Tortas de chilaquiles - Chilaquiles sandwiches
A recipe for tortas de chilaquiles (Mexican chilaquiles sandwiches) from the cookbook Comida Mexicana by Rosa Cienfuegos, made vegetarian with tofu schnitzel.
Equipment
- Freezer, if making your own tofu schnitzels
- Heavy object, if making your own tofu schnitzels
- Griddle pan, if making your own salsa
- Blender or food processor, if making your own salsa
- Deep fat fryer or frying pan, if making your own totopos
- Deep plate x2, if making your own schnitzels
- Large frying pan x2
Ingredients
For the salsa verde, you can also use store-bought
- 21 oz - 600 g tomatillos fresh or canned
- 20 jalapeno peppers
- 1 white onion coarsely chopped
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 T - 15 g salt
- 1 bunch coriander coarsely chopped
For the totopos, you can also use store-bought
- neutral oil for deep fat frying
- 12 fresh corn tortillas cut into 8 pieces each
- salt to taste
For the tofu schnitzels, you can also use store-bought
- 1 egg whisked
- 2/3 c - 150 ml milk the heaviest milk you can get, nutmilk is fine
- 1 T - 15 g salt
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 pack firm or semi-firm tofu frozen in its liquid, thawed, then pressed for 30 minutes and cut into 1/2" - 1 cm slices
- 1 c - 100 g bread crumbs I used panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) because I'm fancy, but use whatever
- sunflower oil for shallow frying
For the tortas de chilaquiles
- 4 c - 1 l salsa verde recipe to follow, or store-bought
- 2 lbs - 1 kg totopos recipe to follow, or store-bought
- 6 teleras (Mexican bread rolls) I used what the Dutch call 'an Italiaanse bol', look for something slightly firmer on the outside but soft on the inside
- 2 T - 30 ml sour cream
- 2 T - 30 g cojita cheese I used crumbled feta
- 6 tofu schnitzels recipe to follow, or store-bought
Instructions
First, make the salsa verde
- If you were able to source fresh tomatillos, remove the husk and wash 21 oz - 600 g of tomatillos. If using tinned tomatillos drain and pat dry.
- Griddle them on a very hot griddle with 20 jalapenos and coarsely chopped white onion until they turn black on the outside. You can also do this directly over a hot flame if you dare.
- Move all of the blackened tomatillos, jalapenos and onion to a blender or food processor with 1 clove of garlic, 1 T - 15 g of salt and 1 bunch of coarsely chopped coriander and blend until fine. If the sauce is too coarse add water until you get your desired consistency.
Now, make the totopos
- Heat oil in a deep pan or in a deep fat fryer to 180° C - 360° F.
- Fry the tortillas cut into 8 pieces in batches until crisp and starting to brown. Usually once they start floating and stop bubbling they are done.
- Drain on some kitchen towel and season with salt.
Next, make the tofu schnitzels
- Mix the whisked egg with 2/3 c - 150 ml of milk, 1 T - 15 g of salt and freshly ground pepper in a deep plate. Place in the slices of tofu and leave to soak for 3 minutes.
- Place 1 c of bread crumbs in another deep plate and heat a decent layer of sunflower oil in a large frying pan.
- Coat the tofu slices in breadcrumbs and fry until golden and crisp. This should take 5 minutes per side or so.
Now, make the chilaquiles
- Heat almost all of the 4 c - 1 l of salsa verde in a large frying pan on a medium heat. Add the totopos and a cup of water, stir and heat through for 5 minutes or so. If you like your chilaquiles a little crispier, I'd skip the water and the 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat.
Tortas de chilaquiles, ASSEMBLE
- Cut your teleras or whatever bread rolls you're using in half, top with a scoop of the cooked chilaquiles, the sour cream, cojita or feta, tofu (or other) schnitzel and a little bit of uncooked salsa verde and dig in.
Notes
- Obviously these tortas do not keep and should be eaten straight away.
- The salsa verde will keep for about a week in an airtight container in the fridge and are great for dipping chips or having on any number of tacos.
- Totopos will keep for about a week in a cookie tin.