Huevos rancheros
Yield
2
Cooking Time
20 mins
Preparation Time
15 mins
You’ll find countless interpretations, but this is very quick and deeply satisfying considering the sum of its parts – pretty much just eggs, warm salsa and corn tortillas. I serve it with a little grated cheese, sliced avocado and a few coriander leaves, but I’ve frequently seen it with feta, pico de gallo (tomato, onion and chilli salsa), black beans and sizzling chorizo thrown into the mix.
Ingredients
400 g (14 oz) tin of good-quality chopped tomatoes
1 garlic clove
1 jalapeño or mild green chilli, roughly chopped
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon caster (superfine) sugar
½ teaspoon ground cumin
4 eggs
4 small corn tortillas
40 g (1½ oz) grated red Leicester cheese (or Cheddar)
small handful of coriander leaves, roughly chopped
½ avocado, peeled, halved and sliced
Method
Tip the tomatoes into a small blender or food processor with the garlic, chilli (you can remove the seeds but I think the sauce needs a bit of heat), salt, sugar and cumin. Blitz until smooth, then tip into a large frying pan (skillet). Rinse out the jug with a splash of water and add the water to the pan. Bring the salsa to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8–10 minutes. The aim is for the garlic to cook out and mellow in flavour, and the sauce to thicken.
Make 4 rough indents in the sauce with a spoon (it will still be quite loose so don’t worry if they don’t hold completely). Crack an egg into each indent.
Cover the pan with a lid or a sheet of kitchen foil and leave to cook gently for 4–5 minutes until the egg whites are just set but the yolks are still soft.
While the eggs are cooking, toast the tortillas. I like to lay them over a naked flame on the hob until they char in places, then flip them, but you can also dry-toast them in a hot frying pan or griddle pan, or warm them in a hot oven.
In this recipe I cook them for a little longer than usual so they crisp up slightly, as they’ll end up softening in the sauce. Place 2 tortillas on each plate and spoon over the eggs and salsa. Scatter over the cheese and coriander and serve with sliced avocado.
Notes on chilli
Although we know certain varieties of chilli are hotter than others, it’s hard to gauge the heat of a chilli without tasting it (although as a general rule, smaller tends to be hotter). I always cut off a small piece and try it before I start cooking, then I can add as little or as much as I want, seeds or no seeds, to reach the desired heat. If you choose to deseed your chillies, a great little tip I learned is to halve the chilli lengthways, then scoop out the seeds and membrane using a teaspoon.
A recipe from California: Living + Eating by Eleanor Maidment (Hardie Grant). Buy the book here.
This article originally appeared on House & Garden UK.
