Tripe Quesadillas Recipe & How-To Video

Featuring:
Rumba Meats® Beef Honeycomb Tripe

20 minutes Prep Time
3 hours Cook Time
6 Servings

Original Blog & Recipe by
Mely Martinez

I’m Mely Martinez, passionate home cook and former teacher, born and raised in Mexico. Growing up, I was constantly thinking about food and watching how the women in my family cooked and prepared meals. Today, I enjoy teaching people how to cook Mexican food through my blog. Cooking my recipes with the best quality products is very important to me and Rumba Meats offers quality cuts of meat that are conveniently packaged and readily available.

See more of my recipes

Tripe Quesadillas

Lately, I have been thinking about the many ways that tripe and other offal cuts are prepared in Mexico, like in these “Tripe Quesadillas” from the State of Chiapas. Unfortunately, it seems that all of these interesting dishes are disappearing from our tables. I hope that the newer generations acquire an interest in our dishes and preserve them as a very important part of our culture.

Tripe Quesadillas

This recipe for Tripe Quesadillas was given to me by my older brother; he lives in Tapachula, a picturesque town in the State of Chiapas, right on Mexico’s southern border with Guatemala. He sent me a video of the local eatery at the municipal market where he likes to go with his family on the weekends and enjoy these delicious quesadillas. The other day I made them at home using some leftover menudo from the weekend.

So, the next time you make menudo, make sure to cook some extra tripe to make these quesadillas during the week.

Rumba Beef Tripe

Directions

Tripe Quesadillas Preparation

Once you remove the tripe from the vacuum sealed package, drain any excess liquid. Chop into small ¾ inch pieces.
Place the tripe, onion, garlic, and bay leaf in a large pot. Add enough water to cover and season with salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer. Place the lid on the pot and cook until the tripe is tender.
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the cooked and drained tripe and sauté for about 5 minutes.

Tripe Quesadillas Preparation 2

Add the tomatoes, stir
Add the oregano and chopped cilantro. Season with salt and pepper.

TO FORM THE QUESADILLAS:

Tripe Quesadillas Preparation 3

Place the tortilla on the skillet to warm up on one side for about 20 seconds. Turn the tortilla over and add about 3 tablespoons of the tripe and 1½ tablespoons of shredded cheese.
Fold the tortilla in half with the help of a spatula. Lightly brush with some vegetable oil and continue cooking.
To keep them warm while you finish, place them in a baking dish in a warm oven. Serve with Green Salsa.

Ingredients

Quesadillas

Rumba Meats® Beef Honeycomb Tripe (2 pounds)
½ medium white onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves
1 Bay leaf
3 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
½ medium white onion chopped
1 garlic clove chopped
3 cups of chopped tomato about 3 large tomatoes
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon Mexican oregano
Salt and pepper
12 corn tortillas
1-pound Oaxaca cheese, shredded
Green Salsa (for serving)

Recipe Notes

These quesadillas are traditionally made using Oaxaca cheese, if not available in your area, use mozzarella, muenster, or Monterey Jack cheese. If you like to spice things up, you can add a couple of chopped jalapeño peppers, too.

Instructions

Preparing the Tripe:

Remove beef tripe from package, drain any excess liquid and chop into small ¾-inch pieces.
Place tripe, ½ onion, 4 cloves garlic and bay leaf in a large pot. Add enough water to cover and season with salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to a simmer. Place the lid on the pot and cook for 2 to 2 ½ hours until the tripe is tender and reaches an internal temperature of 160ºF. Using a slotted spoon, remove tripe pieces and set aside.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add cooked tripe and sauté for about 5 minutes. Stir in chopped onions and chopped garlic. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Stir in the tomatoes, cover and cook for 8 more minutes.
Add oregano and cilantro and continue cooking until most of the liquid has been reduced. Season with salt to taste. Set aside.

To form the quesadillas:

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Heat each tortilla on 1 side for about 20 seconds. Turn tortilla over and top with 3 tablespoons tripe and 1½ tablespoons shredded cheese.
Using a spatula, fold tortilla in half. Lightly brush with remaining vegetable oil and cook for about 1½ minutes. Flip the quesadilla over and continue to cook for 1½ minutes until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is golden-brown. Brush other side with lightly with vegetable oil.
Repeat this process until you assemble all the quesadillas. Transfer each prepared quesadilla to a baking dish and hold in a warm oven.
Serve with Green Salsa.