Spicy San Diego Chilaquiles
Besides the pretty white sand beaches and the palm trees, San Diego culture boasts its distinctive taste in the culinary scene. Street tacos, delicious and creamy lobster rolls, midwest style brunch, Peruvian platters of paella. You name it! Aside from all of the above, my favorite is Mexican food, most particularly these Spicy San Diego Chilaquiles pronounced (Chee-lah-khee-lace) .
Last time I visited San Diego it was for my best friends bachelorette and the first place we ubered to was a brunch spot and had the best Chilaquiles ever. They were spicy, tangy, crispy, and just perfect. When I got home, I HAD to recreate them for my family. Now, I must say, I have the best and super easy spicy Chilaquiles recipe full of delicious flavors.
Chilaquiles is a simple dish usually eaten for breakfast. It consists of corn tortilla chips layered under a tangy tomatillo sauce, topped with beans and fried or scrambled eggs. Then garnished with queso fresco, cilantro, crema and whatever you may desire. This is the most easy going recipe and there is no wrong way to how you make or eat this delicious dish.
Main Ingredients.
Tomatillos: Chilaquiles can be made with Roja (Red) or Verde ( Green) salsa. I personally love Verde because it has a good level of acidity and lots of flavor and therefore the Tomatillos. You can certainly use a store bought canned enchilada sauce if you like but since the sauce is the main part of this dish , I like to make it at home. Honestly its easier than it looks.
Tortilla Chips: I like using any store bought corn tortilla chips. I will heat these on a baking sheet just before layering. Add some cheese too if you like, its totally up to you. The beauty of this dish is how versatile it is and the function often has been to extend the use of stale chips that are losing that crunch sitting in your pantry. Tortillas start to soften and absorb the beautiful flavors when immersed in the sauce and this is what creates two opposite textures that go wonderfully well with each other.
Egg: The main ingredient that makes this dish perfect for breakfast. That’s right a simple Egg. I like to season it with salt an and pepper. But I’ll fry it or scramble it depending on my mood.
You can’t go wrong with adding meat to this dish either. You can consider adding crispy, chopped turkey Bacon to kick it up a notch or some spicy sausage. So go ahead, do what your heart desires!
One thing to note when you’re making these is to heat the sauce that you’ll be adding on top of your chips to simmer just before you pour it over the tortillas. This way the tortillas will absorb all the garlic and spicy tanginess.
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Have any questions? Ask below in the comment section or on my Instagram.
San Diego Chilaquiles
Ingredients
Chilaquiles Verde Sauce
- ¼ cup Olive Oil
- 1.5 lb Tomatillos (10-12) Peeled and Rinsed
- 1 Habanero pepper
- 1 to 2 Serrano peppers
- ½ Large Red Onion or 1 small Onion cut in half
- 4 to 5 Garlic cloves Peeled
- 1/2 to 1 cup Water
Layers and Toppings
- 4 cups Corn Tortilla Chips 1 small bag
- ½ cup Mexican Cheese blend Shredded Monterey Jack & Cheddar
- 1 can Pinto Beans Rinsed
- 3 large Eggs
- ½ cup Mexican Crema
- 2 ounces Queso Fresco crumbled
- 1/2 bunch Cilantro chopped
Instructions
Verde Salsa
- Heat a large cast iron pan on medium-high heat and and add oil. Add all ingredients for Verde Sauce except water.
- Grill all ingredients until charred to your liking. Set aside to cool.
- Add all charred ingredients to a blender. Pour water slowly and blend alternately until mixture reaches a smooth salsa like consistency.
- Transfer salsa to a saucepan and Simmer. Add more water if salsa starts to thicken.
Chilaquiles Layers
- In the same cast iron or a seperate frying pan, cook the eggs to your liking and set aside
- Now in the same cast iron, toss the chips, top with cheese and transfer to a serving dish.
- Add simmered Salsa all over the chips. Top with Egg.
- Using a spoon, drizzle Crema , add crumbled queso and chopped cilantro to garnish