Global Grilled Cheese: Mexico and the QuesadillaIf you’ve seen the movie, then you know that “kay-sa-dill-uh” is Napolean-ese for quesadilla, Latin cuisines’ version of a grilled cheese sandwich. The quesadilla traces back to Mexico, but it’s difficult to pinpoint exactly when and where they originated, nor who was responsible. Certainly, the tortilla was being made from corn by the native people of the area long before the country was known as Mexico. The addition of cheese to tortillas to make quesadilla could only have followed shortly after. Let’s just say that it was at least before the 15th century, when the conquistadores arrived and “discovered” them. These days though, there are a million different variations of the quesadilla, but they are all based on the same simple principle: cheese melted between dos tortillas. We certainly don’t have to go into the finer details of quesadillas in Mexico, but we will because that’s what we do. In many parts of Mexico, the filling is simply Chihuahua cheese (yes, that’s where the dog came from). In the more central region of Mexico, quesadillas become a little fancier. In Oaxaca, the pungent herb epazote and poblano chiles are added along with the Oaxacan cheese. Some quesadillas are filled with items familiar to us like chorizo and potatoes, and others are more exotic like squash blossoms or huitlachoche (a fungus that grows on corn that really deserves its own dedicated post in the future). Outside of Mexico is where quesadillas have gotten crazy with every variation of meltable cheese, the addition of beef, chicken, pork, even the suspicious proteins of the Spam variety, vegetables, and served with everything from salsa to guacamole. They all taste great, but the most creative one I’ve seen is Brie cheese and sliced grape quesadilla served with a sweet pea guacamole. It was the invention of Michael Roberts, where else but L.A., of course! Trumps isn’t around anymore, but the quesadilla is still being served at the Canal Club in Venice. |
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