded tortilla is JUST LIKE A SANDWICH.

Same. I know "wraps" have become kind of a First World thing. But there are very few sandwiches that don't work better with a torilla. Faster, if nothing else.
posted by Cyrano at 9:28 PM on September 6, 2014

One of my favorite Mexican chefs, Zarela Martinez, said that when patrons asked if she could serve them enchiladas "with the sauce on the side," she always said, "No," because of what the word itself specifies. Enchilada = in chile. I was surprised to learn this, but I appreciated her willingness to insist that words have meanings, even for foodies.

So I must insist: some of these look kind of tasty and some of them look fucking gross, but if they don't have cheese, they're not quesadillas.

I also feel, deep in my heart, that if it's in a crunchy shell it's not a goddamned taco, but that argument may be less defensible.
posted by Mothlight at 9:31 PM on September 6, 2014 [3 favorites]

It's probably harder to make a bad quesadilla than make a good one. Quesadillas and paninis are how you MacGyver a semi-respectable meal out of the bare assortment of random things in a college apartment's fridge and pantry.

I would gladly pay obscene amounts of money for a tortilla maker that is equivalent to my breadmaker (put ingredients in, get tortillas out). Please don't point me to a tortilla press, or I will be very sad.

What about an awesome tortilla press? I mean sure it costs just north of 3 grand, but they're mesmerizing to watch, I mean that's basically the entire reason to go to a Pancheros. Giant industrial press closes, one second of hissing steam, out pops a tortilla!
posted by jason_steakums at 9:33 PM on September 6, 2014

I also feel, deep in my heart, that if it's in a crunchy shell it's not a goddamned taco, but that argument may be less defensible.

You should probably leave open the possibility that a god could damn a crunchy shell if words have meaning.
posted by srboisvert at 9:41 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

You should probably leave open the possibility that a god could damn a crunchy shell if words have meaning.

Argh! Syntax!
posted by Mothlight at 9:51 PM on September 6, 2014

Once upon a time I worked at a chain Mexican restaurant in Minnesota (so you know it's inauthentic!) with some friends from high school. My first night there when they were showing me the ropes an order for a quesadilla with a no cheese mod came through. Before making it my friend came over to show me the ticket and we complained that wasn't even a quesadilla. At most it was a dilla.

Apparently we were rather loud, since afterwards one of the servers came in and said that the customers could here us in the dining room and the table that ordered the cheeseless quesadillas was very embarrassed.

My thoughts on this now are the same as they were then:

Good.
posted by ckape at 11:11 PM on September 6, 2014 [9 favorites]

My thoughts on this now are the same as they were then:

Good.

Yeah, you guys really showed those ignorant assholes.
posted by Edgewise at 1:01 AM on September 7, 2014 [4 favorites]

This list is missing the Five Pound Box of Money quesadilla. That would be life changing.
posted by Pudhoho at 2:59 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

I was going to say Buzzfeed was cadging ideas from AskMe but the article is actually from March. Time to bust out the last pack of horded tortillas from my freezer.
posted by romakimmy at 3:18 AM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

"I was going to say Buzzfeed was cadging ideas from AskMe but the article is actually from March"

Yeah it wasn't hot off the presses, but I had some tortillas that were heading towards stale, and was most taken by the good photos and links to the recipes. I shoulda checked Askme first!
posted by smoke at 3:32 AM on September 7, 2014

Quesadillas and paninis are how you MacGyver a semi-respectable meal out of the bare assortment of random things in a college apartment's fridge and pantry.

I'm a few years out of University by now but this still pretty much describes my life. My sandwich press was the only kitchen item I dragged across the world from NZ, totally worth it.
posted by shelleycat at 4:38 AM on September 7, 2014

In El Salvador, a quesadilla is a cake.
posted by empath at 5:03 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

A couple years ago I had a giant ham and Brie quesadilla at a MeFi meetup, but could only finish half of it. I took a bathroom break and when I returned the server had bussed my plate. I'm still sad about that.

(Quesadilla, you're breaking my heart...)
posted by Metroid Baby at 5:09 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

I love that you believe that Metroid Baby.

