Cooking Your Steak Twice Gives Your Quesadillas Maximum Flavor

Quesadillas are a traditional Mexican dish made with two basic ingredients: cheese and tortillas. Although they originated in Northern Mexico, they have since made their way to other parts of the world and evolved to include meat, veggies, and even seafood. If you're looking for a hearty meal that's easy to prepare, a quesadilla is sure to be a hit — but when it comes to preparing the steak for your quesadilla, you might want to cook the meat twice.

Steak is delicate and it can quickly become overcooked, so there is a technique to cooking it twice without overdoing it. Star by searing the whole cut of steak until it's rare. Then, chop and cook it a second time on lower heat to get a good crisp on each piece without burning the seasonings, while still controlling how "done" you want the meat. The end result is a juicy, delicious pile of steak bites that are easy to work with and add so much flavor to your quesadilla.

It all starts with choosing the right cut of steak. For a quesadilla, you want something thin that will cook and marinate quickly, such as skirt steak. Since the steak needs a quick sear, don't add anything other than salt and pepper at first; the heat is so hot that other seasonings will burn if added too soon. Sear the steak on a grill over high heat. You can add a little lime juice to the top of the steak once it's been flipped, but hold off on any other seasonings or flavor add-ons due to the high heat.

Once it's seared, remove the steak from the heat, and let it rest; this lets the juices redistribute throughout the meat. Then, chop the steak into bite-sized pieces; it should still be rare and juicy at this point. Before tossing it back onto the grill, hit it with any seasonings or flavor elements you want to add. Turn the heat to low to prevent the seasonings from burning, and cook the chopped steak until it reaches medium rare or your desired doneness. As it cooks, add plenty of lime or citrus juice, which will stick to the beef along with the seasonings without burning. Once that juice starts to thicken, though, it's time to take the meat off the heat and assemble the quesadilla.