Birria Quesadillas.
Buttery flour tortillas, melted Oaxaca cheese, and slow-cooked beef. Cut into wedges, serve fast. The weeknight birria move.
The easiest way in.
If quesabirria tacos are the flashy move, birria quesadillas are the practical one. Same juicy meat, same melty cheese, but folded into a big flour tortilla and griddled in butter. Twelve minutes of hands-on work once the birria is done. Everyone at the table can put one together themselves.
This is the recipe we make on Tuesdays when there's leftover birria in the fridge — but it stands on its own as the first thing you make with a packet, too.
A brief history.
The quesadilla itself is centuries old — corn tortillas folded around melted cheese, cooked on a comal in central Mexico since the colonial era. The flour-tortilla version we know today came out of northern Mexico, where wheat grew better than corn and tortillas got bigger, softer, and buttery.
Birria quesadillas are the natural collision of two traditions: the Jalisco-born birria that came north to Tijuana, meeting the northern-style flour quesadilla already on every family stove. Less viral than quesabirria, more likely to show up at a family dinner.
Ingredients.
- •1 Birria Packet
- •2–3 lbs beef chuck roast (cut into large chunks)
- •4 cups water
- •8 large flour tortillas (burrito-size)
- •3 cups shredded Oaxaca or Monterey Jack cheese
- •1/2 white onion, finely diced
- •1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- •2 limes, cut into wedges
- •2 tbsp butter, for the pan
You'll also need
- A slow cooker, Dutch oven, or Instant Pot
- A wide skillet or griddle
- A spatula and a sharp knife
- Small bowls for the consomé
How to make it.
- 1
Build the birria
Add 4 cups of water, the beef, and one Birria Packet to a heavy pot, slow cooker, or Instant Pot. Stir once — no searing needed.
- 2
Slow-cook the meat
Slow cooker: low for 6–8 hours. Stovetop / Dutch oven: covered simmer for 3–4 hours. Instant Pot: high pressure for 60 minutes, then a 15-minute natural release.
- 3
Shred
Pull the beef out and shred with two forks. Skim the red-orange fat off the top of the consomé and reserve it for dipping.
- 4
Assemble the quesadillas
Lay a tortilla flat. Sprinkle cheese over one half, add a generous pile of shredded birria, top with onion and cilantro, then more cheese. Fold in half and press gently.
- 5
Griddle in butter
Melt butter in a wide skillet or griddle over medium heat. Lay the folded quesadilla down and cook 2–3 minutes per side until deeply golden and the cheese is fully melted.
- 6
Slice and serve
Transfer to a cutting board, rest 1 minute, then slice into 3 wedges. Serve with a small bowl of warm consomé for dipping, lime wedges, and more cilantro.
Final word.
Birria quesadillas are the definition of high-reward, low-effort. Once the meat is done, dinner is twelve minutes away. Serve with a bowl of consomé for dipping and a stack of napkins, and you've got a meal the whole family will actually agree on.
Made it? Tag @birriapacket — we love seeing your plates.
Birria Quesadillas
Flour tortillas, melty cheese, and shredded birria — griddled in butter.
Ingredients
- • 1 Birria Packet
- • 2–3 lbs beef chuck
- • 4 cups water
- • 8 flour tortillas
- • 3 cups Oaxaca or Jack cheese
- • Onion, cilantro, lime, butter
Instructions
- Slow-cook beef, water, and packet 6–8 hr. Shred.
- Load tortilla with cheese, birria, onion, cilantro. Fold.
- Griddle in butter 2–3 min per side until golden.
- Slice into wedges. Serve with warm consomé for dipping.