WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS? Traditional migas, which literally translates as “crumbs,” is an appealing dish of fluffy scrambled eggs with onions, chiles, cheese, and crushed tortilla chips, which soften in the eggs to a pleasantly chewy texture. Although most of the recipes we found for this dish used fried chips, we found that they gave the eggs an off-flavor and made the dish overly greasy. We got better results from baked tortilla chips, which had a clean corn flavor. Softening the vegetables before adding them to the eggs helped to drive off excess moisture and keep the egg and tortilla mixture light and fluffy. A handful of pepper Jack cheese and cilantro finished off our creamy, flavorful scramble with a bit of punch.
SERVES: 4
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 onion, chopped fine
- 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped fine
- 1 jalapeño chile, stemmed, seeded, and minced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 large eggs
- 2 ounces baked tortilla chips, broken into ½-inch pieces (1 cup)
- Salt and pepper
- 3 ounces pepper Jack cheese, shredded (¾ cup)
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro
INSTRUCTIONS:
- Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, bell pepper, and jalapeño. Cover and cook until softened and lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook, uncovered, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a bowl.
- In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, tortilla chips, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a pinch of pepper together with a fork until thoroughly combined. Wipe out the skillet with paper towels, add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, and melt it over medium heat. Add the egg mixture to the skillet. Using a heat-resistant rubber spatula, constantly and firmly scrape along the bottom and sides of the skillet until the eggs begin to clump and the spatula leaves a trail on the bottom, which takes about 1½ to 2½ minutes.
- Reduce the heat to low and gently, but constantly, fold the eggs until they are clumped and slightly wet, which takes about 30 to 60 seconds. Off the heat, gently fold in the pepper Jack cheese, cilantro, and vegetable mixture. If the eggs are still underdone, return the skillet to medium heat for no longer than 30 seconds. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
