Chilaquiles Verdes
By David YuPublished on June 2, 2025
Time
1¼ hours
Yield
Serves 4
Ingredients
Before You Begin
Use a Dutch oven that holds 6 quarts or more. To make this dish spicier, reserve and add the chile seeds to the salsa as desired. Knorr chicken bouillon powder is traditional for flavoring Mexican sauces, but you can substitute another brand of bouillon powder or 1 cup of chicken broth plus ⅛ teaspoon salt for the water and bouillon powder in step 5. Chilaquiles are typically eaten for breakfast and are great served with fried eggs, beans, or shredded chicken or pork. For optimal texture, be sure to serve the chilaquiles promptly after assembling.
Instructions
- Cut each tortilla into 6 wedges. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with triple layer of paper towels. Add oil to large Dutch oven until it measures about ¾ inch deep and heat over medium-high heat to 350 degrees.
- Add one-third of tortillas and fry, using tongs to separate any that stick together, until golden and crispy, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer chips to prepared sheets and let cool. Repeat with remaining tortillas. (Cooled chips can be stored in zipper-lock bag at room temperature for up to 4 days.)
- Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange tomatillos and serranos on prepared sheet. Broil until tomatillos have spotty charring and skins have begun to burst, 10 to 12 minutes, flipping vegetables halfway through broiling. Let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer vegetables and any accumulated juices to blender.
- Add ¾ cup onion, ½ cup cilantro, garlic, and salt to blender and pulse until mostly smooth with some texture, 8 to 12 pulses.
- Transfer salsa to 12-inch skillet and stir in water and bouillon powder. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until salsa has thickened and spatula drawn across bottom of skillet leaves trail that slowly fills in, about 5 minutes. (Salsa can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; rewarm before using.)
- Add chips and salsa to large bowl and toss until chips are well coated. Transfer to serving platter. Top with queso fresco, crema, and remaining ¼ cup onion and ¼ cup cilantro. Serve immediately.
Time
1¼ hoursYield
Serves 4Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Ingredients
Test Kitchen Techniques
Why This Recipe Works
Chilaquiles verdes is a traditional Mexican breakfast of tortilla chips tossed in a warm tomatillo salsa and garnished with proteins, vegetables, cheese, and/or herbs. To make chips that could stand up to the salsa, we fried wedges of corn tortillas. The resulting chips were thicker and more resilient than most store-bought chips. Roasting the tomatillos and chiles for the salsa brought a savory, charry backbone to the sauce, and simmering the salsa tempered the bite of the alliums. A pinch of Knorr chicken bouillon powder added subtle umami depth. A garnish of queso fresco added pops of saltiness, a swoop of crema provided lush dairy tang, and thinly sliced onion and fresh cilantro brought freshness to the finished dish.
Want more? Read the whole storyBefore You Begin
Use a Dutch oven that holds 6 quarts or more. To make this dish spicier, reserve and add the chile seeds to the salsa as desired. Knorr chicken bouillon powder is traditional for flavoring Mexican sauces, but you can substitute another brand of bouillon powder or 1 cup of chicken broth plus ⅛ teaspoon salt for the water and bouillon powder in step 5. Chilaquiles are typically eaten for breakfast and are great served with fried eggs, beans, or shredded chicken or pork. For optimal texture, be sure to serve the chilaquiles promptly after assembling.
Instructions
- Cut each tortilla into 6 wedges. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with triple layer of paper towels. Add oil to large Dutch oven until it measures about ¾ inch deep and heat over medium-high heat to 350 degrees.
- Add one-third of tortillas and fry, using tongs to separate any that stick together, until golden and crispy, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer chips to prepared sheets and let cool. Repeat with remaining tortillas. (Cooled chips can be stored in zipper-lock bag at room temperature for up to 4 days.)
- Adjust oven rack 6 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Line rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Arrange tomatillos and serranos on prepared sheet. Broil until tomatillos have spotty charring and skins have begun to burst, 10 to 12 minutes, flipping vegetables halfway through broiling. Let cool for 5 minutes, then transfer vegetables and any accumulated juices to blender.
- Add ¾ cup onion, ½ cup cilantro, garlic, and salt to blender and pulse until mostly smooth with some texture, 8 to 12 pulses.
- Transfer salsa to 12-inch skillet and stir in water and bouillon powder. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until salsa has thickened and spatula drawn across bottom of skillet leaves trail that slowly fills in, about 5 minutes. (Salsa can be refrigerated for up to 3 days; rewarm before using.)
- Add chips and salsa to large bowl and toss until chips are well coated. Transfer to serving platter. Top with queso fresco, crema, and remaining ¼ cup onion and ¼ cup cilantro. Serve immediately.
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