Do you ever put leftovers in your freezer, but then forget they’re there or forget what they are? I should really be better about labeling things that go into my freezer. Especially since it’s packed full, but when I open it, I think, “We’ve got NOTHING to eat in here” and slam it shut again. Not only am I very unlikely to dig through the mounds of frozen Ziploc bags and Tupperware, but even if I did pull something out, I’d be hard-pressed to identify the mystery contents. My freezer overwhelms me. In an ideal world, I’d keep a digital spreadsheet that I’d add to every time I shove something in there. It’d make meal-planning MUCH easier. What a great idea! My next procrastination project: freezer inventory. If I’d thought of this plan sooner, I might not have mistaken the frozen blob of raw sirloin for Korean-style marinated skirt steak. On the other hand, if it weren’t for that mistake, I never would have made this mouth-watering Korean-style marinated BBQ beef quesadilla! And for that, my disorganization paid off. Big time.
Here’s how it happened. What do you do when you’ve got a single serving of Korean-style marinated beef in your freezer? You split it between two cheesy quesadillas stuffed with complementary vegetable add-ins. Boom. But then what do you do when your mushroom-loathing friend Chuy is coming for dinner on a night you’ve planned a mushroom-filled dish and you have to rearrange your entire weekly meal plan so now the quesadillas need to serve three people?! You go buy more skirt steak and marinate it in the same flavors, of course. Problem solved. BUT THEN what do you do when you thaw the frozen meat to discover that it’s not marinated, and in fact, it’s not even skirt steak?! You toss it into the marinade and throw both cuts of beef into the quesadillas. The boys will be none-the-wiser. And they weren’t. In fact, the combination of juicy Korean-style marinated beef, melted cheese, crunchy baby bok choy, and fresh scallions smashed between two crisped tortillas caught their taste-buds off-guard; they didn’t know what hit them, but they knew they wanted more.
Oh, What’s that? Korean food doesn’t play well with cheese, you say? Wrong. I’d be first in line if a Korean Mexican fusion restaurant sprouted up in Berkeley. Take a leap of faith and try it for yourself. These Korean-style fillings ramp up an already-addicting ooey gooey cheesy quesadilla to one you’ll crave again and again. If you’re anything like Lucas and Chuy and can handle the heat, splash a bit of Sriracha on top to add another element of Asian-inspired cuisine to the mix. This cross-bred quesadilla is a culinary revelation of epic proportions.
Korean BBQ beef quesadillas
Makes 5 large quesadillas
Korean-style marinated skirt steak (Adapted from cHow Divine)
- 1.25 lbs skirt steak
- 4 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1¾ tablespoons sugar
- 1¼ tablespoons mirin
- 1¼ tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- Trim any excess fat from the steak.
- Combine the soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, garlic, and pepper in a medium bowl, whisking to combine.
- Add the beef to the bowl, making sure it is entirely covered in marinade and let sit for about 2 hours (or longer).
- You can either cook the beef up on the grill or cook it in your cast-iron skillet. If opting for the latter, heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the steak and cook for about 3 minutes on each side.
- Remove from heat and let sit, covered with foil, for about 5 minutes. Repeat with the remaining steak.
- After the steak has rested, cut the steak into about ¼-inch wide strips.
Quesadillas
- 1.25 lbs Korean-style marinated beef, cooked (see above)
- 10 tortillas
- 3 baby bok choy, coarsely chopped and sautéed until soft
- 4-5 cups grated cheddar cheese
- 1.5 cups grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup chopped scallions
- optional: Sriracha, to taste
- Sprinkle a layer of cheddar cheese on half of the tortillas. Split the cooked bok choy, cooked beef strips, and chopped scallions between the 5 tortillas.
- Sprinkle another thin layer of cheddar cheese and some parmesan cheese over the fillings. Place the remaining tortillas on top.
- Lay each quesadilla in the pan and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side, until cheese melts and tortillas are crispy. Slice and serve as it, or, if you like spice, sprinkle a bit of Sriracha on top. Yum!
um… this sounds amazing!! i would never have thought of this combo. thanks for the eye-opening discovery. also, here’s a tip my sister gave me (which i have yet to use) on freezer inventory-ing: use labels. just take a piece of masking tape, jot down the date and contents of the ziploc bag, and stick it on there. easy-peasy.
Thanks! And yup, but it’s just so daunting since it now means I’ve got to got back through what’s shoved in there…probably some leftovers from Thanksgiving 2010..? ha.
Wow, I am so making these for dinner tomorrow! I already have leftover steak, this will be instant and delish! Thank you for sharing
Perfect! I hope you love it!
I love it! Love quesadillas! I will have this for the weekend! Thanks for sharing!
Let me know how you like it!
Topping this with a sriracha slaw would take this to another level. Thank you for the awesome idea! Can’t wait to try this!
Great idea! I’ll try that next time!
Sounds yummy but what is mirin?
Thanks! Mirin is a sweet rice wine used for cooking – you can find it in the Asian food section at larger supermarkets.
Thank you and bless you for these delish recipes.
This might just be the best kind of quesadilla ever!
I agree:) hehe.
These Korean BBQ Beef Quesadillas look fabulous. A few weeks back I cooked some beef bulgogi, http://hometownslop.blogspot.com/2012/05/beef-bulgogi-first-step-to-world-peace.html. Very delicious.
Thanks for sharing your great recipes.
Jeff
I’m not a huge fan of Mexican food, I feel like its the same ol’ fillings in different casings. Perhaps it also comes down to the fact there’s not very many Mexican joints in Austalia, apart from fast food. I am however a huge fan of anything Asian (I am of Asian background so perhaps I’m a little bias) and this fusion looks tas-ty. In my, ‘to try’ list
Thanks! I hope you like this spin on Mexican food – definitely tastes different than traditional Mexican food!
Very good… We had this for Dinner today and it was deliziös. Since we had a lack of bok choi leaved over in our fridge, i took brocoli, delicios as well.
Erg lekker en de Sriracha saus maakt het echt af
Very nice and tasty with the sriracha sauce mmmm
These were fantastic! Cheesy meaty deliciousness! Sriracha was just a bonus for me!
The biggest hits for you have been quesadillas. I should just put that on the menu every time you come by for dinner!