I have had several ideas for upcoming blog posts but it is only this week that I was actually able to sit down with my laptop, take a quick peek at my blog, mull over the content I want to post and the sequence that I want to publish it.
Today’s post is going to be a recipe post and one that is very close to my heart. I know I sound like a broken record when I say I LOVE Mexican food. This insatiable love extends not only to authentic Mexican but Tex-Mex and really anything remotely Mexican-inspired. I can probably eat this cuisine every day of the week without getting bored.
Something we (ok ‘we’ is a stretch, it is my husband mainly) have been making quite often is Tex-Mex Burrito Bowls and Burritos. Ever since we (and I mean he 😆) discovered La Mexicana, an online and physical grocery store that serves as a one-stop-shop for all Mexican Groceries in Singapore early last year, Mexican food features much more regularly on our weekend menu. Previously, we would make Mexican only when we chanced upon fresh jalapeños in speciality grocery stores or rarely, online. With La Mexicana, cooking Mexican at home has turned into a breeze. And if you were wondering, no one is offering me anything to say this. I’m just a happy customer spreading the word out of the goodness of my heart!
We typically order large thin flour tortillas, pickled onions, fresh jalapeños, shredded cheese blend, tortilla chips, obeleas and either margarita or sangria. After that it is the simple matter of making sure we have good avocados, canned tomatoes, sour cream and refried beans and then getting ready to whip up a fantastic Tex-Mex meal washed down with margarita or sangria and obleas (if it is just us) or churros with chocolate sauce, flan or Tres Leches cake (if we have guests) to end the meal on a sweet note. Along with burrito bowls or burritos, jalapeño poppers, black bean salad, fajitas, tacos and assorted quesadillas commonly feature in our Mexican-inspired weekend cooking.
The best part, for me, is that when we assemble burrito bowls for dinner, there most likely are ingredients leftover which serves as burritos for lunch the next day (or vice versa). Both burrito bowls and burritos are highly customizable and can be made vegan and gluten-free. Not to mention, they are super meal-prep friendly. Aside from the Tex-Mex staples such as rice, beans, cheese, tomato salsa, guacamole and sour cream, you can add whatever you like to suit your dietary preferences. We typically make a simple garlic cilantro rice, spicy tomato salsa, guacamole, steamed or grilled corn and stir-fried bell pepper strips. We then add a spoonful of store-bought refried beans or black beans, a dollop of sour cream, pickled onions, and cheesy baked tortilla chips. When everything comes together in one bite, it is crazy delicious and you don’t need to go looking for any fancy schmancy Mexican restaurant. You can take my word for it. To make the burritos, we just warm up large flour tortillas and carefully layer the components listed above, wrap tightly, toast on both sides, slice and dig in. We love it, our children love it and when we are entertaining, even our guests love it. It is just an all-round big WIN 👍
I hope you try this recipe folks. Don't be intimidated by the number of components because putting this together is actually quite simple.
Even though I do have recipes for tomato salsa and guacamole on the blog, we have tweaked them to make them better and so you will find the updated recipes in this post. We don’t add garlic to tomato salsa by choice and the addition of mayonnaise/sour cream/Greek yoghurt to the guacamole imparts an additional creaminess which we have come to love.
Unless you live in the West, I understand that some of the ingredients may not be easily available where you live so I have listed all the possible substitutions in the notes section below. Just please don’t ask me what to substitute for avocados 😝
Tex-Mex Burrito Bowl and Burritos (Vegetarian)
Preparation time: 30 min
Cooking time: 20 min
Serves: 4-6
Recipe category: Main Course/Mexican
Recipe level: Easy
Recipe source: My husband
For the garlic cilantro rice:
Ingredients:
1 cup long-grain white rice (you can use either basmati rice or jasmine rice)
2 tbsp butter, divided
1 small onion, finely chopped
4-5 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 tsp burrito seasoning
1 cup stock (of your choice)
1 cup water
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp garlic flakes/granules, Optional
1 large bunch cilantro, finely chopped
Method:
1. Heat 1 tbsp butter in a pot.
2. Add the finely chopped onions and sweat till translucent.
3. Add the minced garlic and sauté till the raw smell goes away.
4. Add the washed and drained rice (we have used jasmine rice) and burrito seasoning and fry for 1-2 mins.
5. Add the stock and water and bring to a boil. Cook partially covered, undisturbed on a low-medium flame until the rice is cooked and all the moisture is evaporated.
6. Add 1 tbsp of butter, garlic flakes/granules and cilantro. Give the rice a gentle mix. Taste and adjust the seasoning as per your preference.
7. Fluff the rice and keep aside until use.
For the tomato salsa
Ingredients:
1 can (411 gm) of tomatoes (you can use diced, whole peeled or fire roasted tomatoes)
1 small-medium red onion
1 large bunch cilantro (fresh coriander leaves)
1-2 jalapeño peppers, deseeded (fresh or jarred; adjust quantity according to spice preference)
1/4 tsp roasted cumin powder
1/2 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
A squeeze of fresh lime juice
Method:
1. Drain the tomatoes from the can but reserve some of the juice to adjust the consistency of the salsa later.
2. Roughly chop the tomatoes, onion, cilantro and jalapeño peppers and place them in a food processor along with the rest of the ingredients and pulse for a few times until you get the desired texture of salsa (a little chunky is good) OR you can finely chop all the ingredients by hand and mix them up in a bowl. Add the reserved tomato juice to the salsa if you want to thin it out.
