Corn Quesadilla

Crisp tortillas and melting cheese collide with spicy elote corn dip on this hearty, flavorful Corn Quesadilla. And one of the best half? From begin to end, these come collectively in simply 10 minutes.

horizontal photo of elote quesadillas on wooden board with black and white striped towel

This corn quesadilla recipe was closely impressed by our beloved elote dip, a dish made with roasted corn in a creamy sauce of spicy mayonnaise, lime, and cotija cheese. Whether or not we eat it with a spoon or dip into it with tortilla chips, it’s been a long-time favourite snack in our home. Given our love of elote and quesadillas, it was solely a matter of time till I attempted combining the 2.

My boys and I are long-time followers of all issues quesadilla. In actual fact, quesadillas have been one of many first meals I taught my boys the right way to cook dinner. They’re easy, straightforward to make, and supply an effective way to make use of up leftovers.

Unsurprisingly, my boys cherished this recipe from the primary chew. At this level, I do know that I have to multiply this recipe each time I make it. Who knew that including crispy, golden tortillas and gooey melted cheese to our beloved elote dip would make it even higher? I suppose it was a secure guess. These corn quesadillas are an effective way to make use of up any leftover dip (when and if we’re fortunate sufficient to have leftovers).

stacked quesadillas on board, filled with corn

Elements and Substitutions

Tortillas – I desire flour tortillas for the flavour, personally. And, you’ll discover that they maintain collectively higher than corn tortillas whenever you crisp them.

Cheese – For the quesadilla, Monterey jack or pepper jack are my go-to cheeses, as a result of they soften effectively. For the corn filling, I like to make use of cotija. It’s the crumbly, conventional alternative for elote.

Corn – Contemporary, frozen, or canned corn works. I desire to make use of contemporary corn, when it’s in season.

Mayo – Only a teaspoon of mayonnaise provides the elote filling a creamy base that’s wealthy and barely tangy.

Onion – I desire purple onion, for its milder taste when served uncooked. You’ll be able to swap in white or yellow onion although with out subject.

Lime Juice – Don’t skip the lime juice. It helps reduce by means of the richness with contemporary acidity, which makes the elote filling really feel much less heavy.

Chili Powder – For a touch of spice, I embody some chili powder. However, in case you are spice delicate, you’ll be able to omit this ingredient.

Cilantro – Cilantro is a traditional ingredient in elote and my boys and I like the refreshing taste right here. Be at liberty to skip it, or sub parsley, if cilantro doesn’t thrill you.

Kosher Salt – Only a pinch, and also you’re going to regulate it to style. Actually, style the filling, and modify it right here.

Butter – Except in any other case specified, I all the time use salted butter.

Notes on Gear

Rotary grater. I sometimes don’t advocate issues I haven’t owned for a very good lengthy whereas, however this rotary grater has been a dream to work with over the previous yr. It chews by means of all of our cheeses with ease.
Chef’s knife
Reducing board
Spatula or turner
Large nonstick skillet. I’ve been by means of about 1,000,000 skillets (effectively, perhaps not fairly that many). For the previous a number of years that is the precise pan I’ve used for getting a quesadilla crisp with out something sticking.

ingredients for elote dip in stainless mixing bowl

The right way to Make a Corn Quesadilla

Mixing the Elote: To start out, you’ll mix the corn, onion, mayonnaise, chili powder, cotija, cilantro, salt, and contemporary lime juice in a small bowl. Give it a stir to combine it up after which style the combination. You’re solely including a pinch of salt and it would want extra, so modify it as wanted after which let it relaxation for a minute.

Buttering the Tortilla: At this stage, I’ll evenly butter one aspect of a tortilla and put aside till wanted. Then, we’re going to grate the cheese, for those who aren’t utilizing a pre-shredded selection.

Toasting the Tortilla: I place the buttered tortilla within the scorching pan, butter-side down.

Constructing the Quesadilla: Layer half of the cheese over one half of the tortilla. Then, prime the cheese with the elote filling, and sprinkle the remaining cheese on prime.

