Corn Tortilla Quesadillas are so cheesy and satisfying. I have tips for making them perfectly and suggestions for what to put inside.
Yes, you absolutely can make delicious quesadillas with corn tortillas. I did the testing to figure out how to best get toasty outsides without the tortilla breaking, and warm and melty insides. I also have tips for filling and flipping the quesadilla so you don’t end up with a mess.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
Do You Heat Corn Tortillas Before Making Quesadillas?
If you’ve worked with corn tortillas before, you know that you have to heat the corn tortillas before filling them. Whether you’re making tacos or enchiladas, heating them first makes them easier to work with, and it also adds some toasty flavor. So, it makes sense to wonder if you need to cook both sides of a corn tortilla before making quesadillas.
I did a lot of research and tested a bunch of strategies. Here are my results:
1) In my research for creating this recipe, I came across some recipes that first lightly fry one side of the corn tortillas, and then build the quesadilla with the unfried sides on the outside. The idea is that both sides of each tortilla get warmed and lightly toasted. I tried this and it made very little difference to the finished quesadilla. In fact, if anything, I just found it tasted a bit heavier/greasier. So my answer is do not fry what will be the side of the corn tortillas that will be inside of the quesadilla.
2) I also tried toasting the tortillas in a dry pan, without oil, which is often what is done before making enchiladas. My thinking was that if frying the inner sides made the quesadilla heavier and greasier, warming the tortillas without oil might be a good bet. This resulted in the tortillas splitting a bit, and it didn’t improve the texture or the flavor of the finished product.
3) The other thing that I tried was to just simply make the corn tortilla quesadilla the way I make flour tortilla quesadillas (like this shrimp quesadilla and this steak quesadilla recipe). I built the quesadilla on a plate using an uncooked/unwarmed corn tortilla topped with fillings, and then topped with another corn tortilla. I slid that into heated oil in a skillet and it fried and toasted on the bottom. Then I flipped the whole quesadilla (see below for flipping tips) and cooked the other side. This was the best option.
This third quesadilla was the best version. The tortillas were easy to work with and the resulting quesadilla had a light and crispy texture. It was also the easiest one to make because you don’t have to pre-cook the tortillas. So it’s a win-win!
My conclusion is that unlike when making tacos or enchiladas, you do not have to pre-heat, pre-warm, or pre-fry the corn tortillas when making quesadillas. The frying that happens on the outer sides while the quesadilla is cooking is sufficient.
Fillings For Corn Tortilla Quesadillas
When you first start building your corn tortilla quesadilla, you’ll find that it’s more delicate to work with than a flour tortilla version. Corn tortillas can tear more easily and they have a less firm structure so they can flop more. Because of that, you want to keep your fillings to a minimum. Too many fillings, and it will get harder to flip them without everything spilling out and harder to eat them.
Here are my guidelines: 1 (optional) protein + cheese + 1 extra ingredient.
Protein
You have lots of options for the protein including shredded chicken from a rotisserie chicken or pulled pork. If you have leftover taco meat from the night before, that’s good too.
Cheese
I like using shredded cheese because it melts quicker, but a good melty cheese is the important part. Try Cheddar cheese, Colby jack, mozzarella, or pepper jack cheese.
Extras
For the extra ingredient, I use one other item that I enjoy having warm, like black beans. Olives, chopped bell pepper, or jalapeños are other good options.
Chopped tomatoes can go in the quesadilla, but they can make it damp inside. So it’s best to blot some of their liquid on paper towel before using.
I tend to not put avocado inside a quesadilla because I don’t like it warmed as much as I like it cool. If I have avocado on hand, I’d rather make guacamole to have as a dip for the quesadilla, rather than put it inside.
I also don’t often put things like green onions and cilantro inside a quesadilla either because they get a bit limp. I prefer to garnish on top with those. But they could go in, if you’d like.
Flipping Corn Tortilla Quesadillas
As mentioned, quesadillas made with corn tortillas are a bit more delicate than those made with flour tortillas, especially when you first get them in the pan and flip them. Once they’re fully-cooked, they’re fine. But until then, it’s good to be on the careful side, especially when flipping them over. So here’s what I do to avoid quesadilla disasters.
Build the quesadilla on a plate, starting with a corn tortilla, then some cheese, then your other fillings, more cheese, then another tortilla. Having cheese touching both tortillas and the other fillings makes it act like a glue once melted, which helps to hold things together when flipping.
You’ll heat some oil in your skillet and spread it around. Then carefully slide your quesadilla from the plate into the skillet. Cook it on the first side.
Then, use a wide spatula like this (an egg/pancake flipper) to get under the quesadilla and slide it back onto the plate. Then invert another plate overtop of the quesadilla. Flip the plates over. Slide the quesadilla back into the skillet.
Note that some people don’t use the spatula at all for this flipping step. Instead, they invert a plate over the quesadilla right in the skillet, and then flip it all over so that the quesadilla is on the plate, then invert another plate over that. You get the idea. I find this to be more dangerous since there’s hot oil in the skillet, and your arm ends up near the skillet. I prefer to use the spatula.
When To Add The Oil
Measure 2 teaspoons of oil into the skillet before you add the quesadilla. Spread the oil around and then slide in that quesadilla. Immediately, use a brush to dip into any oil around the edges, and brush that onto the top tortilla.
If there isn’t excess oil, or if you don’t have a brush, do one of the following:
- Spray the top of the quesadilla with cooking spray.
- When you remove the quesadilla from the skillet in preparation of flipping it, add more oil to the skillet. Then flip the quesadilla and slide it into the skillet where it will then get contact with the oil.
Serving Quesadillas
If I’m just making this as a snack to share, I simply cut the quesadilla into quarters and enjoy. But if I’m having it for a meal, I like to serve it with some extras.
Sour cream, guacamole, salsa or pico de gallo, green onions, and cilantro are all delicious options to dip into or to top your corn tortilla quesadilla. This Black Bean and Corn Salsa makes an excellent side for this as well.
More Recipes You’ll Love
If you love this corn tortilla quesadilla recipe, try these recipes for tacos, fajitas, and more!
Corn Tortilla Quesadillas Recipe
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 6 minutes
- Total Time: 8 minutes
- Yield: 1 serving 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
DESCRIPTION
Serve the quesadillas with your favorite dips and toppings, like sour cream, guacamole, salsa, green onions, and cilantro.
Ingredients
- 2 (6-in.) soft corn tortillas
- 1/3 cup cooked shredded chicken, pork, or beef
- 1/3 cup shredded cheese
- 2 Tbsp. black beans (or a chopped veggie)
- 2 tsp. cooking oil
Instructions
- Put one corn tortilla on a plate and top it with half of the cheese. Top that with meat, then the beans, then the other half of the cheese. Top with other tortilla.
- Heat the oil in a medium non-stick skillet over medium heat. Spread the oil around and then slide the quesadilla from the plate into the skillet. Brush any excess oil onto the top tortilla.
- Cook until the bottom tortilla is crisp and brown underneath, 2-3 minutes. Flip (it is best to use a spatula to slide the quesadilla onto a plate, invert another plate over top, flip the plates over, then slide the quesadilla back into skillet).
- Cook until brown and crisp on the bottom and the cheese is melted 2-3 minutes more, adjusting the temperature lower if the tortilla is browning too much before the cheese melts.
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