Dish guides
What is a quesadilla?
A quesadilla is a tortilla folded around a filling and cooked on a griddle (comal) until hot, or fried until crisp. In most of Mexico the tortilla is corn and the filling includes stringy Oaxaca cheese, often with squash blossoms, mushrooms or meat. Outside Mexico it usually means a flour tortilla with melted cheese, cut into wedges.
- At a glance
- Quesadilla
- A folded corn or flour tortilla filled with cheese or other fillings and cooked on a griddle.
- Pronunciation
- Say it like keh-sah-DEE-yah · IPA /kesaˈðiʝa/
- Also written as
- quesadillas, quesadilla de queso, quesadilla con queso, quesadilla de flor de calabaza, quesadilla de huitlacoche, quesadilla de tinga, quesadillas fritas, chicken quesadilla
What’s in it
Core ingredients
- tortilla, usually corn in central and southern Mexico
- Oaxaca cheese (quesillo) or another melting cheese
Often added
- squash blossoms (flor de calabaza)
- huitlacoche (corn smut, a delicacy)
- mushrooms
- chicken tinga
- chicharrón prensado (pressed pork crackling)
- potato with chorizo
- epazote leaves
- flour tortilla (northern Mexico and abroad)
- lard or oil for frying (quesadillas fritas)
- salsa, cream and guacamole
Allergens
| Allergen | How likely |
|---|---|
| Dairy | Typically contains |
| Gluten | Often contains |
| Eggs | Rarely contains |
| Soy | Rarely contains |
| Peanuts | Rarely contains |
| Tree nuts | Rarely contains |
| Sesame | Rarely contains |
| Shellfish | Rarely contains |
| Fish | Rarely contains |
| Diet | Suitable? |
|---|---|
| Vegetarian | Depends — Cheese, squash-blossom, mushroom and huitlacoche quesadillas contain no meat, but fried ones may be cooked in lard, griddles are shared with meat and the cheese may be made with animal rennet; ask. |
| Vegan | Depends — Only a cheese-free quesadilla with a vegetable filling, cooked in oil rather than lard; possible at some stalls, but not the norm. |
| Pescatarian | Depends — Same as vegetarian; shrimp or fish quesadillas exist on the coasts. |
| Halal | Depends — Cheese or vegetable fillings contain no meat, but pork fillings, lard and shared griddles are common, and nothing is certified at ordinary stalls. |
| Kosher | No |
| Gluten-free | Depends — Corn tortillas are naturally gluten-free, but flour tortillas are standard in northern Mexico and abroad. Ask "¿de maíz o de harina?" and check for a shared griddle. |
Allergen and calorie details are AI estimates based on the menu and typical recipes. They can be incomplete — if you have a serious allergy, always check with the staff.
Quesadillas in Mexico
In central and southern Mexico a quesadilla is usually made from fresh corn masa or a corn tortilla, warmed on a comal, filled and folded in half. The classic cheese is Oaxaca cheese (quesillo), which melts into long strings. Popular fillings include flor de calabaza (squash blossoms), huitlacoche (a corn fungus prized as a delicacy), mushrooms, chicken tinga, chicharrón prensado and potato with chorizo. Quesadillas fritas are sealed and deep-fried until golden, sometimes in lard.
In Mexico City, the name doesn't guarantee cheese: a quesadilla de champiñones may come without any unless you ask con queso. In Oaxaca, a large folded corn tortilla filled with cheese is usually called an empanada.
On menus outside Mexico
In the United States and Europe, a quesadilla is usually a large flour tortilla with melted cheese such as Monterey Jack or cheddar, often with chicken or beef, grilled and cut into wedges, with sour cream, salsa and guacamole on the side. In Mexico that two-tortilla, ham-and-cheese version is called a sincronizada, and al pastor with cheese in a flour tortilla is a gringa.
Both styles are good; they're just different dishes. On a menu in Mexico, quesadillas usually sit among the antojitos (snacks), priced by the piece. See the Mexico menu guide for more words.
How to order it
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Una quesadilla de flor de calabaza con queso, por favor. | A squash-blossom quesadilla with cheese, please. |
| ¿La tortilla es de maíz o de harina? | Is the tortilla corn or flour? |
| ¿La fríen con manteca de puerco? | Is it fried in pork lard? |
Not to be confused with
- Sincronizada — Ham and cheese between two flour tortillas, grilled and cut into wedges; often called a quesadilla outside Mexico.
- Gringa — Al pastor pork with cheese in a flour tortilla, sold at taquerías.
- Tlayuda — A much larger, crisp Oaxacan tortilla spread with beans and pork lard and topped with cheese and meat.
Frequently asked questions
Do quesadillas always have cheese?
Not in Mexico City. There, a quesadilla is simply a folded, filled tortilla, and cheese is an extra you request with "con queso". In most of the rest of Mexico and almost everywhere abroad, cheese is included by default. If you avoid dairy, say "sin queso" and check that no cream is added on top.
Are quesadillas gluten free?
It depends on the tortilla. Corn tortillas, standard in central and southern Mexico, are naturally gluten-free. Flour tortillas, common in northern Mexico and almost universal in the United States and Europe, contain wheat. Ask "¿de maíz o de harina?" (corn or flour?) and remember that griddles are shared.
What is huitlacoche?
Huitlacoche is a fungus that grows on ears of corn, turning the kernels into soft, dark grey swellings. In Mexico it's eaten as a delicacy, with an earthy, mushroom-like flavour, and it's one of the classic quesadilla fillings during the rainy season. It's sometimes translated as corn smut or corn truffle.
How do you pronounce quesadilla?
Say keh-sah-DEE-yah, with the stress on DEE: in IPA, [kesaˈðiʝa]. The double l sounds like the y in "yes" in most of Mexico, and the d is soft. The word comes from queso, cheese, and means something like "little cheesy thing".
