Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (2024)

  • Vegetarian Mexican
  • Brunch
  • Gluten-Free Breakfast
  • Easy Breakfast
  • Vegetarian

Comforting and satisfying, chilaquiles make for an easy, hearty breakfast.

By

Elise Bauer

Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (1)

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

Learn about Simply Recipes'Editorial Process

Updated January 31, 2024

Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (2)

14 ratings

Chilaquiles. Chee-lah-KEE-less! I mentioned I wanted to make chilaquiles to a Mexican friend the other day and you should have seen the smile and look of rapture that came over his face.

This is true Mexican comfort food, what your mom made you for breakfast when she had some stale tortillas that needed to get used up.

What Are Chilaquiles?

Chilaquiles are basically corn tortilla pieces that are fried, cooked in salsa, and sprinkled with cheese. They are often served for breakfast with eggs and a side of beans or nopalitos.

My mother grew up with her mother making them with green chile tomato salsa and grated longhorn cheese, a Tex Mex version.

Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (3)

Chilaquiles With Red or Green Sauce

I recently brought some homemade salsa verde over to my friend Arturo's house and he made two traditional Mexican versions for me, one with the salsa verde, and one with a red chile sauce made with dried ancho chiles. Recipes for both follow.

Do you like enchiladas? Chilaquiles are basically the same ingredients, but with a lot less work. No rolling.

Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (4)

More Salsas for Chilaquiles

Feel free to use store-bought salsa in this recipe, but if you're inclined to make your own from scratch we've included recipes for homemade salsas at the end of our recipe. Here are a few more options:

  • Simple Cooked Tomato Salsa
  • Tomatillo Salsa Verde

Ways to Top Chilaquiles

Make your chilaquiles your own—here are some popular toppings:

  • Eggs, fried or scrambled
  • Shredded chicken, pork, or beef
  • Refried beans
  • Nopalitos
  • Guacamole

Finish your dish with some of these tasty garnishes:

  • Crumbled cheese, such as cotija or queso fresco
  • Crema Mexicana or crème fraîche
  • Chopped cilantro
  • Chopped red onion
  • Sliced avocado

5 More Ways to Use Salsa

If you enjoy cooking with bright, flavorful salsas, here are more dishes to try:

  • Chile Verde
  • Chipotle Salsa Baked Chicken
  • Huevos Rancheros
  • Green Chile Enchiladas
  • Red Chili Chicken Enchiladas

From the Editors Of Simply Recipes

Easy Chilaquiles

Servings4 servings

It will help with the frying if your tortillas are a little dry. If they're fresh, cut them first, put them in a warm oven for a few minutes first to dry them out a bit, then proceed.

For easy homemade salsa verde and red chile sauce recipes, look at the bottom of the page.

Ingredients

  • 12 corn tortillas, preferably stale, or left out overnight to dry out a bit, quartered or cut into 6 wedges

  • Corn oil, or other neutral oil for frying

  • Kosher salt

  • 1 1/2 to 2 cups red chile sauce or salsa verde, store-bought or homemade (see end of recipe for homemade versions)

  • Sprigs ofepazote, optional

Garnishes

  • Cotija cheeseorqueso fresco

  • Crema Mexicana or creme fraiche

  • Cilantro, chopped

  • 1 red onion, chopped

  • Avocado, sliced or roughly chopped

Method

  1. Fry the tortillas:

    In a large sauté pan, coat pan generously with corn oil, (1/8 inch), heat on medium high to high. When the oil is quite hot, add the tortillas, fry until golden brown.

    Remove tortillas to a paper towel lined plate to soak up excess oil. Sprinkle a little salt on the tortillas.

    Wipe pan clean of any browned bits of tortillas.

    Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (5)

  2. Heat the salsa:

    Add 2 tablespoons of oil to pan, bring to high heat again. Add the salsa and let salsa cook for several minutes. If you have a few sprigs of epazote, add them to the salsa.

    Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (6)

  3. Add fried tortillas to the salsa:

    Add the fried tortilla quarters to the salsa. Gently turn over the pieces of tortilla until they are all well coated with salsa. Let cook for a few minutes more.

    Remove from heat. Serve chilaquiles with garnishes and fried eggs and beans or nopalitos.

    Did you love the recipe? Give us some stars and leave a comment below!

    Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (7)

Red chile sauce

Take 4 dried ancho chiles, remove seeds, stems, and veins. Heat chiles lightly on a skillet on medium heat to draw out their flavor. Put chilies in a saucepan, pour boiling hot water over to cover. Let sit for 15 minutes. Add chiles, 2 garlic cloves, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 1 1/2 cups of chile soaking liquid to a blender. Hold down lid of blender tightly while blending, blend until completely puréed. Strain through a mesh sieve into a frying pan to make the chilaquiles.

