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Cheddar and pickle quesadillas

Name: Cheddar and pickle quesadillas
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Yield: 2 lunch portions
Ingredients: 2 large flour tortillas, about 25 cm across; 120 g cheddar, grated; 100 g dill pickles, drained and finely diced; 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard; 2 teaspoons neutral oil; 100 g plain yogurt, to serve

Crisp folded tortillas with melted cheddar and diced dill pickles, cooked over moderate heat so the filling melts before the bread burns.

By PickleRadio editorialUpdated 18 September 2026

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Toasted tortilla wedges with melted cheddar, diced dill pickles and yogurt.

In this guide5 sections

Use less filling than you think

Yield: 2 lunch portions. Prep time: 10 minutes. Cook time: 10 minutes.

A good pickle quesadilla has enough cheese to hold its two sides together and enough cucumber to give each bite a little sharpness. A thick mound of filling is harder to heat before the tortilla scorches. This version uses a thin, even layer and folds each tortilla in half.

The pickle needs no further cooking before it goes in. Its job is texture and acidity, so finely diced pieces are more useful here than a handful of thick rounds that slide out when you cut the wedge.

Prepare the pickles

Drain the pickles and blot them after chopping. Keep loose brine away from the grated cheese. Grate the cheddar yourself if convenient: it is easy to spread a loose handful into the corners of the folded tortilla.

A firm refrigerator cucumber pickle is a good fit. You can add a little of the refrigerator jalapeños at the table once their longer marinating period is complete.

Diced dill pickles on a clean chopping board beside a knife and bowl.

Ingredients

2 large flour tortillas, about 25 cm across
120 g cheddar, grated
100 g dill pickles, drained and finely diced
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons neutral oil
100 g plain yogurt, to serve

Method

Spread 1 teaspoon mustard over one half of each tortilla, leaving a narrow border clear.
Keep the mustard on one half and leave a narrow clear border.
Divide half the cheese between the mustard-covered halves. Scatter over the pickles, then the remaining cheese.
Spread the filling evenly so the folded tortilla can close neatly.
Fold the empty halves over the filling and press lightly with your palm.
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a wide frying pan over medium-low heat. Cook one folded tortilla for 2–3 minutes until its underside is golden.
Turn carefully with a broad spatula and cook another 2–3 minutes, until the cheese is melted. Repeat with the remaining oil and tortilla.
Use gentle heat so the cheese melts before the tortilla becomes too dark.
Rest each quesadilla for a minute, cut into wedges and serve with the yogurt.

Let the cheese catch up

If the bread develops dark spots while the filling still looks cold, turn the heat down. More heat will not solve the mismatch. A brief extra minute over gentle heat is preferable to pressing hard enough to push melted cheese into the pan.

Cut on a board rather than on a plate; a sharp knife can reach the bottom tortilla cleanly. Keep sauce alongside the wedges so their surfaces stay dry.

For another quick cheese-and-pickle lunch, try hot pickle cheese toast.