Filled with ground beef, dill pickles, loads of melty cheese, and a divine homemade dipping sauce, these crispy cheeseburger quesadillas are what happens when a backyard classic wanders into your home and transforms itself into your new favorite comfort food.
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If you're new here, my husband and I are nomads who live in an RV and travel around the country. Our travels inspire many of the recipes I publish on this website, on my baking website, and in my newsletter.
This is one of those recipes. We spent a few weeks in October of 2025 camped next to Lake McConaughy in Nebraska. On a gorgeous Saturday, we hopped on the motorcycle and rode to Pals Brewing Company in North Platte.
Pals is a great place. We'd been there a few times before and the food and drinks are excellent, the atmosphere is always lively, and there's usually something fun going on.
On this particular day, the thing on the menu that jumped out at me was the cheeseburger quesadilla. And friends, it was sooooo good. Layers of cheese, hamburger, onion, and plenty of pickles were sandwiched between crispy flour tortillas. The quesadilla came with a fantastic cheeseburger dipping sauce and I devoured every last bite.
I started working on this recipe the very next week because I simply can't wait until the next time we're in Nebraska for another cheeseburger quesadilla. If you happen to live near North Platte, head over to Pal's and order yourself one. For the rest of us, here's how to make them!
xo
-Rebecca
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Ingredients needed to prepare these quesadillas
Cost of ingredients: $24 total/ $4 per serving (6 servings)
I purchased these ingredients at a Safeway in Nebraska. The cost will vary depending on where you are and where you shop.
For the cheeseburger dipping sauce:
- Mayonnaise
- Yellow mustard
- Dill pickles + some dill pickle juice
- A pinch of sugar
- A dash or Worcestershire
- Spices: paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, ground black pepper and salt
- 2 tsp. Sriracha or hot sauce (optional)
For the quesadillas:
- Vegetable or canola oil
- A small onion: I used a yellow onion, but any kind will do
- 1 pound ground beef
- Grated cheese: I used sharp cheddar, but use any kind of cheese that sounds good to you
- Flour tortillas
- Sliced dill pickles
About homemade flour tortillas
I've been making these homemade flour tortillas for decades because friends, I tell you the truth: once you make them, you'll never go back to store bought packaged tortillas again. They are incomparably better than packaged tortillas AND much easier to make than you might think.
Try them, if you dare, and you'll never go back.
"Thanks to this recipe, store-bought is NO LONGER an option." - Bill
Step-by-step photos and instructions
First, make the cheeseburger dipping sauce.
This sauce takes about 5 minutes to make and is so delicious you might just start spooning it on everything. Simply add all the ingredients to a bowl and stir to mix. Taste and adjust the seasoning in any way you like. If you're not going to use it right away, cover and refrigerate the sauce until you're ready to use it.
Add a bit of oil and some chopped onions to a skillet and set it over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent.
Add the ground beef, sprinkle it with salt, and cook until the meat is no longer pink. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and rinse out the skillet.
Brush the skillet with a small amount of oil and set it back over medium heat. Add one flour tortilla and top with some grated cheese.
Top the cheese with some of the ground beef mixture.
Add a layer of sliced pickles.
Add more grated cheese.
Drizzle some of the cheeseburger sauce over the pickles.
Top with another flour tortilla. Cook until the tortilla on the bottom is covered in brown spots and starting to get crispy.
Gently flip the quesadilla over and cook until brown and crispy on the other side and all the cheese is melted. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make two more quesadillas.
Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges and serve with the remaining cheeseburger sauce.
More delicious meals that start with ground beef
If you give this recipe a try, let me know! Scroll down to leave a comment and rate it!
📖 Recipe
Cheeseburger Quesadillas
Filled with ground beef, dill pickles, loads of melty cheese, and a divine homemade dipping sauce, these crispy cheeseburger quesadillas are what happens when a backyard classic wanders into your home and transforms itself into your new favorite comfort food.
*This recipe makes enough for 3 very hungry people or 6 smaller, more self controlled portions.
Ingredients
For the cheeseburger quesadilla dipping sauce:
- 1 ½ cups mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
- ¼ cup finely chopped dill pickles
- ¼ cup dill pickle juice
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- A couple of dashes of Worcestershire sauce, more to taste
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon sriracha or hot sauce (optional), to taste
- Salt to taste
For the cheeseburger quesadillas:
- 2 - 3 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
- 1 small onion
- 1 pound ground beef
- Salt
- 6 large flour tortillas
- 8-12 ounces (3-4 cups grated) sharp cheddar cheese, or any kind of cheese
- 5 ounces (about ¾ cup) sliced dill pickles
Instructions
- Make the sauce: Add all the ingredients to a bowl and stir to mix. Taste and adjust the seasoning however you wish. If not using right away, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- Heat the oven to 200 degrees and place a baking sheet covered with a sheet of foil or parchment paper inside the oven.
- Add one tablespoon of oil to a skillet. Chop the onion into pieces that are no larger than a pea and add them to the oil. Set the skillet over medium heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and translucent.
- Add the ground beef to the skillet with the onions, using a spoon to break it apart. Sprinkle with a bit of salt and cook, stirring frequently, until completely cooked through (there should be no visible pink). Transfer the ground beef mixture to a bowl and rinse out the skillet.
- Set the skillet back over medium heat and brush with a little bit of vegetable oil (just enough to barely coat the bottom of the pan). Add one flour tortilla to the pan. Top the tortilla with about ½ cup of grated cheese. Top with a third of the ground beef mixture. Add a layer of sliced dill pickles over the ground beef and drizzle with a tablespoon or two of sauce. Top with another half cup of grated cheese, then another tortilla.
- Use a flat spatula to press the tortilla down into the pan slightly. Cook on one side until the tortilla on the bottom is covered in brown spots and starting to get crispy and the bottom layer of cheese is beginning to melt. Carefully flip the quesadilla over and cook until browned and crispy on the other side and all the cheese is melted. Lower the heat if necessary to allow enough time for the cheese to melt without burning the outside of the quesadillas.
- Remove from the heat and place on the tray inside the oven to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make two more quesadillas. Cut each quesadilla into 4 wedges and serve with the remaining dipping sauce.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
6Serving Size:
½ of one quesadillaAmount Per Serving: Calories: 876Total Fat: 66gSaturated Fat: 18gUnsaturated Fat: 47gCholesterol: 122mgSodium: 1899mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 3gSugar: 3gProtein: 35g
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