In Australia we know better than to leave quesadilla alone with MeFites, for even a minute.
posted by taff at 5:13 AM on September 7, 2014 [6 favorites]

I love that the butterfly quesadilla has instructions.
posted by ian1977 at 5:14 AM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

White people have too much time on their hands.
posted by GoLikeHellMachine at 5:20 AM on September 7, 2014

Yeah it wasn't hot off the presses,...

I see what you did there :)
posted by romakimmy at 5:21 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

White people have too much time on their hands.

How do you know all these quesadillas were made by white people?

I mean, yeah it's a safe bet but still
posted by ian1977 at 5:28 AM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

So people are making crepes with tortillas now?
posted by CheeseDigestsAll at 5:34 AM on September 7, 2014 [4 favorites]

White people have too much time on their hands.

Probably true as a generality, but I really don't think my grandmother is turning over in her grave or something that I'm making them routinely with peanut butter. Yeah, I have Mexican heritage, but I also live in the US and I've got all kinds of food available and I don't think she moved up here to disapprove of my taking advantage of that kind of opportunity. (She would disapprove heartily of my lack of cooking skills on the whole, but.)
posted by Sequence at 6:27 AM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

On behalf of Chicago, I humbly accept culinary custody of the quesadilla.

I will allow this. It would be good for you people to have ownership of a proper food item, since you seem to be confused about what "pizza" is.

Wait, you have that great hot dog. You're fine.
posted by middleclasstool at 6:45 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

To those who insist that English speakers should only use the word "quesadilla" in the exact same way that Mexican speakers of Spanish use the word:

I encourage you to look up the etymology of every word ever. Words get adopted and repurposed and mutated all the time. Every word you've ever spoken is a product of this process.

To those who insist on technical, absolutist definitions of words, definitions that divide the world along hard edges into "definitely this" and "definitely not-this"—those kinds of definitions are useful, but they aren't the only kind of definition that's useful. Some definitions have more nebulous boundaries—they're not lists of criteria, but constellations of traits that describe a Platonic ideal of a thing. This kind of definition is particularly common (and useful) when talking about food dishes (consider "soup", or "sandwich", or "salad").

</plateOfBeans>

I would eat almost all of these quesadillas. Some of them multiple times.
posted by escape from the potato planet at 7:49 AM on September 7, 2014 [3 favorites]

Words get adopted and repurposed and mutated all the time. Every word you've ever spoken is a product of this process.

And I say it's time we put an end to this nonsense!

Anyway, if there's nothing between the tortillas except a plate of beans, is it still a quesadilla?
posted by Faint of Butt at 8:20 AM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

And I would gladly pay obscene amounts of money for a tortilla maker that is equivalent to my breadmaker (put ingredients in, get tortillas out).

Behold what promises to be the Keurig of tortillas (and eventually other flatbreads).
posted by Hal Mumkin at 9:12 AM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

Behold what promises to be the Keurig of tortillas (and eventually other flatbreads).

I can't get over the fake wood paneling on the machine in the video! Of all the retro appliance designs to appropriate, they chose fake wood paneling? Luckily it looks like they've redesigned for the production model.
posted by jason_steakums at 9:53 AM on September 7, 2014

What I can't get over is the cost:

We’re still working out the details but we expect Flatev machines to cost $290 and each pod to cost about $0.90.

So, setting aside the whole three hundred dollar gadget thing, that's almost a buck a tortilla. Which, well, um.
posted by dersins at 12:37 PM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

Each pod is one tortilla? That's nuts. Not just the cost -- that's more packaging than tortilla.
posted by Dip Flash at 1:16 PM on September 7, 2014

Behold what promises to be the Keurig of tortillas (and eventually other flatbreads).

This is dumb.

You can buy a gigantic "greenware" not-teflon nonstick skillet from ross/kohls/etc for like $20. There's your maker.

You can buy like, a 100 pack of raw tortillas that are fucking amazing at costco for i dunno, $7? They also keep for a very, very long time in the fridge without going bad at all. Like, months.

And actually, you don't even need a spatula, you can flip them with your hands without getting hurt(or just flip the pan in the air if you're awesome). They take less than a minute to cook.


