Carne Asada Quesadilla

The most time consuming thing in this recipe is making the caramelized onions. They take a lot of patience, but they yield a big reward. I love caramelized onions and will typically order a dish if it incorporates them because they are so delicious. They give such a deep flavor with a hint of sweetness, so whats not to like? The cooking process….that is the only downside. You can make this recipe much faster if you want to not fully caramelize them but just cook them to get a bit soft – it will still be delicious. Other than the onions, the dish comes together pretty quick and produces great results that the entire crew will love. The steak is tender with a subtle smokey, lime flavor from the marinade. Then you’ve got the sweetness from the onions and the cheesy goodness all wrapped in to one crispy tortilla. Because these are stuffed rather full, to flatten them a bit and get a nice golden outside, I used another pan that I set on top of the quesadilla while it was cooking. This added weight that smashed the quesadilla to get that great crispy crunch and all the melty cheese! I highly recommend it!

1lb Skirt Steak
1 Large Yellow Onion, Sliced
1 Can Black Beans, drained and rinsed
4-6 Cups Shredded Mexican Blend Cheese
4 Large Flour Tortillas
2 Limes
1 Package Frontera Simmer Sauce – I used Chipotle + Garlic
Salt
Pepper
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
Optional: Sour Cream, Hot Sauce, Jalapeños
Makes: 4 Quesadillas
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 50 Minutes
Total Time: 60 Minutes

To Make:

Pat dry the steak and generously salt and pepper on both sides.
Place the steak in a shallow dish and squeeze the juice from both limes and add in the Frontera sauce. Combine so the steak is covered and set aside to marinade while you cook the onions.
Heat a large pan over medium heat and add in the olive oil.
Add in the onions and cook until the are caramelized – cook for about 10-15 minutes on medium heat, then reduce to low heat and continue cooking for another 15 minutes.
Once the onions are finished cooking, remove them from a pan and set aside.
Using the same pan, increase the heat to medium-high heat and add the steak and all the sauce it was marinating in.
Cook the steaks on both sides until the internal temperature reaches your desired result. I prefer mine Medium Rare so I took mine off the heat around 125 degrees internally.
Remove the steaks and allow them to rest for 5 minutes before slicing in to them. Once they have rested cut the steak in to cubes for the quesadilla.
You can either wipe out the pan you have been using, or grab a new pan to assemble the quesadilla.
Turn the heat to low and add a small amount of oil and place 1 tortilla in the pan.
Add 1/2-3/4 cup of cheese to one side of the tortilla.
On top of the cheese add a few spoonfuls of black beans (about 1/4-1/3 cup).
Next, add 1/4 of the onions you cooked earlier.
Add on 1/4 of the steak.
Lastly, top with another 1/2 cup of cheese so the quesadilla sticks together. Fold over the other half of the tortilla and cover to cook for 3-5 minutes.
Flip to allow the other side to crisp up.
Remove from the pan and repeat steps 10-16 until all the quesadillas have been made.
Slice each quesadilla into 4 pieces and serve with sour cream, hot sauce, and jalapeños.