I am extremely fond of quesadillas and traditionally get one for an appetizer when at restaurants so I couldn’t help but be tempted by the Quesadilla Maker. It was only $25 at Target so it seemed like a reasonable deal.

The Quesadilla Maker is round with a non-stick surface that is permanently attached to the base. It has predetermined groves so that the quesadilla will come out in 6 equal pieces. The first step in using the new appliance is to warm it up and let the stink cook off. I sprayed some cooking oil on it to lubricate it before its first use. The cooking plates will need to be sprayed with oil on occasion.

Turning the Quesadilla Maker on is one easy step of plugging the cord into the outlet. There aren’t any temperature controls or an on/off switch. To turn off the appliance simply unplug it.

It takes 5 minutes for the griddle on the appliance to heat up. When it is ready the green light on top will come on. Open the lid and center the quesadilla on the appliance and close the lid. I always stand with the Quesadilla Maker while it’s cooking because there is a fine line between nearly done and overdone. I peek under the lid several times and then unplug it when I feel that it is done. The lid stays up when lifted. This is one large hot griddle so there is risky of burning your hand if it flopped down. My lid seems to be stiff enough to stay upright but there is no safety feature that ensures that it does not fall down. I’m not sure if the springs with loosen after many uses.

There is a plastic reserve to catch what cooks out of the Quesadilla Maker but I have found that to be useless. My ingredients that cook out seem to congregate around the rim of the griddle. The area around it is grooved which prevents the ingredients to run onto the counter in most cases. Since the griddle is a new non-stick surface the burned cheese and ingredients wipe right off.

A quesadilla is a flour tortilla shell with cheese filling in the middle. I have never had a quesadilla as bad as my first one in the Quesadilla Maker. Even though I cooked it as long as the recommended amount of time the cheese was overcooked and chewy, and the shell was hard and crispy. I planned on serving Quesadillas for supper so I tried again and removed it as soon as the shells were done even though the cheese wasn’t thoroughly melted and it tasted a lot better.

Once I got the timing down I started experimenting with more expensive ingredients like flavored cheeses, meats, vegetables, and spices. Shredded cheese works nicely for quick melting and easy distribution. A drawback that I found was that I was not able to stuff the quesadilla as much as I wanted to because the ingredients would just ooze back out. The instructions say only to use a 10 inch tortilla shell but I have used smaller ones that work fine however the pre-determined lines are not even. The instructions also say not to exceed more than ¼ cup of cheese or 1/2 cup of salsa which makes a pretty skimpy quesadilla.

There are lots of recipes in the instruction manual that I had not thought of. I will list the titles of the recipes because it gives a good idea what you can make: “Speedy Quesadillas, south-of-the-border breakfast pocket, Bean and cheese, vegetable, Herby Ricotta and Red Pepper, Shrimp, Wild Mushroom, Pepperoni Pizza Pockets, Sour Cream and Chive, Ham and Cheese, Chunky Peanut Butter & Jelly, Apple Pie, Fresh Tomato Salsa.” Each of these recipes only takes a couple ingredients and with so many listed you could definitely make a lot of different quesadillas.

Quesadillas are great as a snack, lunch, or an appetizer. Quesadillas are my 2-year-old’s favorite meal. It’s easy for little fingers and has healthier items can be snuck into it the quesadilla. She had no complaints about the quesadillas that I made from the Quesadilla Maker. For the adults these are high in carbs and cholesterol so although they taste good we probably should not be eating as much of them as we have been.

I grumble whenever I make a quesadilla because the appliance does not come with a tool to remove the quesadilla from the pan. We have been using a Teflon-safe tool.

Another peeve I had was that it took a long time for the appliance to cool down. I am long done with dinner and the dishes before this gadget cools down. The grill gets so hot, even the legs of it retain heat, so I sit the appliance on something else so that it doesn’t damage my kitchen counter.

There is a one year warranty on the product against defects in workmanship or materials. Shipping is covered. Call customer service before returning.

The Quesadilla Maker does have some benefits over the stove top method. First of all, no oil is needed since it is a non-stick surface. Secondly, you don’t have to worry about destroying the quesadilla when you flip it over. Finally, it comes with pre-cut marks so presentation is nicer.

The drawbacks of the appliance compared to the stovetop method is that it lacks a lot of flavor that it gets with other methods. If you are using vegetables or other ingredients they must cook first therefore a pan is already dirty and heated up. Finally, a pan is much easier to store.

Our family enjoyed the Quesadilla Maker but I am so sick of quesadillas now and really don’t want to see another for a long time. I haven’t found anything else to make with this appliance which makes it kind of overkill to buy an appliance that makes only one occasional dish. It works fine and is designed well enough to last. It makes a nice presentation but I can not fill my quesadillas as much as I would like. I can make an overstuffed quesadilla on the stove with a fairly nice presentation in a skillet that is already dirty from making the stuffing for the quesadillas. So no, this doesn't seem like a great deal after all.

Salton, Inc.
1-800-233-9054
9AM-5PM CST
www.salton.com



Recommended: No