How to Cook Chilaquiles

Serves: 6

Preparation time: 15 mins

Cooking time:1 hour

Ingredients needed to make Chilaquiles:

For the chilaquiles:

• 20 (6’’) corn tortillas, sliced into 8 wedges
• 3 dried ancho chiles, stemmed and deseeded
• 3 serrano chiles, stemmed and roughly chopped
• Juice of a medium lime
• 1 white onion, finely diced
• Bunch of fresh cilantro, stemmed and roughly chopped
• 2 tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped
• 2 cups canola oil
• ½ cup low-salt chicken stock
• 2 tsp sea salt

For serving:

• 3 chicken thighs, cooked and pulled
• 3 radishes, thinly sliced
• ¼ cup sour cream
• ¼ cup Cotija cheese
• 2 limes, sliced into wedges

Cooking instructions for Chilaquiles:

• Fill a small pot with water and bring it to a boil over high heat.
• Arrange the ancho chiles on a small skillet, in a single layer, and toast them for about 4 minutes, over moderate heat, until they give out a pungent aroma.
• Tip the toasted chiles into a heat-proof bowl and cover it with the boiling water; set aside to soak for about 10 minutes or until it softens.
• Drain them out into a blender and toss the chopped tomatoes, Serrano chiles, a cup of chopped cilantro leaves as well as ¾ of the onion dices into it.
• Sprinkle a dash of salt over them and empty the cups of chicken stock into the blender.
• Pulse them into a smooth puree and set aside.
• Pour oil in a large frying pan and heat it over moderately high flame to 350 degrees F.
• Throw the tortilla wedges into the hot oil and fry them in batches, for a minute, or until they turn crispy golden.
• Drain them out with the help of slotted spoon, into a baking sheet, lined with kitchen papers and toss them well along with a dash of salt.
• Skim off and strain the oil into a heat-proof bowl and wipe the pan clean.
• Heat it back over moderately high flame and pour ¼ of the oil back to the pan.
• Heat until it shimmers and pour in the chile puree.
• Sauté the mixture for about 7-8 minutes, while stirring regularly, until the raw smell disappears and it smells delicious.
• Lower the heat to moderate low and whisk in a splash of lime juice.
• Adjust the seasonings if necessary and stir in the fried tortillas gently so they don’t crumble but get properly coated with the sauce.
• Arrange the chilaquiles on a large serving platter and sprinkle the pulled chicken on top.
• Top it up with dollops of sour cream and arrange the radish slices in a single layer.
• Sprinkle the grated cheese over them, followed by rest of the diced onions and finish it off with the chopped cilantro above all.
• Serve alongside lime wedges.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Last Updated on February 27, 2013 by