The Potato Addition That Will Take Your Breakfast Quesadillas Up A Notch

No heaping plate of breakfast foods is complete without a potato in one form or another. Whether it's hash browns, tater tots, home fries, or just skillet-fried slices, these starchy spuds just seem to be destined to go with eggs and toast.

It turns out that this idea was actually imported to the U.S. through the British. Some consider hash browns to be among the defining characteristics of a Full English breakfast. It makes sense then that this practice would be brought across the Atlantic.

While these delicious spuds are able to spice up any breakfast, they're especially well suited to Mexican foods. Potatoes were originally domesticated in South America, and so they were quickly adapted to South and Central American cuisines. While they are often relegated to use as sides in American cuisine, in Mexico potatoes often take center stage in burritos and tacos. We think that a certain breakfast potato is also uniquely suited to spicing up a Mexican breakfast quesadilla.

The quesadilla was originally invented as a means to use up leftover food. Because of this, there aren't any rigid rules regarding what can or can't go into a quesadilla. The ingredients can include beans, chorizo, peppers, or anything else that your heart desires.

That also means that anything goes when making a breakfast quesadilla. They're great with breakfast classics like eggs, bacon, or sausage, as well as plenty of cheese. For the most part, though they can be customized to suit your preferences.

One aspect that we think is non-negotiable is loading up your breakfast quesadilla with a layer of smashed tater tots. Tater tots just might be the ultimate form of the potato. They're easy to cook, crispy on the outside, and creamy on the inside. By smashing a bunch of tots into a pan, and giving them a quick fry before they go in the quesadilla you'll get that same texture variation inside your breakfast quesadilla.

The first tater tots actually debuted at a breakfast for the National Potato Convention. This was in 1954 when frozen dinners were taking the U.S. by storm, and Ore-Ida co-founder F. Nephi Grigg was hoping to test out his newest product on some potato experts. Unsurprisingly, they were an instant hit. Grigg said that the tater tot samples he had brought to Miami from Oregon were an instant hit with the spud experts, and he knew there was something special to this.

In a way, the origin story echoes that of the quesadilla. Grigg had invented the first tater tots out of necessity. There was too much scrap from cutting potatoes into french fries, so he started gathering it up and shaping it into a round shape that would become the tater tot. In that sense, both the quesadilla and its stellar starchy partner were made to avoid food waste, which might further cement that they're made for each other.

Tater tots are arguably a modern success because they're an adaptable form of the potato (e.g. for use in breakfast quesadillas), and have been around so long that they now trigger a nostalgic joy for adults. Of course, it also helps that they're salty, bite-size, and easy to cook.