Chilaquiles
If you’ve ever wanted to learn How to make Chilaquiles with Homemade Red Chile from New Mexico Chile Pods, then this is the recipe for you! I top off these chilaquiles with a fried egg, because this is one of my favorite things to eat for breakfast. But, of course, chilaquiles are delicious any time of day or night.
Ingredients for the red chile sauce
For the chilaquiles you will need
Optional for garnish
Instructions
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To make these chilaquiles
Clean chile pods with a small knife, removing stems, seeds, veins & any blemishes. (The seeds & veins are what give the chile heat, so if you want it mild, remove all of them. If you want it hotter, leave a few in.) Wash the pods in warm water, making sure they’re nice and clean. Then, let them soak in hot water for about 10 minutes, until the chile pods become a little softer. Remove from water & place them in a blender. Add the garlic, oregano, cumin and salt. Then pour in most, but not all of your water. (This way you can eyeball it and see how much more water it needs, so your chile isn’t too thick or too runny.) Blend and add water as necessary. You can stop blending when you have a consistent red chile sauce. Heat a large skillet over the stove and add about a Tbsp of oil. When it’s nice and hot, pour chile sauce into skillet and let it come to a boil. Once it boils, lower heat and let it continue to simmer for approx. 10 minutes.
[This is your basic red chile sauce that can be used any number of ways; enchiladas, chilaquiles, chile con carne, tamales, menudo, or just drizzle it over an omelette. It’s fantastic! And it keeps well in the refrigerator.] But on to the Chilaquiles…
Heat vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat. Stack your corn tortillas on a cutting board, and with a knife cut them into small pieces. I like cutting mine into triangles, like a pizza. But you can cut them into thin little strips or tear them with your hands, however you like them. Once cut, put them to fry in the hot frying pan, turning them as you go. You want them to get crispy. Take them out of the frying pan, place them on a plate or cookie sheet covered with paper towels and let the excess oil drain off. Remove excess oil from frying pan then place pan back on burner. Put fried tortillas back in pan, pour red chile over the fried tortillas, add cheese and onion to taste and let cook a little longer until cheese gets melty. Remove. Add a little more cheese and onion on top, and serve while hot.
I like to garnish with a little cilantro and Mexican crema or sour scream, then top it all off with a fried egg. There’s just something about the warm egg yolk running over the red chile that is SO YUMMY!
