Is it breakfast? Is it lunch? Is it dinner? Or is it all three?! It’s kind of like those “choose your own adventure” books I’d read when I was a kid. You can have it anytime, day or night, and that’s the wonderful thing about this go to Mexican comfort food.
Is it breakfast? Is it lunch? Is it dinner? Or is it all three?! It’s kind of like those “choose your own adventure” books I’d read when I was a kid. You can have it anytime, day or night, and that’s the wonderful thing about this go to Mexican comfort food.
If you want to make it more of a breakfast or brunch dish then just throw a couple sunny side or scrambled eggs on top. You can also choose to keep your chips crunchy or soft, depending on how long you cook it. I like mine to sit right in the middle and soften up as I eat them. Today I made this dish for lunch but most of the time I like it piled high for breakfast.
Anytime I find myself south of the border in Mexico chilaquiles are one of the first things I try to find to start my day. They are typically made Oaxacan style with a smoky dried Chile pasilla that is rehydrated then blended with tomatoes.
My grocery store didn’t have a single dried chili so I went with my other favorite style, the verde. This sauce is cooked with roasted tomatillos, garlic and jalapeño and blended to form a tangy and smoky goodness that’s a wonderful savory base for this dish.
You can and should try to make your own tortilla chips for this but using them out of a bag is easy and still tastes great. I like to boil and shred 1 wild turkey breast from my harvest each year for dishes just like this. Finish with some Mexican crema or greek yogurt or sour cream, sliced onion, cilantro and queso fresco.
Enjoy!
Author:
Justin Adams
Ingredients
1 pound of tomatillos, husked and rinsed
1 fresh jalapeño, stemmed
2 garlic cloves, skin on
1/2 of a medium white onion, sliced thin
1 cup of chicken broth
1 cup of shredded wild turkey
5 cups of tortilla chips, or 5 large handfuls
Salt
Cilantro
Mexican crema
Queso fresco cheese
Eggs, if making for breakfast or brunch
Directions
Spread out tomatillos, jalapeño and garlic in a cast iron skillet or cookie sheet and roast under a broil until the skins of the tomatillo are blackened and soft. About 6 minutes. Turn everything over and roast on the other side for an additional 6 minutes. Remove from the oven and place into a blender or food processor, scraping all the juices from the pan. Blend until smooth.
Place cast iron or pan back on a burner to medium high heat. Add oil and once oil is shimmering slowly add the tomatillo sauce into the pan, stirring frequently, until the sauce has darkened and thickened. About 8 minutes.
Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer, stirring to combine for about 5 minutes.
Taste the sauce and season with salt to your liking.
The sauce should be soupy but not thin. If it’s not thickening then cook longer. If it’s reduced too quickly then add more chicken stock to get it back to the consistency of soup.
Add the shredded turkey to the sauce.
Add the tortilla chips to the sauce, careful not to break them
Turn off the heat and stir the sauce with the chips making sure every chip has sauce on it.
If you like your chips extra crunchy then immediately transfer to a plate. If you like them a bit softer then let the chips sit in the pan with the sauce for about 4 or 5 minutes before transferring.
Garnish with Mexican crema, onions, cilantro and cheese.
