Mexican Chilaquiles' only call to fame is as a hale miraculous hangover cure. The turth is, sore heads aside, it is a delicious and quick Mexican dish that can be found in local markets & street food stalls, as well as in the most exclusive restaurants in Mexico. We love them, and I make these Red Chilaquiles at home regularly as an alternative to the weekend full Irish breakfast for a bit of change.
Note: I see this as a quick breakfast, so I 'cut corners' a lot. I use shop bough corn tortillas and refried beans from My Mexican Shop of course (shameless plug in), but you can make your own corn tortillas following my recipe here or your own home made refried beans. Please DO NOT use wheat tortillas to try this. They will just turn into dough. This recipe makes a lovely breakfast or brunch for two.
Using a sharp knife, cut the corn tortillas into strips of about 1 centimetre wide and about 5 or 6 centimetres long. This will make them not only pretty, but also easy to fry.
Heat the oil in a deep, non-stick pan. Once the oil is hot, fry the tortilla strips until they are crispy, golden brown. Try not to stir them too much so they don't go soggy. I usually let them fry on one side till they're crispy and golden before I stir them or turn them to do the other side.
This is one of those dishes that is going to go a bit mushy on you no matter what, but you can prevent over mushiness (if that's a word?) by avoiding to stir it too much.
Once you're happy with the crispy tortilla strips, lower the heat a little and add the onion, garlic and chilli and cook for a couple of minutes until the onion is soften and translucent.
Add the chopped tomatoes and mix gently. Season with salt and pepper and cook everything at medium heat for 3 or 4 minutes or until the tomatoes have soften and form a sort of sauce around the now mushy tortilla strips. Don't worry if it looks a little messy, it's suppose to!
Take the pan off the heat and finish off by crumbling the Feta cheese over your red chilaquiles.
Your red chilaquiles are done! Serve them hot with a side of warm refried beans and a cup of strong coffee. A quick breakfast of champions and soreheads alike! Lovely as lunch as well.
