Many of my friends aren’t familiar with Chilaquiles, which is a bit of a shame. Frankly, they sound a bit odd: Old tortillas broken into pieces, fried and then simmered in a sauce? One bite is all it will take to realize how wrong an assumption can be. The tortillas take on a life of their own in this Chilaquiles Verde; they not only thicken the bright, tangy tomatillo sauce but achieve a gorgeous texture, slightly softened with just a bit of chew; cooked right they’re simply sublime.
As some of you might have noticed, I have a bit of a passion for Mexican cuisine (and many of the Southwestern and Tex Mex dishes of the States, too). With Cinco de Mayo coming up & Mother’s Day right behind, Chilaquiles Verde seems the perfect dish! Tangy, bright and creamy with just a bit of heat, this is a showstopper of brunch dish. In case you’ve never heard of Chilaquiles, it’s pronounced like this.
That Chilaquiles is an easy dish and frugal, too, earns bonus points in my book. The recipe is said to be used in Mexico as a way to use up stale torillas. The chips, the Tomatillo sauce and chicken breast can be made the night before to be combined in the morning in minutes. That leaves plenty of time to cook up an egg or two and heat up some refried beans for an unbelievable spread for Mother’s Day or any old weekend. The chicken and the egg on the dish, as well as the beans might be just a bit of overkill in the protein, but for a special occasion? Why not!
I seldom cook chicken breast for this dish alone, although it’s easy enough to poach one or two up; instead I save a few minutes and make something up earlier in the week, Chicken Salad, Soup perhaps, or Tinga de Pollo. The chicken, itself, doesn’t have to be highly flavored, here, and it’s probably best if it isn’t so it doesn’t compete with the bright sauce. A little flavor, though, doesn’t hurt.
There are some who consider this to be a perfect “hang over” dish, but I think it’s a great dish for a party. I’m taking it to Fiesta Friday, put on by Angie of the Novice Gardener. The cohost this week is Anna of Anna International. Stop by her blog and visit!
There’s lots of ways to vary this dish. The Tomatillos, jalapenos and garlic may be roasted instead of boiled. A handful of cilantro may be added to the sauce. Chicken is optional but makes it a little special. I generally serve this with refried beans, an egg, and a little avocado. The sour cream or crema, I think you’ll realize, is essential to balance out the sauce, but the cheese can be varied any way you’d like. Queso is elegant, but a soft, melty cheese can be fun, too.
Chilaquiles with Tomatillo Sauce & Shredded Chicken Breast
Tortillas:
- 10 corn tortillas, preferably spread out to dry for several hours or overnight, cut or torn into pieces
- enough oil to come up about 3/4 inch or so in large saute pan
Pour oil into a large saute pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the tortillas, working in 2 or 3 batches, and cook until lightly browned and nearly crisp. Drain the tortillas on paper towels.
May be made the evening before.
Tomatillo Sauce:
- 1 pound tomatillos, papery skin removed
- 3 jalapenos
- 2 cloves garlic, peel removed
- water to cover
- 1 teaspoon salt
In a saucepan just large enough to hold the tomatillos with a bit of extra room, add tomatillos, jalapenos and garlic. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Cook until softened, lightened in color and floating to the top, about 25 minutes.
Strain, reserving liquid. Remove the stems from the jalapenos, seed if desired. (Removing the seeds makes a milder sauce) Add solids to blender with about 1/2 to 3/4 cups of the cooking liquid (enough to keep it moving) and blend several minutes.
Assembly:
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 1/2 cups chicken stock
- 1 or two chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
- 4 ounces queso fresco Mexican cheese, crumbled
- 1/2 white onion, thinly sliced, soaked in water 30 minutes
- 1 avocado, sliced
- Sour Cream or Crema as desired
- Cilantro for garnish
In a large saucepan over low heat, add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and heat through. Add the blended Tomatilla Sauce and chicken broth. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the tortillas to the simmering sauce, gently turning until slightly softened but still chewy, two to three minutes.
Divide tortillas and sauce between four plates. Layer each serving with the sour cream, shredded chicken, queso fresco, onions and avocados. Garnish with cilantro, if desired.
Serve with eggs any style and refried beans.
Note on the tortillas:
- Do try to search out thicker tortillas rather than thinner; they’re much heartier and stand up better to the sauce.
from the kitchen of www.frugalhausfrau.com
Nutrition:
Calories 532; Total Fat 33 g 50 %; Saturated Fat 12 g 58 %; Monounsaturated Fat 16 g; Polyunsaturated Fat 3 g
Trans Fat 0 g; Cholesterol 82 mg 27 %; Sodium 978 mg 41 %; Potassium 668 mg 19 %; Total Carbohydrate 33 g 11 %; Dietary Fiber 6 g 23 %; Sugars 8 g; Protein 27 g 54 %; Vitamin A 10 %; Vitamin C 34 %; Calcium 27 %; Iron 10 %
Wow – thanks for posting. I had never heard of it (saw it on a FoodTV show), so a google search brought me here. It’s out of this world – really REALLY good.