Folding the Tortilla: As soon as all of the filling components have been added, you’ll need to fold the tortilla over on itself and let cook dinner for 2-3 minutes, till the cheese has begun to soften and the underside tortilla has browned.

cooked quesadilla with corn on the stove

Flipping and Ending: I fastidiously flip the quesadilla over within the pan, and let the second aspect cook dinner, till crispy. The cheese needs to be totally melted by the point each side end cooking.

Serving: As soon as all of the cheese has melted and the tortilla is crisp across the edges, I switch the quesadilla to a reducing board and slice it into wedges.

Professional Tip

You’ll discover that “medium warmth” means one thing completely different on each single range. Fuel ranges are inclined to run hotter and reply shortly to modifications, whereas electrical stovetops take longer to warmth and funky. For this reason I stress the significance of temperature management. You need it scorching, so that you just get a crispy brown exterior. However, an excessive amount of warmth will char the skin of the tortilla earlier than the cheese has an opportunity to soften.

Warming the Pan – If you’re preheating a skillet, give it longer than you suppose. It could possibly take a full minute or two to heat the metallic totally. If the meals doesn’t sizzle whenever you add it to the pan, then you definately didn’t wait lengthy sufficient.

Go Simple on the Filling – To be sure that your quesadilla cooks evenly, don’t overfill the tortilla. I do know, I do know. It’s tempting to essentially pile it up in there. However, you’ll have higher outcomes with a number of, smaller quesadillas.

Let It Relaxation – Wait only a minute or so for the quesadillas to chill earlier than digging in. You’ll nonetheless get your cheese pull. However, giving it a little bit time helps the components keep within the quesadilla when slicing and consuming it.

Serving Strategies

I prefer to serve my quesadillas with some Pico de Gallo or heat Queso Dip and an enormous ol’ pile of tortilla chips. And if it’s time for dinner, we’ll make it a full meal with a skillet of Chipotle Lime Rice and perhaps a salad alongside the quesadillas.

Corn quesadillas stacked vertically on board

Make Forward & Storage

Make Forward: I don’t advocate making this quesadilla prematurely. The crunchiness of the tortilla can be misplaced, and most of the components will begin to run when reheated.

The right way to Retailer: Leftover quesadillas will be saved in an hermetic container or Ziploc within the fridge for 1-3 days.

The right way to Reheat: I normally reheat quesadillas in a nonstick skillet on medium warmth, so as to add among the misplaced crispiness again to the tortillas.

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Ceaselessly Requested Questions

Do quesadillas actually must be buttered?

Pay attention, you may make a boring quesadilla with none butter. The tortilla will toast a little bit and the cheese will nonetheless soften. However, you’ll not get these superb golden, crispy edges with out butter. And it gained’t style nearly as good, both. So, please don’t skip the butter.

Why is my quesadilla falling aside

Normally this can be a results of overfilling the quesadilla, or making an attempt to flip it earlier than the cheese has melted. Mastering warmth administration will repair the latter, and limiting the whole thickness to about 3/4 of an inch will assist with the previous.

What if the tortilla is beginning to brown, however the cheese isn’t melting but?

If the tortilla is starting to brown however the cheese hasn’t melted but, that’s a matter of warmth administration. Cut back the warmth to medium-low and canopy the skillet with a lid for a few minute. You’ll need to maintain an in depth eye on the quesadilla, to maintain it from steaming quite than crisping because the cheese melts.

Mix the corn, onion, mayonnaise, chili powder, cotija, cilantro, salt, and lime juice in a small bowl and stir to mix. Style the combination and modify the salt, as desired. Put aside. Evenly butter one aspect of the tortilla and put aside.
Set a non-stick pan on the range over medium-low warmth. Place the buttered tortilla within the empty skillet, butter aspect down. Layer half of the cheese over one half of the tortilla, prime the cheese with the corn combination, after which sprinkle the remaining cheese over the corn. Fold the tortilla over on itself.
Permit the quesadilla to cook dinner for 2-3 minutes. When the cheese has begun to soften and the underside tortilla is browning barely, flip the folded quesadilla over alongside the folded edge to cook dinner the opposite aspect.
Proceed to cook dinner till all of the cheese is melted and the tortilla is crisp across the edges. Utilizing a spatula, switch the quesadilla again to a reducing board and reduce into wedges whereas it’s scorching, and serve heat.