Enfrijoladas (Corn Tortillas Dipped in Bean Sauce)

By Mely, author of Mexico in My Kitchen: http://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/

Cooking the comfort food that my mom prepares gets me closer to her even if it is just in my mind, like these “Enfrijoladas”, another dish that is an excellent example of the creativity of our culture: beans, corn tortillas, fresh cheese and some peppers. These enfrijoladas are filled with shredded cooked chicken but sometimes are filled with chorizo or just a couple of spoons of crumbled fresh cheese.  

 
Black beans or pinto beans? Well, it all depends of what you have at hand. Even though black beans are typical for this type of dish, the kind of bean used varies from region to region throughout the country. I have even cooked them with Red Salvadoran Beans and had great results with them.

Each cook has a version of this recipe, like the ones that add chicken broth to the beans to make the puree or others use a cooked tomato sauce to mix with the puree. I add Arbol Peppers to add a little spiciness to the sauce and the avocado leaves which are a very common addition to the sauce in southern México. I’ve also tried them with a hint of Anise spice like some cooks do in the State of Veracruz. 

This is a basic recipe that you could adjust to suit your own taste. If you want to make this satisfying meal vegetarian, then a filling of sauté spinach or mushroom could be used.

Please, read the cooking notes below. You will be glad you did.

Ingredients for 6 servings:
2½ cups of cooked pinto or black beans with their broth
2 cups of cooked shredded chicken or 3 cooked chorizos (Mexican sausages)
2 avocado leaves slightly toasted in a skillet or comal (Optional)
2 Arbol peppers slightly toasted in a skillet or comal (Optional)
2 Tablespoons of vegetable oil
12 corn tortillas
¼ cup of vegetable oil for frying
Salt to taste
½ cup of Mexican cream
½ cup of crumbled Mexican fresh cheese or farmer's cheese (about 3 oz.)
1 onion finely chopped
Optional garnish: chopped cilantro

Instructions:
1. In a Blender place the avocado leaves and peppers with the cooked beans their broth. Blend until smooth, if it is too thick add water or chicken broth until you have the consistency of a sauce. 
2. Heat the 2 Tablespoons of oil in a skillet and  add the bean puree and simmer for about 3 minutes. Season with salt if needed. Set aside and keep warm.
3. Heat the rest of the oil in a skillet and fry briefly each tortilla, one by one for both sides. Drain and place in a warm plate. This step is done quickly. Cover with an aluminum foil if you wish.

4. Now you have two options here to assembly the enfrijoladas: Option 1: You can immerse each tortillas in the bean puree, like in the picture above, transfer to a plate and spread some of the chicken or chorizo and fold in half. Overlap each tortilla, spoon some cream, sprinkle crumble cheese and garnish with chopped onion and cilantro. Option 2: Spread a thin coat of the bean puree across the center of each tortilla add the filling of your choice, fold the tortilla in half and place 2 in each plate, pour some of the bean puree over the tortillas. Garnish with a spoonful of cream, some sprinkles of cheese, chopped onion and cilantro. Serve immediately.

NOTES: The main ingredients of this dish as Bean puree, chopped onion, cooked chicken or cooked chorizo could be prepare ahead of time and kept refrigerated. When ready to assembly just warm up the bean puree and your filling of choice. And remember to avoid broken tortillas that are falling apart when making enfrijoladas or enchiladas use thicker tortillas or a day old tortillas if you bought them fresh made. If your tortillas are store bought, leave them outside the package overnight over your kitchen counter wrapped with a kitchen towel. Do not leave them to long or they will dry. I am happy that you stopped by and would love to hear you questions and comments.

Provecho!
Mely

Photos by Mexico in My Kitchen. For more authentic Mexican recipes, visit Mexico in My Kitchen at http://www.mexicoinmykitchen.com/

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