Week 3 - Cheesy Beef Quesadilla

Recipe Name: Cheesy Beef Quesadilla

This recipe is modified from the original recipe on Delish (https://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a51079/cheesy-beef-quesadillas-recipe/)

Ingredients:

1)    Ground beef (1 lb)

2)    Bell Pepper (1)

3)    Onion (1/2)

4)    Garlic (2 cloves)

5)    Cayenne (1 tbsp)

6)    Basil (1 tbsp)

7)    Parsley (1 tbsp)

8)    Salt (2 tbsp)

9)    Black Pepper (1 tbsp)

10) Cooking oil

11) Cheddar cheese

12) White tortilla

Steps:

1)    Cut the top of bottom of bell pepper. Remove seeds and core. Slice the remaining parts into thin strips. Sautee bell pepper in a skillet.

2)    Dice the onion and mince the garlic. Collect them in a large bowl.

3)    Make taco seasoning by mixing 1 tbsp of cayenne, basil, parsley, and salt.

4)    Add beef and taco seasoning into the large bowl containing onion and garlic. Mix them thoroughly in the bowl.

5)    Add cooking oil to skillet and heat. Add seasoned beef into the skillet and cook for 8-10 minutes or until beef turns brown. Add black pepper and more salt for flavor. Add sautéed bell pepper into the skillet toward the end of beef cooking. Put the cooked beef into a bowl.

6)    Add cooking oil to skillet and heat. Place a tortilla on top of the skillet and place cheese and beef on the tortilla. Fold the tortilla and fry both sides of tortilla until cheese is melted.

7)    Cut tortilla into wedges.

Process Photos:
During Step 1

Step 4 (with bell pepper)

Step 6

Incorporation of Weekly Technique

For this recipe, one will be tasked to slice the bell pepper. The head and bottom of bell pepper will first need to be cut, and it’s important to remove the seeds and core of bell pepper before proceeding to slice it.  Slicing bell pepper uses the same knife technique as presented in week 1 and is not overly difficult.

Reflection

This is my first time trying to make quesadilla ever, and the entire process took slightly longer than I expected. I started the whole process by cutting up vegetables, and I think I am getting a little better now at cutting things from all the practice at home and in class. One major modification from the online recipe is the pre-seasoning of beef. After discussing with some friends of mine, I decided to pre-season the beef with garlic, onion, and taco seasoning, and I believe this helped with the flavor at the end (better mixing). The taco seasoning was made in house from common household condiments. I ran into some difficulty making the quesadilla in the end since, at the first attempt, the quesadilla with two tortillas was too large and very difficult to flip in the skillet as a result. I then used only one tortilla and the flipping became much easier. Overall, the quesadilla came out great, and I have actually made more quesadilla than I could finish in a meal, so the remaining ones would become my meals later this week.

One thing that is worth mentioning: when actually making this dish, I mixed the bell pepper with the beef, garlic, onion, and seasoning. Mixing was okay, but when I make this dish next time, I would do it with steps outlined in the recipe (add pepper toward the end of cooking) so that the pepper won't be overcooked.