Will that be a burrito, a chimichanga or a quesadilla?

Take a tortilla, fill it with some delicious fillings and what do you have?

Is it a burrito? Or a chimichanga? Or maybe it's a Quesadilla? But what if it's a Sincronizada?

It could be any one of them or none of them. So let's take a look at what each one really is.

A burrito is a single tortilla with a filling, rolled into a tube shape. They can be stuffed with eggs, for a breakfast burrito or meat, beans or cheese for a lunch burrito. The burrito can be picked up and eaten like a sandwich and is a very popular lunch food for workers in Mexico.

Chimichangas are made by taking a tortilla and putting a filling in the center of it. Instead of rolling the tortilla, fold it like you would wrap a sandwich with plastic wrap. Fold in the top, then the bottom and then the sides. Fry the chimichanga in oil, folded side down until it's golden brown, then fry the top and there you have it. Fill it with cheese, green chilies and sour cream for a quick, easy and tasty lunch! The chimichanga, or chivichanga, as it's sometimes called, originated in Northern Mexico as a deep fried tortilla with filling and quickly made it's way across the American border into Tex-Mex restaurants everywhere.

So what's a quesadilla then? Take that same tortilla, put filling on 1/2 of it and flip the rest of the tortilla over the filling and fry it on each side. So that's kind of like a soft taco except that it's fried. Fill it with cheese, chicken, onions and tomatoes.

Now we get to the Sincronizada. Put a tortilla on a grill, put some topping on it and cover it with a second tortilla. Fry it on each side and cut it into wedges. You'll find that sincronizadas are often called guesadillas in many restaurants - just to make life even more confusing.

So what's the moral of the story? A tortilla, stuffed with something yummy, is delicious any way you slice it; or fold it; or cover it!


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