Simple 20 Minute Chilaquiles

A simple and fiesty Mexican brunch dish that’s perfect for any time of day! These Chilaquiles Rojos are made with homemade tortilla chips and smothered in a spicy chipotle tomato sauce, all topped with cheese and creamy avocado.

What is chilaquiles rojos?

It’s essentially a peasant dish of stale tortillas simmered in a tomato sauce. A traditional Mexican breakfast dish, it’s perfect for any time due to its quick cooking and easy prep nature.

So, stale tortillas get simmered in either a tomato or a green salsa, depending on the region, and served with fried eggs and sprinkled with cheese. Comfort food made from the heart.

Chilaquiles is usually a breakfast food in Mexico, but for me, these feel more like a busy dinner time kinda deal. Not only because they’re quick to make, but because they very much remind me of nachos.

But let me be clear… I am not claiming that this chilaquiles are in any way authentic. I’ve done my research, and made my adaptations considering geographic location and the fact that I’ve never had the real deal.

So, I don’t have anything to compare it to. But for the authentic version, you simmer tortilla chips in a salsa or mole sauce and then add cheese and jalapeno peppers and red onion. So, we’re kinda there… kinda.

The beauty of these tortilla chips is that they’re homemade!

I bought corn and flour tortillas and cut them into wedges and drizzled with some olive oil and baked them, rather than get a bag of fried tortilla chips. As a note, you could totally use whole grain tortilla chips. I just really love the corn variety. Don’t judge me!

Then all that happened was that I simmered a tin of tomatoes with a very heaping tablespoon of chipotle paste. But again, you could use mole or another Mexican seasoning paste. Pibil has a milder flavor if you’re worried about too much heat. Added my chips, tossed them around a little, then added all that jazzy stuff on top.

More chilaquiles rojos toppings

1. refried beans
2. beef
3. pulled chicken
4. Greek yogurt

As another note, I used feta rather than the traditional queso fresco, because it’s just not available near me. I’ve heard they’re very similar, so we’re just making new versions of the classics.

And we’re gonna all enjoy these new classics all day long!

Print Recipe

Simple 20 minute Chilaquiles

Homemade tortilla chips tossed in a rich tomato chipotle sauce and topped with fresh tomatoes and chillies. And cheese... always cheese.

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time10 mins

Total Time20 mins

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings: 4

Calories: 559kcal

Author: Debs

Ingredients

• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup chopped cilantro
• 2 medium jalepenos
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 Tbsp chipotle paste
• 2 Tbsp lime juice
• 1/2 sliced red onion/ shallots
• 4 cups tortilla chips/ 6 tortillas baked into chips
• 1/2 avocado
• feta
• roasted pumpkin seeds
• hot sauce

Instructions

• Spay the tortillas with olive oil and bake in the oven until crispy.
• Heat an oven proof skillet over a medium heat and add the chopped tomatoes.
• Let the tomatoes simmer until half of the liquid is gone.
• Add the chipotle paste and the lime juice.
• Toss in the tortilla chips and stir around.
• Top with the feta cheese, jalepeno peppers and red onion.
• Broil 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle with the cilantro/coriander and pumpkin seeds.
• Serve with lime wedges and slices of avocado.

Notes

Serves 4.