• Chipotle Beef Quesadillas

  Filed under Main Dishes - Beef
  Mar 23
  I have a storage problem. I guess the problem is that I have a small-ish freezer, and not enough room. And now that spring is here, (even though it is snowing outside here!), I’ve been wanting to make ice cream. But my freezer is too full – I can’t even fit the ice cream bowl in the freezer! So a little while back, I pulled everything out of the freezer, threw away anything that looked like it had been in there too long, and I made an inventory of my freezer contents. And ever since then, I’ve been working on using up what I had.

  One item in my freezer was a mystery steak. Now I freeze meat, chicken, and pork quite often, but for some reason, I’m not a big fan of just cooking up a steak from the freezer. I usually have to make it into something else because I don’t like a steak from the freezer like I like a fresh steak. So I went looking for a recipe.

  I came across this quesadilla recipe that originally called for pork chops, but I thought my steak would work perfectly in it. And I was right! This was a fast dinner, filled with flavor. And another great thing about this recipe is that it is inexpensive – according to the magazine, the national average for 4 servings is only $8.76. And I’m another step closer to making room for my ice cream maker!

  Chipotle Beef Quesadillas
  adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray March 2009

  1 pound steak
  salt and pepper
  3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  1/2 onion, chopped
  1 cup canned diced tomatoes
  3 cloves garlic, chopped
  1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, finely chopped
  1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  1/2 cup chopped cilantro, plus leaves for garnish
  8 medium flour tortillas
  1 cup shredded monterey jack cheese

  Preheat the oven to 350°. Season the steak with salt and pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the steak and cook until browned, 4 minutes on each side. Transfer to a cutting board and let cool; cut into thin strips.
  
  In the same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and their juice, the garlic, chipotle and cumin and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until the mixture thickens, about 3 minutes; stir in the pork and chopped cilantro.

  Heat a grill pan over medium heat. Brush one side of each tortilla with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Working in batches, cook the tortillas oiled side down until grill marks form, 1 to 2 minutes.

  Arrange 4 tortillas grilled side down on a baking sheet. Divide the steak mixture among the tortillas and sprinkle with the cheese. Top with the remaining tortillas, grilled side up. Bake until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes. Cut into wedges and top with the cilantro leaves.

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  26 Comments

26 Responses to “Chipotle Beef Quesadillas”

1. 

   Michelle said on March 23rd, 2009 at 6:10 pm

   You really can’t go wrong with quesadillas! They look delicious.

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2. 

   Mama Goose said on March 23rd, 2009 at 6:53 pm

   I’m the same way with frozen beef! This looks yummy. Thanks!

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3. 

   Sara said on March 23rd, 2009 at 6:59 pm

   This sounds really good! My freezer is always over crowded too, I need to work on using what’s in there.

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4. 

   Lynda said on March 23rd, 2009 at 7:18 pm

   These look delicious! Quesadillas are so easy and make a wonderful meal.

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5. 

   Dawn said on March 23rd, 2009 at 7:34 pm

   I have been thinking about buying an ice cream maker for a while now. They really aren’t that expensive (I always thought they were). Oh summer will be good if I buy one! LOL
   I am bad about over-stuffing my freezer too. At least you used something from it and it came out perfect!

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6. 

   Jamie @ Baldwin Bungalow said on March 23rd, 2009 at 8:00 pm

   I might try this! I have steak in my freezer that I was considering thawing this week, too! Thanks!

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7. 

   Megan said on March 23rd, 2009 at 8:10 pm

   Using up the steak to make room for the ice cream? I like the way you think!

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8. 

   Erin said on March 23rd, 2009 at 9:16 pm

   These look delicious! I love quesadillas!

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9. 

   Maria said on March 23rd, 2009 at 9:28 pm

   We love quesadillas for dinner. They are so easy and there is so much you can do with them! I have two freezers and both are full, oops!

   Question-you were on Ch. 5, right? how was it. I am going on next week. Any tips?

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10. 

    Rosa's Yummy Yums said on March 23rd, 2009 at 9:54 pm

    A wonderful dish! Delicious!

    Cheers,

    Rosa

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11. 

    Cathy - wheresmydamnanswer said on March 23rd, 2009 at 10:28 pm

    That is my idea of a perfect meal!!!

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12. 

    cindy* said on March 23rd, 2009 at 10:44 pm

    i have the same freezer issues…i dream of a chest freeze (yes, that is the stuff of my dreams).

    i love to make quesadillas for dinner.

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13. 

    Sophie said on March 23rd, 2009 at 10:57 pm

    Sounds like a yummy affordable and quick meal, I have the same mystery meat problem . I’ll have to try this the next time I run into one, so long as it isn’t too ancient ;0).

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14. 

    Megan said on March 24th, 2009 at 1:10 am

    I love chipotle and I have a pork steak in my freezer that needs using up. Great idea!

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15. 

    Psychgrad said on March 24th, 2009 at 3:17 am

    I don’t think I could survive without an extra freezer. It’s an apartment-sized one (small to midsized).

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16. 

    Elyse said on March 24th, 2009 at 4:07 am

    What a great use for frozen steak! These look totally delicious. I love that you have an inventory for your freezer; I need to follow your lead and do the same!

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17. 

    kat said on March 24th, 2009 at 2:05 pm

    This sounds like a great quesadilla. We have a freezer in the basement & things just seem to get lost in the bottom of it

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18. 

    Ingrid said on March 24th, 2009 at 2:36 pm

    LOL, mystery meat! I’m not crazy about red meat fresh or frozen.

    At Sam’s we recently purchased a chest cooler and LOVE it. We probably didn’t need one as big as the one we bought but this way we have plenty of space. I noticed that I’m not forgetting about things that I’ve put in there as nothing’s buried anymore.
    ~ingrid

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19. 

    Resveritol said on March 24th, 2009 at 2:55 pm

    I was never a fan of quesadillas until I made them myself. Delish! You recipe looks great, I’m going to give it a try.

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20. 

    Grace said on March 24th, 2009 at 9:15 pm

    you can do so many things with kiss-a-dillahs, and your beef filling sounds fabulous. bravo!

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21. 

    Spryte said on March 25th, 2009 at 4:47 pm

    YUM!!!! I love the versatility of quesadillas and chipotle is one of my favorite flavors!!

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22. 

    Bamboo said on March 26th, 2009 at 6:20 am

    I have been looking for something out of the usual to prepare and your chipotle beef quesadillas is a great idea.

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23. 

    Brilynn said on March 30th, 2009 at 2:47 pm

    I’ve been on a bit of a quesadilla kick lately, you can pretty much use anything in them, they’re great!

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24. 

    glamah16 said on March 30th, 2009 at 6:28 pm

    I like fresh steaks too. ut great use of the frozen.

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25. 

    Andrew & Carlene Wood said on March 31st, 2009 at 1:40 am

    I tried these and me and my husband think that they almost taste identical to Goodwood BBq’s smoked chicken quasadillas!! excellent!!

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26. 

    Andrew & Carlene Wood said on March 31st, 2009 at 1:40 am

    I tried these and me and my husband think that they almost taste identical to Goodwood BBq’s smoked chicken quasadillas!! excellent!!

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