i believe there are three types of travelers: those who travel to experience history and art, those who travel to shop, and those who travel to eat food. you can be a little bit of all three, but there’s always one category that stands out for each individual. i’ll let you take a wild guess as to which category i fall into. no judgement to my shoppers and art historians—i like traveling with people like you because you actually read plaques that are necessary to understand what’s going on…while i’m busy scouting the next meal that’s going to absolutely wreck our insides.
i quite literally plan my days around food when i’m traveling and i have no shame. i almost always eat more than 3 meals per day and i won’t stop until i’ve tried everything on my list. some would say i’m a bit obsessive, but i just like to think i’m dedicated to… culinary…exploration… a real Anthony Bourdain type, if you will?
last year we took a trip to Mexico City with our good friends and i loved every second of it. the art, the history, the culture, the shopping… but the food? absolutely unreal. every meal i ate was an experience unto itself and though i felt perpetually stuffed by day 4, i didn’t stop. and i don’t regret a single second of it.
one of the best meals we had on our trip was at a casual lunch spot called Campobaja. they served the most incredible Al Pastor Quesadilla de Pescado. it came out piping hot on an enamel plate. the tortilla’s exterior had a thick and flavorful char. the inside was packed with juicy fish marinated in an al pastor sauce, surrounded by gooey cheese and tangy chunks of pineapple. i wish you could’ve seen my face while eating it. it was one of those meals where, after having one bite, we immediately got 2 more orders. like i said… perpetually stuffed.
at home during the weekdays, i keep things simple as f*ck for dinner. i rarely think outside the box because who has time for that after a full day of work? but i’m always looking to add something new into the rotation. that’s when i had the bright idea to use the above quesadilla as inspiration for an at-home weeknight version. i wanted to it be something i could whip up easily that also felt nourishing, which is why i used chicken and paired it with a side salad. we ate this for dinner two weeks in a row.
so, here’s my recipe! making the marinade takes about 15 minutes and after letting the chicken rest for a few hours, you bake it on a sheet pan and assemble. i hope it brings as much joy to your life as it does to mine!
Al Pastor Chicken Quesadillas
ingredients
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to On The Rocks to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.