Inspiration
Reading Time: 6 minutes
To understand the power of chilaquiles, we must talk about moments that food can create. Food brings people together by creating special moments where two or more individuals gather to eat, drink and be merry. If you ask me it is the best and most efficient way to turn strangers into friends.
During my MBA year, this was no exception with my first term work group. Diversity seemed to be the key that made our group, we were 6 characters coming from all over (Italy, India, Australia, United States, Brazil and Mexico) and even though we all came from different cultures and backgrounds, our collaboration was so interesting and awesome. My fellow Indian hosted our first group dinner where we celebrated my birthday with some traditional Indian cuisine and drinks (obviously). This resulted in us successfully having an additional visitor when the police arrived telling us to “tone it down”. After that we knew we would make a good fit.
I invited the whole gang to my place for our second dinner reunion, to have some Mexican and chilaquiles was the way to go. One can never go wrong with chilaquiles, they are delicious, rich and can be served at any time of day. And when reheated they taste even better. We all successfully bonded over chilaquiles and some mezcal and continued getting together to enjoy good food and each other’s company many times after. This, I think was a big part of our amazing teamwork, which resulted from getting to know each other not only as colleagues but on a friendship level that allowed us to get along, work and compliment each other so well.
So, yes, never doubt the power of chilaquiles and their magic effect in creating unforgettable moments that serve as effective icebreakers for a group of strangers.
Creation
Preparing this dish can make for a fun assembly line. Someone can be frying the tortillas while another damps each tortilla in the salsa and another assembles the layers of tortilla, chicken, sauce, cheese and cream.
Chilaquiles can also be served in several different ways, there’s the option of using green or red salsa, adding chicken or beef and topping them with a fried egg. Four things are a must though: fried or baked corn tortillas, cheese, crema and salsa. Refried beans and guacamole work amazingly as side dishes.
Recipe
Chilaquiles
Ingredients
Chilaquiles sauce
- 2 cloves Garlic
- ½ White onion
- 12 Guajillo chilies
- 1 Poblano chili, dried
- 1 Morita chili
- ½ cup Peanuts
- ½ cup Almonds
- 1 ½ cup Chicken broth or more if necessary to achieve desired consistency
Chilaquiles
- 2 Chicken breast cooked and shredded
- 500 grams Corn tortillas
- 1 cup Fresh cheese you can use mozzarella, panela etc
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese
- 1 cup Fresh cream or sour cream
- ½ cup Canola oil for frying tortillas
- Chilaquiles sauce see above
Instructions
Chilaquiles Sauce
- Cut the stems off and clean (remove the veins and seeds) the guajillo, morita and poblano chilies. Soak them in 1 cup of chicken broth for about 30 minutes and drain, keeping the liquid for later
- Fry the garlic and and onion in a large frying pan with 2 tbsp of olive oil
- Add the chilies to the garlic and onion, mix and saute for 5 minutes. Set aside
- In the same pan add the almonds and peanuts, fry for 2 minutes moving constantly to stop them burning
- Mix the nuts with the chili/onion mixture
- Place all the ingredients together in a blender and mix. Add the broth previously used to soak the chilies and some more for desired consistency. (The sauce should not be too liquid)
- Strain the sauce, and season with salt. Set aside
Chilaquiles
- Preheat oven to 350°F
- In a frying pan add half of the oil and heat over medium heat
- Once the oil is hot immerse the tortillas, one at a time, and flip so that both sides get covered with oil (10 seconds each side at most, the point is to soak the tortilla)
- Place the soaked tortillas at the bottom of a rectangular Pyrex, continue to soak tortillas in oil and place int the Pyrex until you form one layer of tortillas
- Add a layer of shredded chicken on top with chilaquiles sauce until you cover the whole layer with chicken
- Add a handful of fresh cheese and cheddar cheese (spread evenly) and finish with some drops of cream
- Repeat the tortillas, chicken and cheese steps until you have used all the chicken. Finish with a layer of tortillas
- To finish, add some more of the cheeses, cream and pour the remainder of the sauce evenly over the Pyrex
- Cover the Pyrex with tin foil and cook in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until golden
Chilaquiles Cheat Version
Ingredients
- 12 Corn tortillas preferably stale, or left out overnight to dry out cut into 6 wedges/triangles. Corn chips can be used instead
- Corn oil
- Salt
- 2 cups Salsa verde or salsa roja see notes
Salsa Verde
- 8 Green tomatillos
- ½ Jalapeno
- 1 Serrano Chili
- 2 cloves Garlic finely chopped
- ½ White onion sliced
- Salt
- 1 cup Stock optional. See notes
Garnishes
- Cotija cheese or queso fresco
- Cheddar cheese
- Crema or crème fraiche
- Chopped cilantro
- Chopped red onion
- Sliced avocado
Instructions
Salsa Verde
- Put tomatillos, husks removed into a saucepan and cover with water by an inch
- Add jalapeno and serrano chilies, stems and seeds removed. Bring to a boil and cook for 5-10 minutes until tomatillos have changed color and are cooked through
- In another pan add some olive or avocado oil and saute the white onion together with garlic
- Use a slotted spoon to remove the tomatilloes and chilies and add to a blender together with the onion and garlic and mix.
- Add a cup of the cooking liquid (or stock) and salt to taste.
Chilaquiles
- In a large sauté pan, coat the pan generously with corn oil, (1/8 inch), heat on medium high to high
- When the oil is quite hot, add the tortillas in small batches, fry until golden brown
- Remove tortillas and dry on a paper towel lined plate to soak up excess oil. Sprinkle a little salt on the tortillas
- Wipe pan clean of any browned bits of tortillas
- Add 2 Tbsp of oil to pan, bring to high heat again. Add the salsa and let salsa cook for several minutes
- Add the fried tortilla quarters to the salsa. Gently turn over the pieces of tortilla until they are all well coated with salsa. Let cook for a few minutes more
- Remove from heat and place into a serving dish
- Top the chilaquiles with your selection of garnishes and serve
Mexican food !!!
With love , the best….
Que delicia ?eres la mejor???
Que ricos, Sofía!! Y que bien explicada la receta!!Pero los comentarios adicionales introduciendo el plato, geniales!!Ja, ja y a ver ahora como me hago con la variedad de chiles!! Esperare a que pase todo esto para ir a México y traérmelos de allá.
Enhorabuena por el blog!!Me encanta!!
Enhorabuena Sofi por tu blog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ahora resulta que voy a tener hambre a diario………………….
Platos exquisitos.