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Beef Quesadillas are a simple, easy, and savory, loaded with steak and cheese, fresh peppers, onions, and a savory blend of spices! This easy beef quesadilla recipe uses simple ingredients and comes together in just under 20 minutes for a fun dinner your family will love.
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Favorite Recipe for Quesadillas
My family loves quesadilla night, and once you try this beef quesadillas recipe, it is so easy to see why! Thin and juicy cuts of steak layered over cheese, filled with other classic ingredients - including a homemade quesadilla sauce- between two fluffy tortillas. These steak quesadillas are golden on the outside and softly cheesy on the inside!
There are two secret ingredients- my delicious butter garlic sauce, spread on the outside of the tortillas with parmesan cheese, and my creamy, tangy quesadilla sauce for dipping. These two special ingredients make these beef quesadillas seriously tasty!
The best part about this beef quesadilla recipe is how it can be served either as a savory main course for dinner, or as the perfect appetizer for a party. This is the perfect dish to make using leftover steak, or even ground beef! Enjoy!
Beef Quesadillas FAQs
Quesadillas make the perfect main course, side dish, or appetizer. They are a great combination with classic toppings like refried beans, lettuce, salsa, sour cream, and guacamole. You can also serve quesadillas with Mexican style slaw, tortilla soup, Mexican street corn, cilantro-lime rice, or savory Birria sauce.
Quesadillas are best when made with shredded cheese able to melt into the rest of the quesadilla mixture. Try using Monterey jack, pepper jack, or Colby jack. You can also add parmesan cheese to the outside of the tortilla before searing it. For an over-the-top experience, try using Mexican melting cheese like Oaxaca or Chihuahua cheese!
To freeze cooked quesadillas, first allow them to come to room temperature. Wrap the quesadillas in plastic wrap and place in an airtight, sealed container (this is perfect for individual servings!). Date and label the outside of the container, and keep the in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Beef Quesadilla Ingredients
- Olive oil
- Bell peppers
- Onions
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Pepper
- Flour tortillas - corn tortillas will also work, for gluten-free
- Cooked beef or steak - try one of my steak dinner ideas or even leftover taco meat
- Shredded cheese
- garlic butter (to brush over tortillas)
- Parmesan cheese
- Steak seasoning
How to Make Beef Quesadillas
- Add olive oil to a skillet on the stove over medium heat. Once hot, add peppers and onions and season with garlic powder. Cook for 5 minutes, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Saute until golden brown.
- Mix melted butter, chopped parsley, and minced garlic together to make garlic butter. Spread the garlic butter on one side of a tortilla, then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
- Place the tortilla buttered side down in a skillet over medium heat. Top with cooked steak, shredded cheese, peppers and onions, and steak seasoning. Cover with a second tortilla, then spread with garlic butter and Parmesan.
- Carefully flip the quesadilla to cook the opposite side. Cook another 5-8 minutes, until the cheese melts and the tortilla is golden-brown and crisp. Enjoy!
Beef Quesadilla Recipe Tips
- Try not to overstuff the tortillas while making quesadillas. Leave a little room around the edge as the ingredients will expand and the tortilla will shrink with the heat. This will make it easier for flipping!
- If your quesadillas are cooking too quickly (and starting to burn), turn down the heat! Flour tortillas need to be toasted over medium heat, don’t brown them too quickly.
- Garlic butter and Parmesan makes a fantastic pairing for quesadillas, but if you’re short on time or ingredients you can also use olive oil.
Best Type of Beef for Quesadillas
If you are making the beef completely from scratch for quesadillas and have no leftovers, use my Carne Asada recipe for amazing flavor or try using my Reverse Sear Steak recipe if you like to marinate your steak before cooking it.
But, beef quesadillas are so versatile, you can use whatever type of beef you have on hand (or better yet, leftovers) to make them. I like to use bite-sized pieces of juicy sirloin, chuck, New York Strip, or classic ribeye!
