Green Poblano Chilaquiles with a Crispy Cheese Crust & Fried Egg: Chilaquiles Verdes, With an Extra

Every Mexican-American family has a chilaquiles person. The one who gets up first on Sunday, pours yesterday's tortillas into the hot salsa and has the whole house awake by the smell. Chilaquiles are the original leftover breakfast: stale tortillas, the salsa from last night, whatever cheese is in the fridge. Verdes if the tía is from the center of the country, rojos if she's from the north, and a fried egg on top no matter where she's from.

Ours keeps every bit of that and adds an extra — two, actually. First, the salsa: roasted poblanos blended in with the tomatillos, then a spoon of crema stirred into the pan, so the salsa goes velvety and pale green instead of sharp. Second, the costra de queso: each serving gets slid onto a lacy circle of cheese frying in a dry skillet, then flipped so the chilaquiles wear a golden, crunchy cheese crust. Crunchy on top, creamy underneath, runny yolk through the middle. This is the one they'll ask for again next Sunday. 🌿

Ingredients

• 1 can (27 oz) whole tomatillos, drained — El Mexicano whole tomatillos — or 1 lb fresh tomatillos, husked and rinsed
• 2 poblano chiles — the extra: roasted, peeled and seeded
• 1–2 serrano chiles (1 for mild), ¼ white onion, 2 garlic cloves, a handful of cilantro
• 1 cup chicken or vegetable broth, 1 Tbsp oil, salt
• ½ cup Mexican crema or Nestlé media crema — half goes INTO the salsa, half on top
• 1 bag (12 oz) thick totopos — Los Reyes natural totopos — or 12 day-old corn tortillas cut in triangles and fried crisp
• The costra: 1½ cups shredded queso Oaxaca or Chihuahua (Monterey Jack works)
• 4 eggs, fried sunny-side up (huevos estrellados)
• To finish: crumbled queso fresco, thin-sliced white onion, cilantro, avocado
• On the side: El Tío Julio frijoles con veneno or refried beans, warmed

How to Make It

Step 1 — Roast the poblanos

Char the poblanos directly over the flame (or under the broiler) until blistered black all over. Steam them 10 minutes in a covered bowl, then rub off the skin, pull out the stem and seeds. Don't rinse — the char is the flavor.

Step 2 — Blend the salsa verde

Blend the tomatillos, roasted poblanos, serrano, onion, garlic, cilantro and broth until smooth. Heat the oil in a wide pan, pour in the salsa (it will spit) and simmer 8–10 minutes until it darkens and thickens. Salt it, then stir in ¼ cup of crema — the salsa turns a pale, velvety green.

Step 3 — Fry the eggs

In a nonstick skillet fry the eggs sunny-side up in a little oil: lacy crisp edges, runny yolks. Set aside on a warm plate.

Step 4 — Toss the totopos

Fold the totopos into the simmering salsa for 30–60 seconds — just coated, edges still crunchy. Work fast; soggy chilaquiles are a crime in this house.

Step 5 — Make the costra

Heat a dry nonstick skillet over medium-high. Scatter a thin, even layer of shredded cheese in a circle, let it melt and fry 2–3 minutes until the bottom is golden and lacy. Slide a serving of chilaquiles onto the cheese, cook 1 minute more, then flip the whole thing onto the plate — crust side up. Repeat for each plate.

Step 6 — Plate and serve

Set an egg on top of each crust, drizzle the rest of the crema, crumble queso fresco, add onion rings, cilantro and avocado. Frijoles con veneno on the side, café de olla in the cup, and eat it right now — the crust waits for no one.

The tomatillos, the media crema and the totopos are in the shop — and everything else for the Sunday table (salsas, frijoles, tortillas and masa, café de olla, chocolate de mesa, conchas, cajeta and miel) lives in our new Desayuno Mexicano collection. 🌿

Taste the Fiesta!