Chimichangas

It goes into the fat seam down and is not turned until the seam has set, or it opens and fills with oil.

Beef. Not vegetarian — contains beef, cheese whose rennet the source does not name, lard.

Ingredients

• 4 large flour tortillas, as on their own page
• 500 g beef brisket, braised and shredded
• 200 g refried beans, as on their own page
• 150 g cheese that melts, grated
• oil, for frying, about 4 cm depth
• soured cream, to serve
• guacamole, as on its own page, to serve
• salsa, as on its own page, to serve
• shredded lettuce

Method

1. IT GOES INTO THE FAT SEAM DOWN AND IS NOT TURNED UNTIL THE SEAM HAS SET. That is the one thing this dish is about, because a chimichanga that opens in the oil is a disaster rather than a disappointment: hot fat floods the inside, the filling boils out, and the pan spits dangerously. The parcel is laid in with the overlap underneath and left absolutely still for ninety seconds, by which time the pastry-like outer layer has crisped and glued itself shut. Only then is it turned. Dropped in any other way round, or nudged in the first minute, the seam lifts.
2. THE SEAM IS ALSO SEALED BEFORE IT GOES NEAR THE OIL. A finger dipped in water run along the final edge, and the whole parcel pressed firmly. Some cooks use a cocktail stick; at this size a wet seal pressed down is more reliable and there is nothing to remove.
3. THE FILLING MUST BE COLD AND DRY, WHICH IS THE OPPOSITE OF A BURRITO. Braised beef drained hard and then chilled, and the parcels assembled cold. Hot filling generates steam the moment it meets hot oil and the steam has only one way out -- the seam. A cold, dry, tightly rolled parcel is a sealed unit.
4. THE PARCEL IS FOLDED LIKE AN ENVELOPE, NOT ROLLED LIKE A TUBE. Filling in the middle, bottom edge up, both sides in, then rolled over -- so every edge finishes underneath and there is one seam and no open ends. An open end in deep fat behaves exactly like an unsealed seam.
5. IT IS FRIED AND THEN DRAINED ON A RACK AND SERVED DRY. Four centimetres of oil, three or four minutes in all. On paper the underside steams and goes soft within a minute, which undoes the point. And the sauces go on the plate beside it or on top at the table, never poured over in the kitchen.
6. The brisket braised until it shreds, pulled apart, DRAINED HARD, and CHILLED until cold.
7. The refried beans cooled too -- nothing goes in warm.
8. The tortillas warmed 20 seconds a side so they fold without cracking, then allowed to cool.
9. One tortilla laid flat. Beans, cold beef and cheese piled in a square in the MIDDLE.
10. The bottom edge folded up over the filling, then BOTH SIDES folded in, then rolled over -- an ENVELOPE, with every edge underneath.
11. A wet finger run along the final edge and the whole parcel PRESSED FIRMLY to seal.
12. All four assembled and kept cold, seam down.
13. The oil heated in a deep pan to 4 cm, over a medium-high heat, until a scrap of tortilla bubbles at once.
14. One parcel lowered in SEAM SIDE DOWN and NOT TOUCHED for 90 SECONDS.
15. TURNED once, carefully, and fried 90 SECONDS to 2 MINUTES more until deep golden and blistered.
16. Drained on a RACK, never paper.
17. Served on lettuce with cream, guacamole and salsa BESIDE it, not poured over.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Mexico · All recipes