Chilaquiles rojos is an easy traditional Mexican breakfast dish made with crispy corn tortilla wedges cooked in red salsa, often served with eggs. They're made with cheap and available ingredients, usually eaten for breakfast or brunch, and are considered to be a great cure for a hangover after one too many tequila shots!
(This recipe was originally published in August 2010, but was updated with new photos and content in 2021).
Chilaquiles (chee-lah-KEE-lehs) can be made with red salsa to make chilaquiles rojos or green salsa to make chilaquiles verdes. I have had a love affair with chilaquiles rojos (red chilaquiles) since 2006 when I first sampled it while living in Los Angeles. That particular version is my first love. It consisted of fried tortillas in a spiced tomato-based sauce tossed with scrambled eggs.
In its simplest form, chilaquiles is fried tortilla wedges cooked until softened in salsa, but there are many ways to liven it up. I always make chilaquiles con huevos by adding eggs, either fried on top or scrambled into the chilaquiles. Stir in shredded chicken if desired. Perhaps top your chilaquiles rojos with crumbled cheese, avocado, or drizzle with Mexican crema.
The optimal texture for chilaquiles in my opinion is when most of the tortillas have softened in the salsa but still have a slight bite/firmness. Cook the chilaquiles shorter or longer depending on your personal texture preference. The longer you cook it the softer (or soggier) it will get.
This easy recipe for red chilaquiles is quite a bit lighter and less messy than some others because you bake the corn tortilla chips instead of frying them! It also requires minimal oil for "frying" the salsa, but tastes just as good!
Ingredient notes
- Corn Tortillas: Some people use store-bought tortilla chips as a shortcut but the quality isn't the same in my opinion. You get a much better texture if you crisp up the corn tortillas yourself before cooking them in the salsa! Stale tortillas? Even better!
- Guajillo Chile: A guajillo chile is a medium-spicy dried chile with a distinct fruity berry flavor. It's the dried form of the mirasol chile, and is the second-most commonly used dried chile in Mexican cuisine after ancho chiles.
- Tomatoes: Although it's not 100% necessary, I like to peel the tomatoes. If you score the bottoms of your tomatoes with a small X (just cut a shallow X shape with a sharp knife), when you boil the tomatoes the skin will soften and then you can easily peel them once you remove them from the water (the skin will slide right off).
- Eggs: Chilaquiles and eggs are the perfect breakfast pairing. Fry your eggs as desired such as sunny-side up or over easy. If you prefer scrambled eggs, you can make your chilaquiles migas-style by scrambling the eggs directly into the chilaquiles. I also suggest doubling the number of eggs if scrambling.
- Topping Suggestions: Serve your chilaquiles rojos con huevos as is or top with a variety of delicious toppings for added texture, color, and flavor. Here are a few ideas to get started!
- Crumbled cotija, queso fresco, or feta cheese
- Thinly sliced avocado or guacamole
- Mexican crema or sour cream
- Sliced pickled jalapenos
- Sliced radishes
- Fresh cilantro
How to make it
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly brush, drizzle, or spray oil on a baking sheet and arrange corn tortilla wedges on top. Brush or spray the tops with more oil just until they are lightly coated (PHOTO 1).
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once or twice (those near the edges of the pan will brown faster), until the tortillas are lightly golden along the edges and crispy (PHOTO 2). Set aside.
Meanwhile, start the salsa roja by adding tomatoes, onion, garlic, and chile to a medium saucepan. Cover with water, then bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes until the tomatoes are tender. Remove from the heat.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the onion, garlic and chile to a blender jar. Remove the tomatoes to a plate or cutting board and allow them to cool slightly. Carefully peel the skin, and use a paring knife to remove the core if desired.
Transfer the cooked peeled tomato and ¼ cup of the cooking liquid to the blender. Season with ground coriander and a little salt and puree until smooth.
Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the pureed salsa (it will sizzle) and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced and thickened. Taste and season with salt as needed.
Add the baked tortilla chips to the salsa and stir to coat. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring regularly until you achieve your desired texture. The longer you cook them the softer they will get.
Meanwhile, lightly grease a nonstick skillet and fry the eggs as desired. Divide the chilaquiles rojos between 2 plates, top each with a fried egg, and garnish as desired with suggested toppings. Serve immediately.
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe (in a printable recipe card) including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Expert tips and FAQs
If desired, serve your chilaquiles rojos with refried beans on the side.
