DC Omnivore 100: #3, Huevos Rancheros

Huevos Rancheros

Moving right along in the Omnivore 100, I was delighted for any excuse to make Huevos Rancheros. Huevos Rancheros combines two of my great comfort food loves: Breakfast food and food accompanied by tortillas and salsa. Can there be anything better than a dish that consists of breakfast food on tortillas with salsa? No, of course not.

Traditionally, it’s corn tortillas and tomato-chili sauce, though to get hung up on what’s “traditional” versus what’s “Americanized” seems to me to miss the point. You don’t make huevos rancheros when you’re feeling snobby about food. You make huevos rancheros when you don’t want to spend a lot of time on dinner, you want something a little more interesting than fried eggs and toast, and you had tacos for dinner recently.

mmm, delicious
It couldn’t be easier to make. You get a tortilla- corn or flour works fine, whatever you have in the house- and you heat it up in a medium hot pan. As it heats up, I like to sprinkle a little shredded cheese on it. Then crack the egg over the hot tortilla. If the white runs over the edges, or the yolk breaks, that’s okay. Because it’s okay to make a mess with this. When the egg sets up a little bit, flip the whole thing over. Cook it for another minute or so, until the egg is as done as you like. Then flip it out onto a plate, and make another one. Alternately, you could just fry a couple of eggs and slide them onto a pile of tortilla chips, if that’s what’s handy.

Spoon some salsa over it, some beans of whatever type you have hanging around, and a little more cheese. Got guacamole that needs to get used up? Great.

Would it be “better” if you made the salsa yourself with fresh tomatoes that you just got from the farm and fresh tortillas hand-made by someone’s abuela? Duh. But when you’ve had a long day at work, that jar of Ortega salsa hanging out in your fridge door and that bag of leftover Tostitos will do just fine. I promise not to tell anyone.

Huevos rancheros and photos thereof by me. My food got cold while I took pictures of it. I hope you appreciate my sacrifice.

Tiffany Baxendell Bridge is an Internet enthusiast and an incurable smartass. When not heckling the neighborhood political scene on Twitter, she can be found goofing off with her ukulele, Bollywood dancing, or obsessing about cult TV. She is That Woman With the Baby In the Bar.

Tiffany lives in Brookland with her husband Tom, son Charlie, and two high-maintenance cats. Read why Tiffany loves DC.

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4 thoughts on “DC Omnivore 100: #3, Huevos Rancheros

  1. I rarely eat breakfast or brunch, but this is at the top of my list when I do. I have had them at Austin Grill. Does anyone else have any more authentic locations?

  2. Pingback: DC 100: The List » We Love DC