A quesadilla (IPA , usually anglicized as ) is a dish in
Mexican cuisine or
Tex-Mex, which involves cooking ingredients, most popularly
cheese, inside a corn or wheat
tortilla or a wrapping of
masa dough. The word comes from
Spanish, and literally means "little cheesy thing" (from queso, or "cheese", + ada, an
adjectival suffix, + illa, a
diminutive suffix). Exactly what constitutes a quesadilla varies from region to region and between the
U.S. and
Mexico, and is not universally agreed upon by
chefs, but there are certain similarities between the different versions that people generally agree upon, namely that the quesadilla is cooked after being filled or stuffed, while a taco or burrito is filled with pre-cooked ingredients. The purist faction may argue that only the folded-masa,
empanada-style Mexican version is a "real" quesadilla, but some well known chefs such as
Rick Bayless make more liberal interpretations.
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