Cooking in
British Columbia
Mexican
Quesadillas de Verduras — Chilapa, Guerrero
A regional antojito from Chilapa, Guerrero, these quesadillas bear little resemblance to their cheese-stuffed northern cousins. Here, masa rounds are packed with a lightly spiced stew of seasonal vegetables — carrot (Daucus carota), chayote (Sechium edule), green beans, zucchini, and corn — folded shut, then shallow-fried until the exterior crisps to a tawny gold. Diana Kennedy documents this preparation in My Mexico as a window into the abundant, meat-free cooking of Guerrero's highland markets. The filling is restrained in its seasoning and generous in its variety, letting the vegetables carry the dish. Tart salsa verde and crumbled queso fresco finish each portion, served on cool romaine rather than a plate.
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Cook
I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
2 tablespoons
vegetable oil
Your own market
1 cup (250 ml)
carrot, 6 mm dice
Your own market
1 cup (250 ml)
chayote (Sechium edule), 6 mm dice
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1/4 medium
white onion, finely chopped
Your own market
Salt to taste
Your own market
1½ cups (375 ml)
water, divided
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 cup (250 ml)
green beans, chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
1 cup (250 ml)
zucchini, diced
Your own market
1 cup (250 ml)
corn kernels
Your own market
4
serrano chiles (Capsicum annuum var. serrano), finely chopped
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
510 g (18 oz / approximately 2 cups)
masa for tortillas
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Vegetable oil for shallow-frying
Your own market
Romaine lettuce leaves
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Approximately 375 ml (1½ cups) cooked salsa verde
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Approximately 188 ml (¾ cup) queso fresco, crumbled
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Warm 2 tablespoons oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add carrot, chayote, and onion with a pinch of salt and enough water to barely cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.
2
Add green beans, zucchini, corn, serrano chiles, and remaining water. Continue cooking until all vegetables are tender but still holding their shape. Season with salt.
From the canon — The serrano is a small, smooth-skinned fresh chile belonging to Capsicum annuum, the species domesticated in centre-east Mexico perhaps 6,500 years ago. Serrano →
3
Remove from heat. Cool slightly, then drain away any remaining liquid. Set filling aside.
4
Divide masa into balls roughly 30–35 g each. Press each ball between sheets of plastic into a round approximately 9 cm (3.5 inches) across.
5
Place a spoonful of filling on one half of each round, leaving a clear border. Fold the masa over to enclose the filling and press edges firmly to seal.
6
Pour vegetable oil into a heavy skillet to a depth of about 1 cm. Heat to approximately 180°C (356°F). Fry quesadillas in batches, turning once, until golden and crisp on both sides, roughly 2–3 minutes per side.
7
Drain briefly. Arrange on romaine leaves, spoon salsa verde over the top, and scatter crumbled queso fresco across each portion. Serve at once.
From the canon — Salsa verde is built from tomatillos (Physalis philadelphica — not green tomatoes, an entirely different plant) combined with fresh green chiles (serrano or … Salsa verde — tomatillo preparation →
III
Sensory Tests
◇Press the quesadilla gently at its thickest point within one minute of plating: it should offer brief resistance from the fried shell before compressing into a yielding, moist interior — no audible crunch at that pressure is a sign of under-frying or sogginess from oil that was too cool.
◇Tear the fold open and observe the steam: it should rise freely and carry a clean corn-and-vegetable scent with no underlying rancid-oil note, which would indicate fat past its frying life or a temperature too low to seal the masa quickly.
◇The exterior colour is the calibration check — uniform tawny gold (not pale yellow, not dark brown) across the entire surface signals even oil temperature around 175–180 °C (347–356 °F) and a masa thickness consistent enough to cook through without burning.
◇Where it lives or dies. The dish lives or dies at the moment the filled masa round enters the oil: if the seal is imperfect or the oil is below 170 °C (338 °F), the fold opens, the filling disperses into the fat, and the masa absorbs grease rather than forming the tight, dry crust that is the whole point of the preparation. Fold firmly, seal with a pinch of damp masa if needed, and have the oil at temperature before the first quesadilla goes in.
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V
What to Pour
The pairing
Beer
From British Columbia
Beer lager
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
GT's Living Foods · Los Angeles
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic
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The working kitchen