HUEVOS RANCHEROS FRIED TORTILLAS, FRIED EGGS, AND SALSA

For huevos rancheros, fried eggs are laid on top of fried corn tortillas, and then hot salsa is ladled on top. You can use any salsa you want. This is another great vehicle for Salsa Mexicana, but it’s equally good with Salsa Verde (this page) or Salsa de Chile Morita (this page). The trick, especially when making huevos rancheros for a group, is to time the frying of the tortillas and the eggs so that both are hot when you’re ready to serve them. I recommend prefrying a stack of tortillas and keeping them warm in a covered container so that you can focus on the slightly more sensitive task of frying eggs, which must be served immediately upon cooking. It’s too hard to fry both eggs and tortillas at the same time. You don’t need much oil for tortilla frying. In fact, less oil is better; too much can result in a soggy mess. Salsa Mexicana is the little black dress of salsas. It’s simple but not boring, goes with just about everything, and can be pulled together with very little effort. Like anything “a la Mexicana,” this salsa earns its name because the red, green, and white of the tomatoes, chiles and onion share the colors of the Mexican fl ag. You can leave out the tomatoes and make an even simpler salsa of just onions and chiles that tastes great on scrambled eggs or paired with Huevos Libaneses (this page). When you make Salsa Mexicana, be sure to core the tomatoes well—completely removing and discarding the seeds and their surrounding juices— otherwise they’ll make the salsa too watery.

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Step 1

Heat the salsa in a saucepan over low heat. Let it simmer while you fry the tortillas and then the eggs.

Step 2

Start by frying as many tortillas as you’re going to need, so that you’ll have two per person. You need a container with a lid to keep them warm after you fry them. I have a basket that I like, but a stainless-steel pot with a lid works, too. Line the bottom of the container with a brown paper bag to absorb the oil and place next to you when you start frying the tortillas.

Step 3

Warm 1 Tbsp of the oil in a skillet over medium heat. (You’ll know it’s hot enough when the edge of a tortilla sizzles slightly when dipped in the oil.) Drop in one tortilla at a time and let it fry for no more than 30 seconds per side, fl ipping it with tongs. Remove the tortilla from the pan, letting the excess oil drain off into the pan, and then place the tortilla on the paper bag at the bottom of the pot and cover with the lid. Continue in this way, stacking each fried tortilla on top of the one you just fi red, adding more oil to the pan when needed. Once the tortillas are done and staying warm in a container with the lid on, it’s time to fry the eggs.

Step 4

Pour ¼ cup / 60ml of the oil in the same pan in which you fried your tortillas and bring it back up to that sizzling temperature. In my family, we always fry eggs in a fair bit of oil, because it results in lacy, crisp-edged eggs every time, and you don’t need a nonstick pan. Once the oil is hot, gently crack 2 eggs into the pan at once. The oil may splatter a bit, so be on guard. Using a spoon, baste the whites with the hot oil while they’re frying, making sure they cook completely and get crispy on the edges. Fry until the whites are totally set but the yolks are still a little runny. The eggs should cook in about 1 minute.

Step 5

Place 2 fried tortillas on a serving plate. Using a slotted spoon, remove the eggs one at a time, shaking off the excess oil and depositing them on the fried tortillas. Ladle the warm salsa in a ring around the egg whites, leaving just the yolks exposed. Season the yolks with a pinch of salt, sprinkle with onion, and lay a few slices of avocado on top and serve. Repeat with the remaining tortillas and eggs.

Step 6

HUEVOS DIVORCIADOS / FRIED EGGS WITH RED AND GREEN SALSAS VARIATION If you ladle green salsa on one half of the plate, over one fried egg, and red salsa on the other half, over a second fried egg, this dish becomes huevos divorciados (divorced eggs), for obvious reasons.

Step 7

Use any green- and red-colored salsas that you like. You can apply the same principle to other dishes, too, like chilaquiles (see this page) to make chilaquiles divorciados, for example.

Step 8

Warm the oil in a small heavy-bottom saucepan over medium heat until it’s hot but not smoking. Add the onion and chiles and sauté until the onion is translucent but not browned. Add the garlic and tomatoes and cook for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables look stewed.

Step 9

Transfer the vegetables to a blender and blend until completely pureed. Return the mixture to the pan and simmer over low heat for another 10 minutes, until the sauce has reduced by about one-third.

Step 10

Add the cilantro and salt. Taste and add more salt if needed.

Step 11

This salsa is usually served hot. It can be stored in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. When I make it without tomatoes, I prefer to eat it when it’s freshly made.