Recipe: Chilaquiles

Chilaquiles (pronounced CHEE-LA-KEY-LAYS) is a Mexican dish usually eaten for breakfast or brunch. This dish is basically stale chips drenched in flavourful, and thick sauce and is traditionally served with avocado, cheese and a fried egg garnished on top.

Very similar to other chip-based Mexican food, the difference between chilaquiles and nachos is the texture of the chips in both dishes. While nacho chips are crunchy, chilaquiles chips are soft and tender due to the sauce in which they are cooked in.

This dish reuses stale tortilla or nacho chips you might have laying around at home and turns them into delicious Mexican comfort food. It is jam-packed with explosive flavour, all the while being affordable and creative in the way you reuse food.

So, the next time you accidentally leave some tortilla chips out in the open overnight, consider trying out this recipe instead of throwing them out!

Chilaquiles Ingredients:

• • 5 big handfuls corn tortilla chips
  • 1/3 cup crumbled Cotija, queso fresco or feta cheese
  • 1 small handful (about 3 tablespoons) very thinly sliced radish or chopped red or green onion
  • 1 ripe avocado, thinly sliced, or guacamole
  • Optional: 4 fried eggs or scrambled eggs or poached eggs
  • 1 small lime, cut into wedges

• Red Sauce

  • 3 tablespoons flour (whole wheat, all-purpose, or gluten-free blend all work)
  • 1 tablespoon ground chilli powder
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt, to taste
  • Pinch of cinnamon
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 2 cups vegetable broth
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, plus additional for garnish
  • 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar or distilled white vinegar

Instructions:

• Red Sauce

1. 1. Add the flour, chilli powder, cumin, garlic powder, and oregano into a bowl and set it to the side.
   2. Put oil into a skillet and place it over medium heat. Heat it until it reaches the point where even a small sprinkle of the flour/spice mixture sizzles on contact.
   3. Once heated up, pour in the flour/spice mixture and start whisking. Cook and whisk until the mixture deepens in colour, approximately 1 minute.
   4. Add in the tomato paste and slowly pour in the broth while whisking the mixture to remove any lumps in the sauce.
   5. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat, and then reduce the temperature accordingly to maintain a gentle simmer soon after.
   6. Whisk for 5-7 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and you feel resistance when trying to stir with a spoon.
   7. Reduce the heat to lowest, and whisk in the vinegar and cilantro. Add in any additional salt if necessary.

• • Chilaquiles

1. 1. Toss in the tortilla chips into the skillet, and gently stir until all chips are coated in the sauce thoroughly.
   2. Once coated, remove from heat and test if the chilaquiles are soft enough to your liking, if it hasn’t, place back on the heat for 1-4 more minutes.
   3. Sprinkle on crumbled cheese, radish and cilantro leaves. Scoop the chilaquiles into serving bowls, and you may top everything off with some avocado, egg and a wedge of lime. Best served when it’s still warm and crunchy, enjoy!

Are you looking for other recipes similar to chilaquiles? Here are some dishes you might like:

1. Bottomless Tostada Chips and Salsa
2. Nachos

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