To shallow-fry the tortilla chips instead of baking: Heat a large skillet over high heat and add enough neutral oil to coat the pan with about ⅛ inch deep of oil. Add a single layer of corn tortilla wedges at a time and fry for a few minutes per side until lightly golden and crisp, flipping with tongs. Set fried tortillas aside on a paper-towel lined sheet pan, and continue pan-frying until all the tortilla wedges are fried.
If you already have enchilada sauce, salsa roja, or salsa verde you can easily use it in this chilaquiles recipe in place of the homemade salsa. Plan to use about 1 cup salsa for this amount of tortillas. You may not need to reduce the salsa in that case if it's already thicker.
Migas are typically made with corn tortilla strips or crushed tostadas, and scrambled with eggs and tomatoes which all cook together. Chilaquiles feature corn tortilla wedges cooked in salsa. They usually have a fried egg on top, although you could easily scramble the eggs into them (migas-style) if you prefer.
Other recipes you may like
- Homemade Pickled Jalapeños
- Mexican Hot Pockets
- Chicken Burritos Mojados
- Mushroom, Black Bean, and Cheese Enchiladas
- Sweet Potato Black Bean Empanadas
- Mole Poblano
- Salsa Quemada (Roasted Tomato and Tomatillo Salsa)
- Bacon Jalapeño Popper Quiche
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also follow me on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Chilaquiles Rojos (Red Chilaquiles)
Ingredients
Chilaquiles:
- Neutral oil, as needed (such as vegetable, canola, or avocado oil)
- 8 corn tortillas stacked, then cut into 6 wedges (like a pizza)
Salsa Roja:
- 2 medium tomatoes scored with an X on the bottom
- 1 small onion (or ¼ of a large onion) peeled and halved
- 2 cloves garlic peeled
- 1 dried guajillo chile stemmed and seeded (break it up into a few pieces if desired)
- ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon neutral oil (such as vegetable, canola, or avocado oil)
Toppings:
- Neutral oil, as needed (such as vegetable, canola, or avocado oil)
- 2 eggs
- Crumbled cotija, queso fresco, or feta cheese (optional)
- Mexican crema or sour cream (optional)
- Thinly sliced avocado or guacamole (optional)
- Sliced radishes (optional)
- Sliced pickled jalapenos (optional)
- Fresh cilantro (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly brush, drizzle, or spray oil on a baking sheet and arrange corn tortilla wedges on top. It's ok if they slightly overlap, they will shrink a bit as they cook. Brush or spray the tops with more oil just until they are lightly coated. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the tortillas are lightly golden along the edges and crispy. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, start the salsa roja by adding tomatoes, onion, garlic, and chile to a medium saucepan. Cover with water, then bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 7 to 10 minutes until the tomatoes are tender. Remove from the heat.
- Use a slotted spoon to transfer the onion, garlic and chile to a blender jar (reserve the cooking liquid). Remove the tomatoes to a plate or cutting board and allow them to cool slightly. Carefully remove the skin (where you scored an X on the bottom will allow you to easily do this), and use a paring knife to remove the core if desired. Transfer the cooked peeled tomato to the blender along with ¼ cup of the cooking liquid (you can discard the rest). Season with ground coriander and a little salt and puree until smooth.
- Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the pureed salsa (it will sizzle) and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until slightly reduced and thickened. Taste and season with salt as needed.
- Add the cooked tortilla chips to the salsa and stir to coat. Cook for about 2 minutes, stirring regularly until you achieve your desired texture. They should be an almost “al dente” texture, not too crisp (like a chip) and not soggy either, but still have a bite to them, kind of in between. The longer you cook them the softer they will get.
- Meanwhile, lightly grease a nonstick skillet and fry the eggs as desired such as sunny-side up or over easy.
- Divide the chilaquiles rojos between 2 plates, top each with a fried egg, and garnish as desired with suggested toppings. Serve immediately.
Notes
- To shallow-fry the tortilla chips instead of baking: Heat a large skillet over high heat and add enough neutral oil to coat the pan with about ⅛ inch deep of oil. Add a single layer of corn tortilla wedges at a time and fry for a few minutes per side until lightly golden and crisp, flipping with tongs. Set fried tortillas aside on a paper-towel lined sheet pan, and continue pan-frying until all the tortilla wedges are fried.
- If you already have enchilada sauce, salsa roja, or salsa verde you can easily use it in this chilaquiles recipe in place of the homemade salsa. Plan to use about 1 cup salsa for this amount of tortillas. You may not need to reduce the salsa in that case if it's already thicker.
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
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