This is also an excellent recipe to use ground beef in to make cheesy ground beef quesadillas- they are so good! Try making beef quesadillas using leftovers from:
Beef Quesadillas Sauce
My creamy and tangy quesadilla sauce is the perfect pairing for savory steak quesadillas! This sauce uses simple ingredients and can be whipped up in no time! Here's what you will need:
- Mayonnaise
- Sour cream
- Pickled jalapeno juice
- Ground cumin
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Chili powder
- Add all ingredients to a bowl.
- Mix thoroughly until completely combined.
- Serve as a dip for quesadillas or add to a squeeze bottle to serve over-top, and enjoy!
How to Reheat Quesadillas
When I make beef quesadillas, I tend to make quite a few! This makes them perfect for reheating and enjoying throughout the week. Cooked and assembled beef quesadillas are best when left in the fridge, covered, for up 4 days. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Beef quesadillas can be reheated in the microwave, stove, or try the air fryer!
- Reheat on the stove over low-medium heat until heated through and crisped, in the microwave in 30 second intervals, or in the air fryer at 350°F for 3-5 minutes.
- Keep in mind, the quesadillas have already been toasted, so it is important to monitor the heat levels because they will continue to brown as they reheat.
What to Serve with Quesadillas
When I make my beef quesadillas, I like to cut them into triangles, layer them on a big platter, and top them with all of the classics- sour cream, lettuce, salsa, guacamole, and of course my delicious quesadilla sauce.
Here are some more ideas of what to serve with beef quesadillas:
- Elote Corn (Mexican Street Corn)
- Mango Peach Salsa
- Cilantro Lime Rice
- Street Corn Dip
- Black-Eyed Pea Salad
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Beef Quesadillas Recipe
Equipment
- 1 Skillet
Ingredients
Sauteed Peppers and Onions
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 bell peppers any kind - we used green peppers
- 2 medium onions sliced - use yellow or white onions, not red
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Steak Quesadillas
- 2 flour tortillas per quesadilla; see notes for gluten-free options
- 2 cups cooked beef or sliced steak
- 2 cups shredded cheese
- 4 Tablespoons garlic butter approximate amount; to brush over the tortillas
- 1 Tablespoon parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon steak seasoning
Quesadilla Sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ cup sour cream Greek yogurt may also be used
- 3 Tablespoons pickled jalapeno juice
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
Instructions
- Add olive oil to a skillet on the stove over medium heat. Once hot, add peppers and onions and season with garlic powder. Cook for 5 minutes, then season with salt and pepper to taste. Saute until golden brown.
- Mix melted butter, chopped parsley, and minced garlic together to make garlic butter. Spread the garlic butter on one side of a tortilla, then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Place the tortilla buttered side down in a skillet over medium heat. Top with cooked steak, shredded cheese, peppers and onions, and steak seasoning.
- Cover with a second tortilla, then spread with garlic butter and Parmesan. Carefully flip the quesadilla to cook the opposite side.
- Cook another 5-8 minutes, until the cheese melts and the tortilla is golden-brown and crisp. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Gluten-free quesadillas: You can use corn or almond flour tortillas as gluten-free alternatives. You may need to cook slowly on lower heat if using gluten-free tortillas, as they tend to burn or fall apart more quickly. To more easily melt the cheese and heat the quesadillas through, place a lid over the quesadillas while they cook.
- Try not to overstuff the tortillas while making quesadillas. Leave a little room around the edge as the ingredients will expand and the tortilla will shrink with the heat. This will make it easier for flipping!
- Leftover steak is great for making quesadillas, but if you are making them completely from scratch I like to use my Carne Asada recipe for amazing flavor, or try using my Reverse Sear Ribeye recipe if you like to marinate your steak before cooking it.
- If your quesadillas are cooking too quickly (and starting to burn), turn down the heat! Flour tortillas need to be toasted over medium heat, don’t brown them too quickly.
- Garlic butter makes a fantastic pairing for pan-frying quesadillas, but if you’re short on time or ingredients you can also use olive oil.
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