Steak quesadillas with mojo picón
Meat mains
Steak quesadillas with mojo picón
Thinly sliced steak sandwiched in tortillas with plenty of smoky-spiced veg, melting cheese and crème fraîche. Topped with mojo picón, a spicy pepper sauce from the Canary Islands, dinner doesn't get much better than this. If you've got any leftover, mojo picón is also good with grilled pork or chicken, and roasted or boiled potatoes.
Ingredients
for the mojo picón
- 1 thick slice white bread
- 6 tbsp olive oil, and extra for the bread
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 2 red bell or 3 Romano peppers (roasted and skinned)
- 3 garlic cloves
- ½ tsp dried chilli flakes
- 1 tsp sweet paparika
- 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
- salt
for the quesadillas
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 1 red pepper, finely chopped
- 2 tsp tomato purée
- ½ tsp sweet smoked paprika
- ½ tsp each cumin and coriander seeds, lightly toasted and ground
- 500g beef roast, thinly sliced and cut into ribbons
- 200ml crème fraîche
- 12 soft tortillas
- 150g mature Cheddar, grated
- 150g feta, crumbled
- 4 spring onions, finely chopped
Method
main
-
Step 1
Preheat oven to 180°C/Gas 4.
Make the mojo picón
-
Step 1
Brush the bread with oil and place on a tray in the oven until golden brown. Quickly fry the cumin seeds and blitz to a paste in a food processor along with all the other mojo picón ingredients. You might need to add a little more oil or water to get the right consistency.
For the quesadillas
-
Step 1
heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion and pepper for about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato purée, smoked paprika, cumin and coriander and cook for another minute or so. Remove to a bowl and wipe out the pan.
-
Step 2
Add the last tablespoon of oil to the pan and heat. Quickly fry the beef ribbons in batches. Don't crowd the pan – you just want them evenly seared.
-
Step 3
Mix half the crème fraîche (save the rest for serving at the table) into the onion/pepper mixture. Spoon and spread the cooked veg mixture onto half a tortilla, then add the seared meat, the cheese and the spring onions. Fold over and press down with the back of a spatula.
-
Step 4
Fry over a medium heat in a dry non-stick pan for about 2 minutes on each side. The cheese will melt and the tortilla should be firm and a bit crunchy. Cut each quesadilla into 3 and serve with the mojo picón and an extra dollop of crème fraîche.