Salsa verde

Put 1 pound tomatillos, husks removed, into a saucepan, cover with water by an inch. Add 1 jalapeno, stems and seeds removed. Add 2 cloves garlic. Bring to a boil. Cook for 5 minutes until tomatillos have changed color and are cooked through. Use slotted spoon to remove tomatillos, jalapeno and garlic to a blender. Add a cup of the cooking liquid. Blend until completely puréed. Add salt to taste.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
264Calories
10g Fat
40g Carbs
5g Protein

×

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories264
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 10g13%
Saturated Fat 1g6%
Cholesterol 0mg0%
Sodium 898mg39%
Total Carbohydrate 40g14%
Dietary Fiber 7g24%
Total Sugars 5g
Protein 5g
Vitamin C 15mg74%
Calcium 69mg5%
Iron 2mg9%
Potassium 445mg9%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate. In cases where multiple ingredient alternatives are given, the first listed is calculated for nutrition. Garnishes and optional ingredients are not included.

Make These Easy Chilaquiles for Breakfast With Just Tortillas, Eggs, and Salsa (2024)

FAQs

What is a Mexican breakfast dish with eggs and salsa? ›

A classic Mexican breakfast, huevos rancheros (translated "ranch eggs") are fried eggs served on a lightly fried corn tortillas and smothered in cooked salsa.

Should chilaquiles be crunchy or soft? ›

The best chilaquiles (the kind we're after) aren't so much wet as moist, and aren't so much limp as "gently softened until the chips retain just a bit of crunch but dissolve in your mouth into a mix of comforting starch and hot salsa." But still, when it comes down to it, chilaquiles are essentially soggy nachos—an ...

What is the difference between migas and chilaquiles? ›

But there's a difference in that regard: migas usually feature short strips of fried tortilla, while chilaquiles use what are essentially tortilla chips. There are other distinctions too. The tortillas in migas are mixed with scrambled eggs; chilaquiles' are drenched in salsa.

What is a famous breakfast in Mexico? ›

Chilaquiles is one of the most popular Mexican breakfast dishes. They are prepared with deep-fried tortillas soaked in either a red tomato-based sauce or a green sauce made with tomatillos. The best part? It is topped with a dollop of cream, grated cheese, and onion slices.

What is a Cuban breakfast? ›

A typical Cuban breakfast consists of bread slices wet in café con leche, a combination of strong coffee with warm milk. A typical Cuban breakfast consists of bread slices wet in café con leche, a combination of strong coffee with warm milk. 1.

How to keep chilaquiles from getting soggy? ›

How do you prevent chilaquiles from getting soggy? The beauty of Chilaquiles is that they do get a bit soggy. But you can prevent them being TOO soggy by just adding a bit of salsa at a time until every chip is just lightly coated!

Who typically eats chilaquiles? ›

This dish is found all throughout Mexico, and at its most basic, it consists of fried tortilla chips covered with a red or green salsa, which makes the chip soft. Chilaquiles are commonly served with a side of refried beans and are eaten quite regularly in most Mexican homes.

What do people eat with chilaquiles? ›

Serve with a scrambled or fried egg on top, or with cheese, shredded chicken, or roasted veggies — the options are endless.

What is similar to chilaquiles? ›

Chilaquiles and migas are both popular Mexican breakfast dishes that feature tortilla chips and eggs, but there are key differences in their other ingredients. Chilaquiles typically include salsa or mole as their primary sauce, which is used to coat the tortilla chips before cooking.

What ethnicity are chilaquiles? ›

Now known as a staple in Mexican cuisine (as well as brunch culture in SoCal and Texas), Chilaquiles goes all the way back to the Aztecs. In fact, the word “chilaquiles” comes from the Nahuatl (Uto-Aztecan) language which means chile water.

Are huevos rancheros the same as chilaquiles? ›

Depending on where it's prepared, huevos rancheros may also include pinto beans, rice, avocado, or fried potatoes to bulk up the already-hearty breakfast. In contrast, chilaquiles are prepared with fried tortilla chips, traditionally made to use up ones that have gone stale.

What is the difference between migas and huevos rancheros? ›

What is the difference between migas and huevos rancheros? Migas are made with freshly fried tortillas mixed with eggs while huevos rancheros are made with fried tortillas topped with a fried eggs and a ranchero sauce.

Why is it called chilaquiles? ›

The word chilaquiles (pronunced: [tʃilaˈkiles] or chee-lah-kee-lehs) derives from an ancient word in the Aztec Nahuatl language meaning “chilis and greens.” The Nahuatl language originated in Central Mexico and can still be heard spoken today in some regional communities.

What is the difference between huevos rancheros and shakshuka? ›

Huevos Rancheros uses traditional spice salsa. Israeli shakshuka uses chopped tomatoes flavoured with paprika, cumin, and turmeric. Also, the Mexican version is often served in a tortilla with refried beans and hot peppers, and shakshuka is usually not as hot and eaten with bread.

What is the Mexican tradition with eggs? ›

Cascarones are common throughout Mexico and are similar to the Easter eggs popular in many other countries. They are mostly used in Mexico during Carnival, but in American and Mexican border towns, the cultures combined to make them a popular Easter tradition.

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