Quesadillas with the Thermomix® are a staple in our kitchen when we need a warm meal on the table fast. The Thermomix® handles the cheese and peppers, the frying pan does the rest. The whole thing takes 20 minutes.
What makes our recipe stand out is the cheese blend. We combine 125 g Mozzarella with 200 g Cheddar. The Mozzarella stretches when you cut through it, the Cheddar brings the savoury depth. Using just one of them would give you either something too bland or too dry.
Quesadillas with the Thermomix®
Ingredients 0 / 8 ✓
- 125 g Mozzarella
- 200 g Cheddar
- 1 red pepper
- 1 yellow pepper
- 2 spring onions
- 20 g olive oil
- 8 tortilla wraps
- 240 g tinned sweetcorn drained
Instructions 0 / 5
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1
Chop the cheese.
Cut the cheese into pieces, place in the mixing bowl, chop for 8 seconds / speed 8, then set aside.
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2
Chop the peppers.
Wash the peppers, quarter them (removing the core), place in the mixing bowl and chop for 5 seconds / speed 5.
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3
Slice the spring onions.
Wash and trim the spring onions, then slice into rings.
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4
Cook the quesadillas.
Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Place one tortilla wrap in the pan and scatter over the peppers, spring onions, sweetcorn and cheese. Place a second tortilla on top, press down firmly and cook until crispy. Turn the quesadilla using a plate and cook the other side until crispy too.
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5
Serve.
Quarter the quesadilla and serve.
Tips:
- Be inventive with the fillings and use up what you have. Anything goes as long as it tastes good. Tomatoes, courgette, fried chicken, or whatever else is in your cupboard.
- Salsa and guacamole work well as dips.
Video
Nutrition per serving
Cheese in the Thermomix®: 8 seconds at speed 8 is the sweet spot
The 325 g of cheese is chopped in 8 seconds at speed 8. That is the sweet spot between coarsely chopped pieces (at 5 seconds) and powder that is too fine (at 10 seconds). Coarse pieces melt unevenly, while powder dries out too quickly in the pan. At 8 seconds you get pieces roughly the size of grated cheese, which melt evenly in the heat and fuse together.
Both cheeses go into the mixing bowl at the same time. The Mozzarella is softer, the Cheddar firmer, but at speed 8 that difference evens out. After chopping, tip the cheese into a bowl and set it aside.
Peppers straight into the mixing bowl
Wash both peppers (red and yellow), halve them and remove the core. Quarter them and add to the mixing bowl. 5 seconds at speed 5 gives you bite-sized pieces. No longer, or the peppers turn mushy and release too much juice.
The spring onions are sliced by hand into rings. The Thermomix® would chop them too finely, and we need the structure of the rings to give a textural contrast to the soft cheese.
In the pan: one tortilla wrap as the base
This is where the most common mistake happens. Many people put both tortilla wraps in the pan and try to fill them at the same time. That does not work. You start with just one wrap in the hot pan with 20 g of olive oil. Then spread the peppers, spring onions, sweetcorn and cheese on top. Only then does the second wrap go on.
Now press the quesadilla down firmly with a spatula. This compacts the filling and ensures the cheese bonds the two wraps together as it melts. Without that pressure the quesadilla stays loose, falls apart when you turn it and the cheese runs out.
After about 3 minutes, turn it using a plate. The underside should be golden and crispy. Cook the other side for a further 3 minutes until that is crispy too. The cheese will be melted by then and holds the filling together.
Use up leftovers instead of buying more
We regularly use quesadillas as a way to use up leftovers. Leftover fried chicken, courgette, tomatoes or cooked beans all work well. The key is to avoid watery ingredients. Fresh tomatoes are best left out, or sliced very thinly and patted dry. Otherwise the tortilla wrap goes soggy.
The tinned sweetcorn must be drained. If you tip it straight from the tin it brings too much liquid with it. The result is a wet filling rather than a compact one.
Salsa and guacamole as dips
Quesadillas can feel dry on their own. We always serve them with salsa or guacamole. The acidity of the tomatoes in the salsa cuts through the rich cheese and makes the whole thing feel lighter.
If you do not have time for dips, soured cream with a squeeze of lime juice works well too. The main thing is to have something sharp alongside.
Storing quesadillas
Straight from the pan, quesadillas are crispy. After 30 minutes they soften as moisture from the filling migrates into the dough. They do keep in the fridge, though. Wrap the quartered pieces in foil and they will keep for up to 2 days.
Goes well with: Sour cream and guacamole.
To reheat, use either a frying pan (no extra oil, medium heat, 2 minutes per side) or the oven at 180°C top and bottom heat for 10 minutes. You get back about 70 per cent of the crispiness. The microwave makes them rubbery and is not recommended.
More Mexican recipes: Thermomix® Salsa Dip, Chilli con Carne Thermomix®