My only thing is, what am I going to do with 24 more oz of ‘table creme’….. 🙂
Thanks again
Well thanks so much for stopping by! It really is a favorite of mine, too! I have recipe on here for Rajas con Crema that could use up a little of that – but only calls for a 1/4 cup! I was thinking if you like these you might like the rajas. They’re easy to play around with so you can add what you like.
http://frugalhausfrau.com/2014/05/04/rajas-con-crema-tacos/
Hey, that looks great! I’d need to slide some flank or skirt in there, but it’s right up my alley. Thanks for the info, I’ve got it bookmarked.
That’s a great idea! I often see these at Mexican restaurant served with steak – minus any sweet potatoes! I never order it because I’m too distracted by everything else I love – tamales and rellanos! It’s always nice to chat with another Mexican food aficianado! 🙂
You can always follow me on FB, too – I try not to post too much “junk” the buttons on the right! Had to put in a plug!! lol!
Don’t do FB (except to comment on blogs! HA), are you on Twitter? Actually, I would probably just add your site to my RSS feed (feedly).
However, I wouldn’t consider a mexican food aficionado – I generally obsess over Vietnamese and other asian foods, but more recipes like this one might cause me to change direction! 🙂
Well Thanks, and yes I am on twitter and I’m a huge lover of Vietnamese/Asian food, too. Lucky for us we CAN have it all! 🙂 Twitter box is on left.
Fabulous! 🙂
Thanks much! 🙂
I love any kind of Mexican food – I just never fix it very often. I use to grow my own tomatillos and made the sauce every now and then. Will have to give this a try again as I am sure I will be able to buy them at the market 🙂
I’m too old and tired to keep up a garden anymore, but I wish that wasn’t the case! 🙂
I’m too old as well for a big garden; I just have 3 raised beds where I grow my select veggies. I just have not made this sauce since I use to grow them but now you have given me a recipe 🙂
🙂
Absolutely lovely recipe! I still have some home canned chicken I guess I can use that as well?
Absolutely. It would be great with this sauce.
Thanks! I will surely try it soon. I have to bake tortillas first though:S
I want toparty at your house, Signora! Yum! Thought of you when I found chipotles in adobo sauce at Walmart of all places this week! 🙂
Oooh, I know you were disappointed they were hard to get at your area. I think we could throw together quite a fiesta! I think you would really like this dish: http://frugalhausfrau.com/2015/02/12/grilled-steak-honey-chipotle-lime/
I think I may make this tomorrow and it can be my Cinco de Mayo post with credits to you! Thanks!
🙂 I just realized by the time Cinco de Mayo comes, I won’t be wanting any Mexican food! 🙂
I wish I’d read this recipe before I threw out the old tortillas I had decided were too dry to eat, this would have been much better plus it looks really tasty too. Next time I must try this!
To be honest, when I lived in the Southwest, I used to see Chilaquiles on menus but always had something I wanted to eat more and the thought didn’t sound that appealing. Then I was out for brunch with a friend and tasted hers – it was a wow moment! Now there’s no reason to toss those old tortillas at my house! 🙂 They make good chips, too, because there’s not so much moisture to have to dry out.
Wow! This sounds amazing!
Hi Elaine, they’re amazing! Do you have tomatillos in your neck of the woods? These are often made with a red sauce of various chilis instead, though – which are really good, too.
I think you can find tomatillos if you really look locally! I’ll have to explore 🙂
Agh!! I NEED to make this recipe.. one of my favorite brunch spots serves green chilaquiles with smoked chicken and I’m obsessed. Thanks for the inspiration!
Smoked Chicken?! Wow, I can only imagine how good that would be on this! I would love to see your version and photos! 🙂
Oh man this looks amazing! I love green chilis and tomatillos. Pinning!
Thanks Julie! Me, too! And I always appreciate the pins!
I’m afraid I probably have 2000 pins of recipes I want to try. Maybe I need one more category: Recipes I want to try before I die – it will include only those I absolutely cannot live without eating!
I keep having a must try which is replaced daily with a must try. 🙂
Great recipe! I do a chilaquiles with a red sauce, but have never tried it in a tomatillo sauce. Definitely going to now! Thank you for sharing.
I have a bit of a thing for Green Salsas, Sauces & Chilis! A personal bias, I guess! I haven’t tried the red, although I’ve seen it more often on restaurant menus! I have been meaning to try it sometime…:)
If you have an Aldi near you, the pricing is usually pretty good on the tomatillos.
I do love a good tomatillo salsa! And your Green Chili Breakfast Burritos (and green chili in general) are still high on my to try list. We do have Aldi’s here, so I might have to head there now! 🙂
LOL! I must have triggered something! 🙂 They have a great price on Chicken Breast this week, $1.89 a pound. At least that’s great in my area!