3. Let the salsa sit in the fridge for a few hours before consumption because it improves the flavour.
For the guacamole
Ingredients:
2-3 perfectly ripe large avocados, halved, pitted and flesh scooped out
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
2-3 tbsp tomato salsa (refer recipe above)
1 jalapeño pepper, finely diced (if you want it more spicy)
a generous squeeze of lime juice
a dash of agave syrup, Optional
1 tbsp mayonnaise/sour cream/Greek yoghurt, Optional
Salt, as required
Method:
1. Roughly chop the avocados into chunks. Squeeze lemon juice over the chunks and mix well.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients, mix well while simultaneously mashing the avocado. You can make it smooth or slightly chunky based on what you prefer. Taste the guacamole and adjust for seasonings.
3. Cover the guacamole with cling wrap with the plastic directly in contact with the surface of the guacamole to prevent browning. Stash in fridge until consumption. Unlike with salsa, do not prepare the guacamole too much in advance because when it comes to guac, the fresher the better.
Other ingredients required for the burrito bowls:
Refried beans, warmed
Pickled onions. I use store-bought but for the recipe, refer the notes below.
Sour cream or Greek yoghurt
Steamed or grilled sweet corn and bell-pepper strips (the more colors the better) stir-fried with burrito or taco seasoning
Shredded cheese and tortilla strips or chips
Other ingredients required for the burritos:
Large flour tortillas (8-12 inch)
To make the burrito bowls:
1. Place the tortilla chips in an oven safe dish. Sprinkle cheese over the top and bake in a hot oven until the cheese has melted. If you don't want to do this, you can keep them separate.
2. Take some large shallow bowls. Divide a small portions of rice among them. Start adding scoops of guacamole, sour cream, tomato salsa and refried beans. Add in the picked onions, cheesy baked tortilla chips, corn and stir-fried bell pepper strips. Serve the bowls with lime wedges and a sprinkling of red chilli flakes if desired.
To make burritos:
1. Warm the tortillas in order for them to stretch. For this you just need to kiss each side of the tortilla on the surface of a large hot pan for 30 seconds
2. Get all your ingredients ready. Smear the refried beans generously in the center of the tortilla, then pile on the rice, the tortilla chips, the veggies and pickled onions, then the sauces and finally, sprinkle over the cheese. Keep everything constrained to one horizontal line down the middle of the tortilla.
3. Folding can be tricky but with some practice you can do it. First, fold in the short ends, the ones that are perpendicular to the lines of ingredients. With the ingredient line parallel to your body, roll the burrito away from you, squeezing the filling in as you pull the bottom edge over the top, keeping the short ends folded in. Go on tightening as you keep rolling over the remaining tortilla, leaving the overlap at the bottom.
6. Drizzle a few drops of oil and toast the burrito on a hot pan on both sides so the cheese melts
7. Wait for a few minutes and then slice the burrito in half
Notes:
- If you want to make the rice more nutritious, you can use brown or red rice instead of white rice. Be mindful that soaking the rice may be required and that the ratio of rice to water-stock ratio may change
- For the burrito bowls or burritos, if you don't have guacamole, you can thinly slice some ripe avocados and use instead
- If you don't get your hands on refried beans, you can add cooked black beans or pinto beans or or red kidney beans
- You can make salsa using fresh ripe tomatoes if you don't want to use canned tomatoes
- Cilantro is the same as fresh coriander leaves. Use both the leaves and the tender stems. If you don’t like cilantro, just omit it. You can use chopped spring onion greens for color and that desired herby flavor
- Burrito seasoning is generally a mix of cumin powder, paprika, garlic powder, cayenne pepper, dried oregano, salt and black pepper. You can check out recipes online and make a batch at home
- Pickled onions can be easily made at home. Cut red onion into thin slices and place in a heat-safe dish. In a saucepan, combine 1/2 cup water, 1/4 cup each of distilled white and apple cider vinegars, 1.5 tbsp maple syrup or honey, 1.5 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp red chilli flakes. Bring the mixture to a gentle simmer, then carefully pour the mixture into the jar over the onions. Press the onions down into the vinegar and pop any air bubbles in the jar. Let the pickled onions cool to room temperature (about 20 to 30 min) before serving. You can cover and refrigerate leftover pickled onions for upto 2 to 3 weeks
- If you don't get any kind of jalapeños, just use hot sauce or cayenne pepper powder but keep in mind that it won't taste the same
- You can make a creamy chipotle dressing for the burrito bowls by whisking together Greek yoghurt, mayonnaise, olive oil, chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, salt, maple syrup, garlic and lime juice
- Other ingredients you can use in your burrito bowls and burritos include - grilled meats of choice, lettuce or salad leaves of choice, roasted sweet potato or butternut squash
- To reheat a burrito, pop it in the microwave and use the defrost setting for 5-7 mins. Then place the burrito on a hot pan and cook evenly for 3-4 minutes
Other recipes you may like,
Cheers,
Megha
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