THE SPLIT PLATE / RECIPE

Steak Quesadilla

Quick Lunches Ep. 6 — one crispy air-fryer steak quesadilla for National Quesadilla Day. ~270 cal / 24g protein for the whole thing.

YIELD1 serving
TOTAL TIME~12 min
COOK METHODSee method
EST. / SERVING~270 cal | ~24g protein
KEY TO SUCCESS: Ready-to-eat steak and pre-shredded cheese are the point — this is a melt-and-crisp, not a raw cook. Heat until the cheese melts and the tortilla crisps.

Ingredients

Ingredients

  • 1 Mission Carb Balance flour tortilla, soft taco size (70 cal / ~6g protein)
  • 1/2 serving Smoky Chipotle Crema (20 cal / ~1g protein; cross-link to /cookbook/smoky-chipotle-crema)
  • 1 oz Velveeta Original shreds (60 cal / 5g protein)
  • 2 oz Soule's Kitchen thinly sliced steak, fully cooked (80 cal / 12g protein)
  • 1 tsp avocado oil spray (40 cal)

Allergens: dairy, wheat, soy. Packaged labels vary — verify current tortilla, cheese, and steak packages before publishing allergen or gluten free tags. Formulations drift.

You want a crispy steak quesadilla lunch with real macros and almost no effort. One Mission Carb Balance tortilla, ready-to-eat steak, a little Velveeta, and the smoky chipotle crema go into the air fryer and come out golden — the whole quesadilla is ~270 cal / 24g protein. Sixth episode of the Quick Lunches numbered series, filmed for National Quesadilla Day.

Method

  1. 1.SAUCE. Spread 1/2 serving of Smoky Chipotle Crema across the tortilla.
  2. 2.CHEESE. Scatter the Velveeta shreds over one half of the tortilla.
  3. 3.STEAK + FOLD. Layer the ready-to-eat steak over the cheese and fold the tortilla into a half-moon.
  4. 4.SPRAY + AIR-FRY. Mist both sides with avocado oil and air fry until golden and crisp, flipping once.
  5. 5.CUT + SERVE. Slice into wedges and eat immediately while it's hot and melty.

Keys to success

  • The avocado-oil spray is what crisps the tortilla — don't skip it, but 1 tsp is enough; more moves the macros.
  • No temperature or time invented beyond the filmed air-fry — appliances vary, so pull it when it's golden and crisp.

If something fails

Tortilla came out soft, not crisp: Not enough oil or not hot enough. Mist both sides with avocado oil and give it the full air-fry until the edges are golden.

Cheese leaked out: Keep the filling off the very edge and don't overfill — 1 oz of shreds and 2 oz of steak is the balance that seals.

Steak dried out: It's already fully cooked, so it only needs to warm through — pull the quesadilla as soon as the tortilla is crisp.

Macros don't match your tracker: Tortilla, cheese, and steak labels vary by brand. Recalculate against the specific packages you used.

Storage and reheating

Store: Best fresh and hot. If holding, store cooled in a sealed container and re-crisp.

Reheat: Re-crisp in the air fryer or a hot skillet a few minutes. Microwave works but softens the tortilla.

Lasts: Same day is best; up to 2 days refrigerated.

Estimated nutrition

~270 cal | ~24g protein per 1 quesadilla.

~270 cal / 24g protein for the whole quesadilla — one quesadilla is one serving. Component sum from filmed labels: Mission Carb Balance tortilla (70 / ~6) + 1 oz Velveeta shreds (60 / 5) + 2 oz Soule's Kitchen steak (80 / 12) + 1/2 serving Smoky Chipotle Crema (20 / ~1) + 1 tsp avocado oil spray (40 / 0) ≈ 270 / 24. The oil is real calories, so this is low-calorie, not free. Labels vary by brand and SKU — recalculate against the packages you actually buy.

thesplitplate.com/cookbook/steak-quesadilla

Steak Quesadilla
Quick LunchesQuick lunch

Steak Quesadilla

By Tushar Sharma

Quick Lunches Ep. 6 — one crispy air-fryer steak quesadilla for National Quesadilla Day. ~270 cal / 24g protein for the whole thing.

Make this when

You want a crispy steak quesadilla lunch with real macros and almost no effort. One Mission Carb Balance tortilla, ready-to-eat steak, a little Velveeta, and the smoky chipotle crema go into the air fryer and come out golden — the whole quesadilla is ~270 cal / 24g protein. Sixth episode of the Quick Lunches numbered series, filmed for National Quesadilla Day.

Total time
~12 min
Yield
1 serving
Protein / serving
~24g
Cal / serving
~270
Serving size
1 quesadilla
Allergens and safety

Contains: dairy, wheat, soy

  • Packaged labels vary — verify current tortilla, cheese, and steak packages before publishing allergen or gluten free tags. Formulations drift.

Packaged ingredients change formulas — check the label on what's actually in your kitchen.

Flavor target

Crispy, blistered tortilla with a melty Velveeta pull, savory steak, and a smoky-tangy chipotle crema backbone. NOT soggy — the avocado-oil spray plus the air fryer crisp the tortilla. The crema carries the flavor; the steak carries the protein.

Ingredients

Single servingYields 1 serving — quantities below make one serving.

Ingredients

Method

  1. 1
    SAUCE

    Spread 1/2 serving of Smoky Chipotle Crema across the tortilla.

  2. 2
    CHEESE

    Scatter the Velveeta shreds over one half of the tortilla.

  3. 3
    STEAK + FOLD

    Layer the ready-to-eat steak over the cheese and fold the tortilla into a half-moon.

  4. 4
    SPRAY + AIR-FRY

    Mist both sides with avocado oil and air fry until golden and crisp, flipping once.

  5. 5
    CUT + SERVE

    Slice into wedges and eat immediately while it's hot and melty.

Three keys to success

  1. 1Ready-to-eat steak and pre-shredded cheese are the point — this is a melt-and-crisp, not a raw cook. Heat until the cheese melts and the tortilla crisps.
  2. 2The avocado-oil spray is what crisps the tortilla — don't skip it, but 1 tsp is enough; more moves the macros.
  3. 3No temperature or time invented beyond the filmed air-fry — appliances vary, so pull it when it's golden and crisp.

Go deeper

Storage and nutrition

Storage: Best fresh and hot. If holding, store cooled in a sealed container and re-crisp.

Reheat: Re-crisp in the air fryer or a hot skillet a few minutes. Microwave works but softens the tortilla.

Lasts: Same day is best; up to 2 days refrigerated.

Watch the full cook

Brands I use

Mission
Carb Balance Soft Taco Flour Tortillas (70 cal / ~6g protein each)
The high-fiber, lower-carb tortilla that crisps well in the air fryer and keeps the whole quesadilla near 270 cal. Any carb-smart tortilla works — recalc against its label.
Soule's Kitchen
Thinly Sliced Steak (fully cooked, 80 cal / 12g protein per 2 oz)
Fully cooked, seasoned, thinly sliced beef that carries most of the protein with zero prep — it just needs to warm through. Any ready-to-eat steak works; recalc against its label.
Velveeta
Original Shreds (60 cal / 5g protein per oz)
Melts fast and smooth for the cheese pull; 1 oz is enough to bind the quesadilla without a calorie bomb.
The Split Plate
Smoky Chipotle Crema (indexed cookbook sauce — see /cookbook/smoky-chipotle-crema)
The flavor layer — a yogurt-based smoky chipotle crema that adds tang and heat for ~20 cal per half serving. The same crema anchors the Quick Lunches Ep. 3 burritos.
#Quick lunch#High-protein lunch#Air fryer#Low effort#National Quesadilla Day