Spicy Chilaquiles with Fried Eggs

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS? The traditional Mexican breakfast food known as chilaquiles began as a way to use up leftover tortillas and sauce: The tortillas would be lightly fried, then simmered in the sauce and served with fried eggs on top. But most of the recipes we found produced soggy tortillas and bland sauce. We wanted a fresher take on this Mexican classic. We started by baking our tortillas with a little oil to ensure they crisped up. We then made a quick chile sauce using plenty of aromatics, deeply flavored chili powder, and smoky chipotle in adobo. Using canned tomato sauce was far easier and faster than using raw tomatoes. We made sure to coat the crisped tortillas in the sauce just as the eggs finished cooking. A final sprinkle of tangy queso fresco and fresh cilantro rounded out the dish nicely. For the best texture, we prefer to use 100 percent corn tortillas in this recipe.

SERVES: 4

INGREDIENTS:

• 16 (6-inch) corn tortillas, cut into 8 wedges
• 6 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• 1 onion, chopped fine
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced canned chipotle chile in adobo sauce
• 2 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1½ cups chicken broth
• 8 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces and chilled
• 4 ounces queso fresco, crumbled (1 cup)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Adjust oven racks to upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 425 degrees. Spread tortillas evenly over 2 rimmed baking sheets. Drizzle each sheet with 2 tablespoons oil and ¼ teaspoon salt and toss until evenly coated. Bake, stirring occasionally, until tortillas are golden brown and crisp, 15 to 20 minutes, switching sheets halfway through baking.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in chili powder, garlic, and chipotle and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomato sauce and broth, bring to simmer, and cook, stirring occasionally, until flavors meld, about 10 minutes. Remove pot from heat.
3. Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in 12-or 14-inch nonstick skillet over low heat for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, crack eggs into 2 small bowls (4 eggs per bowl) and season with salt and pepper.
4. Increase heat to medium-high and heat until oil is shimmering. Add butter and quickly swirl to coat skillet. Working quickly, pour 1 bowl of eggs in 1 side of skillet and second bowl of eggs in other side. Cover and cook for 2 minutes.
5. Remove skillet from heat and let stand, covered, about 2 minutes for runny yolks (white around edge of yolk will be barely opaque), about 3 minutes for soft but set yolks, and about 4 minutes for medium-set yolks.
6. While eggs finish cooking, return sauce to brief simmer over medium-high heat. Off heat, stir in toasted tortillas, cover, and let sit until tortillas have softened slightly, 2 to 5 minutes. Divide tortilla mixture among individual plates and sprinkle with queso fresco. Slide eggs on top, sprinkle with cilantro, and serve immediately.