The Border Table · Source Edition
Queso Flameado with Chorizo
Melted asadero layered around a thick chorizo, tomato and onion filling.
The owner’s 2021 oven-baked queso flameado does not call for flaming it at the table.
Cook it
The owner’s 2021 oven-baked queso flameado does not call for flaming it at the table.
- Cook the chorizo. Heat the oven to 350°F. Crumble the chorizo into a skillet and cook until browned and its center reaches 160°F (71°C) on a food thermometer. Transfer it to paper towels with a slotted spoon, leaving about 1 teaspoon of drippings in the skillet.
- Reduce the tomato mixture. Cook the chopped onion in the drippings until tender. Add the optional minced garlic now if using it. Return the chorizo, add the chopped tomatoes and picante sauce, and simmer about 15 minutes, until most excess liquid has evaporated.
- Layer and melt. Arrange half of the shredded asadero in a casserole dish, spread the chorizo mixture over it and cover with the remaining cheese. Bake about 10 minutes, until the cheese is fully melted and the filling is hot.
- Serve promptly. Bring the casserole to the table with warm tortillas or chips while the cheese is still fluid.
Serve it
Set the hot dish on a trivet and let guests pull the cheese into warm tortillas. If serving with chips, choose sturdy ones that can carry the melted cheese.
Understand it
What makes this version work
Reducing the tomato-picante mixture before it meets the cheese is the key step: too much liquid would make the melted asadero separate from the filling. The source calls for a full four cups of cheese and only a quarter pound of chorizo, so this is predominantly a cheese dish. The name ‘flameado’ does not authorize adding liquor or an open flame; this particular archived method uses the oven.
Know it
The recorded recipe and its place at the table
The 2021 card records an oven-baked queso flameado with Mexican chorizo, onion, tomato, picante and asadero. It does not identify a restaurant or an inventor. The Mexican and Mexican American table has many molten-cheese preparations, and the word flameado is used in different ways; the method on this page is the one actually recorded. The optional garlic remains optional rather than being folded into the base formula.
Sources and method
About this version
The ingredient proportions and core method come from the owner’s 2021 Authentic Tex-Mex Recipes card. The Border Table has clarified the instructions for readers without claiming an undocumented inventor or origin for the exact formula. The external source gives broader culinary context; it does not authenticate the owner’s private recipe.
- USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, Safe Internal Temperatures.
- FoodSafety.gov, Four Steps to Food Safety — refrigeration and safe handling guidance where relevant.
See our corrections policy to suggest an update.
