Chilaquiles won’t win any beauty contests but it’s comfort food at its most delicious.  At their most basic you have thick corn chips bathed in a warmed salsa of your choice.  Add some protein (chicken, beef, fried egg), or not and then garnish with any combination of cilantro, sour cream, avocado, white onion and pickled jalapeños. It’s the perfect late night nosh but works equally well for game day festivities or as an early morning pick me up.

You can make an easy salsa with minimal ingredients or buy a jar from the grocery store.  Both are equally delicious and I’ll give you instructions for both below.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

6 Roma tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise

1 white onion, peeled and quartered

2 serrano (or jalapeno) peppers, stem removed and halved

2 cloves garlic, peeled

1 tbsp canola oil

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp salt

OR  2 cups of store bought Mexican salsa (Herdez, PC black label, La Costena)

1 cup chicken (vegetable) stock

1 1/2 cups shredded chicken

220g thick corn tortilla chips

1 cup grated Monterey jack cheese

Garnishes

Fresh cilantro, avocado, sliced white onion, pickled jalapenos, sour cream.

Preheat oven 425F

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the tomatoes, onion, peppers and garlic on a sheet pan and coat the vegetables with oil.  Cook for 30min or until the vegetables start to char.

2. Remove the pan from the oven and slip the peels off of the tomatoes and discard. Add all the vegetables along with the cumin, oregano, salt and chicken stock to a blender (remove the fill cap to allow any steam to escape) and blend on high until you have a smooth salsa.

3. Add the salsa (homemade or store-bought) and chicken stock to a medium skillet placed over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer and cook for 2min. Add in the chicken and corn chips and fold into the sauce so everything is well coated. Cook for 3-5min until the chips soak up most of the sauce. Scatter the grated cheese over the top.

4. Garnish with your choice of toppings and serve immediately.

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