Chilaquiles and an Easy Salsa Verde

Do you know what chilaquiles are? They’re one of the my favorite breakfast/brunch foods.

Chilaquiles are a mix of (leftover) fried tortillas cooked with salsa and various add-ins. Delicious! I was reminded of them when my friend and I had brunch at PS 450, where they do them with red salsa and eggs…perfect brunch. This morning as I was watching NY1 (a morning without In The Papers, is like a morning without caffeine) there was a report from Chow.com. Turned out to be all about chilaquiles. Alex Van Buren likened them to nachos, but eaten with a fork and knife and she’s right. They’re super easy to make, kind of like scrambled eggs with tortilla chips. Chilaquiles are good for using up leftovers. Much like nachos, you can toss anything into them and they’ll taste great. Here’s the version I made for lunch (for 1 person), but feel free to multiply and improvise. Start to finish this took about 10 minutes (not including the salsa).

Chilaquiles with Salsa Verde

• 1 egg beaten with a fork
• 1/2 cup salsa verde (recipe below)
• 1 big handful tortilla chips (purists are wincing, you can cut tortillas up into wedges and fry them, but why bother?)
• 1/2 chicken breast shredded (from a rotisserie chicken, dark meat works fine too)
• 1/2 cup Monterey Jack cheese, grated (any cheese you would use for quesadillas will work fine)
• dollop of sour cream (or Mexican crema)
• chopped cilantro for garnish

Mix the egg and salsa in a bowl, add the chips and chicken and toss to coat. Heat a large saute pan over medium heat, and add the chip mixture. Cook until the egg is cooked and the chicken is warmed. Plate. Top with the cheese, sour cream and cilantro. Red salsa will also work, but I always prefer green.

Salsa Verde

• 1 pound of tomatillos, husk removed and rinsed to remove stickiness
• 1-2 serrano or jalapeno chiles
• 2-3 cloves garlic-do not peel
• 1 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped
• salt to taste

Put the tomatillos in a pot of water to cover, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cook until they change color, they will go from a bright green to an olive drab. Drain.

While the tomatillos are cooking, put the unpeeled garlic and the chiles in a small frying pan and toast them over medium heat until browned on all sides. Remove from heat and when cool enough to handle, peel the garlic. If you want you can seed the chiles, then coarsely chop them.

Put the cooked tomatillos, the garlic, chiles, and cilantro in a food processor or blender, and process until everything is combined and the consistency is to your liking. Taste and add salt, additional chiles and/or cilantro to taste. Start with one chile, and then add more depending on how hot you want it.

How do you like your chilaquiles?