That said, the best quesadilla i've ever had was with the old, flaky, amazing trader joes "fresh" tortillas that would spoil in like 3 days. Anyone remember those? they were HUGE. I'd buy those, and slap them in one of these(which they didn't quite fit in) with a bunch of shredded tillamook medium cheddar.

Shake some tapatio on, perfection.

I've had home made tortillas, those costco tortillas, farmers market tortillas, central market seasoned fresh tortillas(which are amazing), and many good fresh tortillas at various restaurants from hole in the wall to fancy. NOTHING compares to those old buttery, oily, fluffy trader joes clouds.

Still bitter than they don't have them anymore. Also still bitter about my college roommate throwing away my quesadilla press because he was "tired of people not cleaning it".
posted by emptythought at 2:44 PM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

I'm slightly confused about what one does with a quesadilla press. It... just exists to take away the need for a spatula?
posted by Sequence at 4:10 PM on September 7, 2014

There's a place about a mile from me that used to be a decrepit multi-floored storage unit that has now been converted to a Mexican food production factory. I can't find their stuff in any of the mercados I frequent but they will willingly sell me stuff out of the factory back door (literally).

Their flour tortillas are a cross between a standard flour tortilla and a pita bread in thickness. Yes, they are exactly as tasty as they sound. And quesadillas made from them fill my largest skillet and I have yet to see a person eat two of them by themselves.

Queso quesadilla, sauteed onions, peppers, including jalapenos, on the bottom tortilla, cover with another one. Flip the whole chingadera when the bottom tortilla is just getting slightly browned. Repeat on the other side. Serve with either homemade pico de gallo or salsa cruda. If I drank, I'd probably be having many cans of Tecate while I ate this, loafing in the sun on the patio. That's a good four to five hour operation, IMO. YMMV.
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 4:22 PM on September 7, 2014

Are they from Peubla? Those thick flour tortillas sound a lot like pan árabe.
posted by strangely stunted trees at 5:31 PM on September 7, 2014 [1 favorite]

blue_beetle: "tosta"

Don't play it that way.
posted by boo_radley at 8:13 PM on September 7, 2014 [2 favorites]

It is super-duper easy to make tortillas. Everybody should make their own, as it only takes about fifteen minutes of work.
posted by koeselitz at 10:22 PM on September 7, 2014

I'm slightly confused about what one does with a quesadilla press. It... just exists to take away the need for a spatula?

It crisps the whole thing evenly, keeps it from burning by auto-controlling the temp, and burns off crisp delineations between the slices and the edges to prevent erm, "filling loss".

You get a really consistent very-good quesadilla. If you're decent at making them, and constantly involved you can probably make a better one "manually", but this is pretty "set it and forget it".

I loved mine. You could never be too inebriated to make a good quesadilla, and quesadillas are basically the ultimate inebriated snack. You get the 3 important qualities: Hot, greasy, and starchy.
posted by emptythought at 10:37 PM on September 7, 2014

I suggested to my British SO we make quesadillas as a way to clean out the fridge. He arrived, then asked me what it was.

"Like a grilled cheese, but with tortilla."

"What are tortillas again?"

So we're off to a good start. I explain what they are what needs to be chopped, cilantro, onion, some cheese, cumin, shredded veggies, etc. he does all of this happily then says "I think I'll make mine in the oven, it seems like it'll be less mess."

I say nothing. I leave him to make his own.

Hie decides not to use any of the spices or vegetables laid out. He puts shredded chicken, not cooked in anything just dry cooked chicken on top of retried beans and with cheddar cheese inbetween two flat, uncooked trortillas , bunches them up like the worst most half-assed burrito and sticks them in the oven.

He loves them but thinks they're a bit too spicy cause I insisted he use pepper jack.
posted by The Whelk at 4:45 PM on September 9, 2014 [3 favorites]

This post inspired Mr. Fig to get up really early on his day off and make me a blueberry breakfast quesadilla before I left for work yesterday. It was delicious, regardless of whether or not it's a true quesadilla. Thanks for this, smoke!
posted by Fig at 7:56 AM on September 10, 2014 [1 favorite]