Quesadilla salvadoreña

Name: Quesadilla salvadoreña
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 55 min
Yield: 12 squares
Cuisine: Salvadoran
Ingredients: 250 g Rice flour; 150 g Parmesan cheese, finely grated; or queso duro blando; 240 g Sour cream, or Salvadoran crema; 150 g Butter, softened, plus extra for the tin; 200 g Sugar; 4 large Egg; 2 tsp Baking powder; 60 ml Milk, only if the batter is stiff; 1 tbsp Sesame seed, for the top; 0.25 tsp Salt

Not a tortilla: a sweet, salty Salvadoran cheese pound cake made with rice flour and crema, topped with sesame.

Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.

Start cooking

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 40 min
Rest: None
Total: 55 min
Difficulty: Easy
Spice: No chilli
Cost: Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price

Know it before you cook it

About

Forget the Mexican one. The Salvadoran quesadilla is a dense, buttery cake: rice flour, hard salty cheese, crema, butter, eggs and sugar, baked in a tray and scattered with sesame seeds. It is sweet and savoury at once, close-textured like a pound cake, with a salty cheese edge that makes it hard to stop at one square. The real version uses queso duro blando, a dry Salvadoran cheese; finely grated parmesan is the standard substitute abroad and gets you most of the way. One bowl, one tray, forty minutes in the oven.

What you'll need

10 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.

0 of 10 ready

12 servings

Ingredients

Servings

Rice flour250 g
Parmesan cheese, finely grated; or queso duro blando150 g
Sour cream, or Salvadoran crema240 g
Butter, softened, plus extra for the tin150 g
Sugar200 g
Egg4 large
Baking powder9.9 ml
Milk, only if the batter is stiff (optional)60 ml
Sesame seed, for the top15 ml
Salt1.2 ml

Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.

Steps

Step 1
Heat the oven to 180°C. Butter a 20 x 30 cm tray and line the base.
5 min180°C
Step 2
Cream the butter and sugar until pale. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the sour cream.
6 min
Step 3
Mix the rice flour, baking powder, salt and grated cheese, then fold into the wet mixture. The batter should drop slowly from a spoon; loosen with milk if it does not.
4 min
Step 4
Spread into the tray, level the top and scatter the sesame seeds evenly.
2 min
Step 5
Bake 35-40 minutes until golden, risen at the edges and a skewer comes out clean. Cool in the tray 15 minutes before cutting into squares.
40 min180°C
Tip: It firms as it cools. Cutting hot gives crumbs.

Nutrition

Per serving · estimate

Calories: 302 kcal
Protein: 6.6 g
Carbs: 24.3 g
Fat: 20.3 g
Saturated fat: 11.9 g
Fibre: 0.2 g
Sugar: 17.9 g
Sodium: 143 mg

Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.

Allergens

Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.

Milk
Eggs
Sesame

Gluten-free

Adapt this recipe

The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.

Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 13 November.

Substitutions

Rice flour → Plain wheat flour
Some Salvadoran bakers use it. The crumb is softer and less sandy, and the cake is no longer gluten-free.

Tips

Grate the cheese on the finest side of the grater so it disappears into the batter rather than sitting in strands.
Keeps three days wrapped at room temperature, and it is better on day two.

History & culture

Afternoon coffee food, sold in bakeries and from market stalls, wrapped in paper. Santa Ana in the west is considered the home of the best quesadillas. It is also a Sunday breakfast with hot chocolate, and a standard gift to bring when you visit someone.

The name comes from cheese, not from any tortilla; it describes a cheese cake in the old Spanish sense, like the quesadas of Cantabria. The recipe took shape in western El Salvador in the nineteenth century as dairy farming grew. Rice flour replaced wheat flour early and is now the marker of the real thing.

Traditional — Queso duro blando is the authentic cheese and salted Salvadoran crema the proper dairy. Parmesan and sour cream are faithful substitutes that keep the salty-sweet balance.

Provenance: Editorial adaptation.

Questions about this recipe

Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.

How long does Quesadilla salvadoreña take?

55 min all in — 15 min prep, 40 min cook. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.

How many does it serve?

The recipe is written for 12 squares. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.

How hard is it?

Easy.

How spicy is it?

No chilli.

What allergens should I watch?

This recipe is labelled for Milk, Eggs, Sesame. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.

Does it fit a diet?

The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free.

7 more questions

What does it cost to cook?

Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.

What equipment do I need?

Oven, Mixing bowl, Baking tray.

How much salt do I put in?

The recipe lists Salt at ¼ tsp.

How much sugar?

200 g of Sugar.

What can I use instead?

Rice flour → Plain wheat flour. Some Salvadoran bakers use it. The crumb is softer and less sandy, and the cake is no longer gluten-free.

Any tips from this recipe?

Grate the cheese on the finest side of the grater so it disappears into the batter rather than sitting in strands. Keeps three days wrapped at room temperature, and it is better on day two.

Can I use an air fryer?

This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.