Ina Garten smoked salmon quesadillas are easy cocktail hour food you can prep hours early, then cook to order when guests arrive. Cream cheese, dill and Cheddar go between two flour tortillas, so this dinner party appetizer needs no last minute work.
The cream cheese has to be at room temperature or it will drag and tear the tortilla when you spread it. Cold filling leaves bare spots that never melt, and the wedges fall apart when you cut them.
Source: Go-To Dinners (2022)
Ina Garten Smoked Salmon Quesadillas
Course: AppetizerCuisine: AmericanDifficulty: Easy6
servings20
minutes12
minutes510
kcalFlour tortillas sandwiched around a soft filling of cream cheese, smoked salmon, scallions, dill and Monterey Jack, then pan fried in butter until blistered. Cut into wedges and served warm with lime zest sour cream.
Ingredients
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
½ cup chopped scallions, white and green parts (2 scallions)
3 ounces thinly sliced smoked salmon, chopped
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill, plus extra for serving
3 ounces grated Monterey Jack or yellow Cheddar
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 (8-inch) flour tortillas
¾ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 to 3 ounces salmon roe (optional)
Directions
- Mix the filling: Place the cream cheese, scallions, salmon, dill, Monterey Jack, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper in a bowl and lightly mix with a fork.
- Assemble the quesadillas: Place three of the tortillas on a work surface and top each with the cheese-and-salmon mixture, spreading it evenly over the entire tortilla with a knife or offset spatula. Place the remaining tortillas on top and press lightly. Combine the sour cream and lime zest in a small bowl and set aside.
- Fry in butter: Brush the top of one tortilla completely with the melted butter. Heat a 10-inch sauté pan over medium heat and place the quesadilla, butter side down, in the sauté pan. Brush the top with butter. Cook for about 2 minutes, until golden brown and blistered. Carefully flip the quesadilla and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove to a cutting board. Repeat for the remaining quesadillas.
- Cut and serve: To serve, cut each quesadilla in 4 to 6 wedges with a big knife and serve warm with the sour cream and salmon roe, if using, on the side.
FAQs
Can I use a different cheese instead of Monterey Jack?
Yellow Cheddar is the other option in the recipe and gives you a sharper flavor. Pick something that melts smoothly, so skip crumbly cheeses like feta or blue. Grating it yourself helps too, since bagged shreds are coated with starch and melt unevenly.
How long do leftovers keep?
Fried quesadillas are best the day you make them, but leftovers hold in the fridge for about two days. Warm the wedges in a dry skillet over medium heat so the tortilla crisps again. A microwave turns them soft and rubbery, so skip it.
Can I put these together ahead of time?
Yes, and that is the point of the recipe. Ina assembles the quesadillas and refrigerates them for a few hours, then fries them right before serving. Do not fry them early and reheat later, because the tortilla loses its crunch.
What pan works best for frying them?
The recipe uses a 10-inch sauté pan, which fits one 8-inch quesadilla with room to slide a spatula underneath. Cast iron works too and holds heat more steadily, which helps the tortilla blister. A wide spatula matters more than the pan, since flipping a soft filled tortilla with a small one usually ends badly.
Why did my quesadilla leak or fall apart?
Most of the time the filling was spread too thick or pushed right to the edge. Keep the layer even across the tortilla and the melted cheese will hold everything together. Give it a minute on the cutting board before slicing, because cutting straight out of the pan sends the filling running.
