Asada Quesadilla

As someone who loves Mexican food, this is one of my favorite recipes I’ve created to date. This homemade vegan version of asada & roasted tomatillo avocado salsa brings all the comfort, flavor, & satisfaction you love about Mexican food to your kitchen.

Serves: 2

Prep time: 1 hour

Cook time: 20 min

Ingredients:

• 8 oz vegan beef pieces/slices (I used Better Chew shredded steak)

• Flour tortillas

• Vegan pepper-jack cheese (I used Vevan brand)

• 1 large yellow onion (use half for asada marinade, half for salsa)

• Juice of 1 orange

• Juice of 1 lime

• 3 tbsp coconut aminos

• 1 minced garlic clove

• 1/4 cup cilantro

• 1 tbsp adobo brine

• 1/2 tbsp liquid smoke

• 1/2 tbsp Mexican oregano

• 1/4 tsp paprika

• 1/2 tsp cumin

• 1/2 tsp lawrys

• 6 tomatillos

• 1 very ripe medium avocado

• 3 serranos

• 3 whole garlic cloves

• 1 tsp salt

Recipe:

1. Prepare asada marinade by blending yellow onion, orange juice, lime juice, coconut aminos, garlic, cilantro, adobo, liquid smoke and spices together. Blend ingredients until slightly chunky & add to a bowl. If you are unable to use a blender, you can also finely chop all ingredients & add to a bowl.

2. Add your vegan beef slices to marinade & mix well. Cover & sit in fridge for at least one hour. You can marinate for up to 4 hours.

3. While the asada marinates, begin making your salsa by quartering all tomatillos & the other half of your onion. Keep garlic cloves & serranos whole. Heat 3-4 tbsp of oil in a pan on medium high heat. Add tomatillos, onion, garlic cloves, & serranos. Pan roast until they all begin to brown & soften. Be sure to monitor the garlic cloves so they don't burn, as they will cook much faster than everything else (2 mins on each side). Remove garlic first & add to your blender. Add each ingredient to the blender as they finish cooking.

4. Once everything has roasted & is in the blender, add the avocado & salt. Blend until smooth & taste for salt & overall heat (I would start with one serrano & add as you see fit if you're more sensitive to spice). The salsa can be served at room temperature or refrigerated, depending on preference.

5. Remove asada from the fridge & give it a final stir. Heat 1-2 tbsp of oil on medium high heat & add the asada to the pan (you can add remaining marinade in the bowl to the pan depending on if you want the final product saucy or not. I added the remaining marinade, as it mostly cooked down but added extra flavor). Cook asada according to your beef slices package (mine took about 6-7 mins). Remove from heat.

6. In a large nonstick skillet, spray cooking spray & heat to medium. Add your vegan cheese into the pan with the same circumference as the tortilla being used. Place the tortilla on top of the cheese. Once the cheese is melted, about 2-3 mins, gently flip the tortilla using a silicone spatula & add asada on top. Place more cheese on top of the asada & add the second tortilla. Flip the quesadilla once the bottom tortilla is brown, about 3-4 mins. Once it is flipped, cook on the other side until that tortilla is brown & all cheese is melted through, another 3-4 minutes.

7. Remove from heat, serve with the roasted tomatillo-avocado salsa & enjoy!