A hearty and comforting meal makes our day – Doesn’t it? I am thrilled to share my mommy’s speciality – the chilaquiles recipe. If craving for soulful Mexican dishes, foodies often visit a taqueria. However, try my mum’s homemade chilaquiles once – I bet – you will stop visiting taquerias. It is the simplest and most comforting meal you can prepare in under 30 minutes. Whenever I am running late for office, my mommy makes it for me. Thanks to my mom, I have become a pro at making homemade chilaquiles. Whenever our friends group socialize, we party, and this dish becomes a show-stealer of our party.
What are Chilaquiles?
Loaded with hearty fillings and assembled in fried tortillas, it depicts the ingenuity of the Mexicans in using stale tortillas to prepare a lip-smacking meal. People enjoy it as a breakfast and serve it with beans and eggs. Home cooks considering making chilaquiles must not forget to prepare green chilli tomato salsa to elevate its taste. You may use store-bought salsa. However, the taste of the homemade salsa is irreplaceable. You can term chilaquiles as the cousin of enchiladas. The fillings of enchiladas and chilaquiles are the same. However, making chilaquiles requires less time.
What are the Popular Chilaquile Fillings?
- Beef, pork or shredded chicken
- Eggs – scrambled or fried
- Guacamole
- Nopalitos
- Refried beans
Some Tex-Mex Favourites
- Huevos Rancheros
- Mexican Lasagna
- Mexican Street Corn Nachos
- Tamale Pie
Ingredients
Ingredients yields up to four servings:
- 1½ to 2 cups salsa verde or red chilli sauce, homemade or store-bought
- Corn oil (You may use other neutral oil for frying
- 12 corn tortillas (Preferably stale and cut into six slices)
- Kosher salt
Optional Ingredient
- Sprigs of epazote
Mouth-watering garnishes options
- Chopped cilantro
- One red onion (chopped)
- Crème fraiche or crema mexicana
- Crumbled cheese (queso fresco or cotija)
- Sliced avocado
Pro Tip
Stale tortillas are a key ingredient of authentic Mexican-style chilaquiles. However, if you do not have stale tortillas, leave the fresh tortilla wraps uncovered overnight. Or microwave the fresh tortilla sheets for a few minutes to dry.
Directions to Make Chilaquiles
- In a frying pan, warm some corn oil or neutral oil. Once it is warm enough to fry well, add tortillas, cut into six pieces and fry until golden brown.
- Place the fried tortillas over the paper towel to drain off excess oil, and sprinkle a little salt over them.
- In a frying pan, warm some corn oil or neutral oil. Once it is warm enough to fry well, add tortillas, cut into six pieces and fry until golden brown.
- Place the fried tortillas over the paper towel to drain off excess oil, and sprinkle a little salt over them.
- Add a little oil to the cooking pan and warm it nicely. Pour salsa (recipe below) into it and cook for 12-15 minutes.
- I recommend adding a few sprigs of epazote if you have them. It is an optional ingredient. Thus, don’t stress much if you don’t have them.
- Add the fried tortillas to the lip-smacking salsa, coat them well and toss them nicely for a strong flavour and aroma. Your favourite chilaquiles are ready!
- Serve chilaquiles with eggs and beans to make it a protein-rich meal.
How to Make Yummy Homemade Red Chilli Sauce?
- Discard the stems and veins of ancho chillies and deseed them.
- Take a cooking pan and dry-roast the chillies until they release a flavourful aroma.
- Place these aromatic chillies into a small saucepan and pour boiling water into it. Let it stay in the boiling water for at least twenty minutes.
- Meanwhile, blend garlic, chillies, and 1.5 cups of boiling liquid.
- Strain this puree to remove unwanted bits, and add it to a frying pan to prepare homemade chilaquiles.
How to Make Homemade Salsa Verde?
- In a saucepan, place 1 pound of tomatillos and garlic cloves. Add water.
- Discard the stem of jalapenos, deseed and add them to the same pan. Cook till the tomatillos soften.
- Blend tomatillos, garlic and jalapenos. Add one cup of the boiling liquid while blending.
- Do not forget to add salt to your homemade salsa verde according to your taste.
