Empalmes Recipe

Today’s recipe is a take on the mythical empalmes recipe, which are very common in the northeast: two tortillas passed through some fantastic lard, filled with refried beans. For the beans, I first cook them in water with salt and a few herbs. I mash them and season with salt, cumin, and ground pepper.

Course breakfast

Cuisine Mexican

Keyword empalmes receta, empalmes recipe, mexican style eggs

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 20

Total Time 30

Servings

Calories 465kcal

Author Mely Martínez

Ingredients

EMPALMES

MAKES 2 SERVINGS

4 corn tortillas
2 tablespoons of oil or lard
½ cup pinto beans with chorizo
2 eggs

TO SERVE:

Piquin peppers salsa
Chopped cilantro or pan roasted green onions

FRIED PINTO BEANS WITH CHORIZO NUEVO LEON STYLE

MAKES ABOUT 4 CUPS*

3 cups of cooked beans with some of their broth
1 teaspoon of ground cumin
2 tablespoons of lard or oil
½ cup onion diced
1 garlic clove diced
2 chorizos about 4 oz.
Salt and pepper

DRIED PIQUIN PEPPER SALSA

MAKES ABOUT ½ A CUP*

2 tablespoons piquin pepper
¼ teaspoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
4 kernels of black pepper
⅓ of a small white onion sliced
1 garlic clove sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
½ tablespoon of white or apple cider vinegar
6 tablespoons of water
Salt to taste

Instructions

EMPALMES

Heat lard or oil in a skillet. Fry each tortilla until it acquires a golden color, then place on a plate while you finish frying the rest.
Spread a generous amount of the beans over one tortilla and then place another tortilla on top of it. Do the same with the other 2 tortillas.
Fry one egg in the same frying pan, and once it is done, place it on top of the “Empalmes”. Fry another egg for the other set of tortillas.
To serve, top with the piquin salsa and garnish with the chopped cilantro or serve with the roasted green onions.

Provecho!

FRIED PINTO BEANS

Place the beans with the broth into a blender pitcher, add the cumin, and process until they are creamy smooth. Add water in case they look too dry. Set aside.
In a skillet, heat the lard or oil, add the onion and garlic, and cook until they start caramelizing. About 3 minutes.
Stir in the crumbled chorizo and cook for about 4 minutes.
Pour in the bean purée and mix well. Cook for about 4-5 more minutes on low heat, allowing all the flavors to mix. Season with salt and pepper, and if you wish, more cumin, according to your own personal taste. Some people love cumin, so go ahead and season it. Set aside to proceed to prepare the Empalmes.

DRIED PIQUIN PEPPER SALSA

Toast the peppers in a hot pan for about 45 seconds, shaking the pan during the process to avoid burning the peppers. Place peppers into the mortar.
Slightly toast the cumin seeds and black peppers for 30 seconds in the hot pan, and add them to the mortar.
Grind the piquin peppers, cumin, black pepper, and the oregano until you have a very fine texture.
Heat the oil in a pan. Once the oil is hot, stir in the onion and garlic. Sauté until they start to get a golden color around the edges.
Add the onion and garlic to the mortar, and keep grinding until it has a fine texture. Mix in the vinegar and water. Season with salt and enjoy!

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