Chilaquiles
Chilaquiles consist of fried corn tortilla chips simmered in a brothy sauce. Not only is this dish affordable, but it’s also great for entertaining. Because you make the major components (the chips and the sauce) in advance.
In this episode of Cooking with Milwaukee Community Leaders, Host Charlie sits down with Luis Hernandez, Associate Athletic Director and Head of Strategic Communications at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, to discuss his journey from the southeast side of Chicago to leadership in sports communications. They talk about his career path, community work, and stories from Madison and Milwaukee.
The episode features a hands-on cooking segment where Luis guides Charlie through making his mom’s chilaquiles rojos, finishing the dish with fried eggs, queso fresco, crema, and avocado—blending personal history with a simple, comforting recipe.
“Cooking with Milwaukee Community Leaders” is part of the Milwaukee Podcast Network (https://milwaukeepodcastnetwork.com/). This show is an Interview and cooking show with Milwaukee Community Leaders.
You can also listen to the audio version of this episode here –
Chilaquiles are Comfort Food at its best
Many Latinos and Hispanics grew up eating chilaquiles (pronounced “chee-lah-KEE-lehs”) for breakfast. Crispy tortillas swimming in a rich salsa, covered with plenty of cheese? It’s simplicity at its best. Chilaquiles can be topped with anything your hungry heart desires, such as scrambled eggs or fried eggs.
Sour cream, pico de gallo, queso fresco, or avocado are all great toppings. It’s best to place bowls of toppings on the table so everyone can choose what they like. Because it’s so versatile, this dish is also the perfect opportunity to use up any leftovers found in the fridge.
Today, we are sharing the absolute easiest chilaquiles recipe, sure to have you in and out of the kitchen, smiling from ear to ear on Sunday morning.
Why You’ll Love Chilaquiles
- You can make them in under 30 minutes. Chilaquiles are amazing for weeknights when you need a dish that’s ready in under 30 minutes.
- They are completely customizable. Serve chilaquiles with scrambled or fried eggs on top, topped with queso fresco or cotija, chorizo, shredded chicken, or roasted veggies — the options are endless.
What Are Chilaquiles?
The word chilaquiles comes from the Nahuatl language, meaning chilis and greens. It is a traditional dish from Mexico. The recipe found its way to the United States in the late 1890’s, when it was featured in The Spanish Cookbook, by Encarnación Pinedo. At its most basic, chilaquiles consist of fried corn tortilla chips simmered in a brothy sauce
Key Ingredients in Chilaquiles
- Corn tortillas: We don’t recommend using flour tortillas, but if you’re short on time, you could skip the frying step and swap in that bag of stale tortilla chips in your pantry.
- Salsa: You can use jarred salsa or homemade salsa using tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, garlic, and broth.
- Garnishes: It’s all about the toppings here, such as avocado, queso fresco, crema, and a fried egg.
How to Make Chilaquiles
- Fry the tortillas. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add about a quarter of the tortilla wedges and cook, flipping once, until lightly brown and crisp.
- Drain the tortilla chips. Drain the freshly fried tortilla chips on a paper towel-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle lightly with salt. Repeat this process until all tortillas are fried, adding more oil if needed.
- Make the salsa roja. Place the tomatoes, onion, jalapeño, and garlic in a blender or food processor. Pour in a cup of the broth. Blend until smooth.
- Cook the salsa. Heat a couple of teaspoons of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the salsa and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened. Add additional broth to thin out the salsa, if needed. Taste and season with salt as needed.
- Coat the chips with the salsa. Add the tortilla chips and stir carefully to coat the chips. Cook until the tortillas are warm. Taste and season with salt as needed.
- Serve warm. Serve warm, garnished with avocado or guacamole, crema, queso fresco, and/or fried eggs, if desired.
What’s the Difference Between Chilaquiles Verdes, Chilaquiles Rojos, and Migas?
- Chilaquiles verdes: The salsa is made from tomatillos, onions, jalapeños, and cilantro.
- Chilaquiles rojos: The salsa is made from tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, garlic, and veggie broth. Both verdes and rojos are cooked using the same technique — it simply comes down to the cook’s preference for which salsa they prefer.
- Migas: Chilaquiles are also sometimes confused with migas, a more egg-forward Mexican dish consisting of diced corn tortillas, fried until golden, sautéed onion, tomato, and serrano, and served with scrambled eggs.
Chilaquiles – Mexican Comfort Food
Equipment
- Heavy Bottom or Cast Iron Pan
Materials
For the chips:
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil for frying
- 12 corn tortillas cut or torn into wedges
- Kosher salt
- For salsa roja:
For the salsa roja
- 4 Roma tomatoes chopped
- 1/2 large yellow onion chopped
- 1 medium jalapeño sliced
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 1/4 cups vegetable broth
- 2 tsp vegetable oil
- Kosher salt to taste
For Serving
- 1 Avocado Diced
- 1 cup Mexican Crema
- 8 oz Queso fresco
- 1 Fried egg per person
Instructions
To make the salsa roja
- Place chopped tomatoes, chopped onion, sliced jalapeño, and 2 cloves of peeled garlic in a blender.
- Pour in 1 cup of vegetable broth. Blend until smooth.
Fry the tortillas
- Tear the tortillas into quarters, resembling chips
- Heat 1/4 cup oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- Add about a quarter of the tortilla wedges and cook, flipping once, until lightly brown and crisp.
- Drain the freshly fried tortilla chips on a paper towel-lined baking sheet.
- Sprinkle lightly with salt.
- Repeat this process until all tortillas are fried, adding more oil if needed.
- Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering.
- Add the salsa roja and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 5 to 10 minutes
- Add additional broth to thin out the salsa, if needed. Taste and season with salt as needed.
- Add the tortilla chips and stir carefully to coat the chips.
- Cook until the tortillas are heated through, about 3 minutes. Taste and season with salt as needed.
- Serve warm garnished with diced avocado or guacamole, crema, queso fresco, and/or fried eggs, if desired.
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If you like this recipe, Chilaquiles, you will also enjoy trying our other recipes. This is our recipe for Thai Beef Massaman Curry.
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