Huevos Oaxaca

These days of staying put at home have led me to travel the world via recipes. And Colorado’s cold winter motivates me to find food inspired by sunny places—in this case, the warm climes of Mexico. We traveled to the southern Mexican city of Oaxaca years ago, and I still remember the lively markets filled with colorful produce, beautiful crafts, and friendly people. Huevos Oaxaca uses ingredients that boast the red, green, and white of the Mexican flag to flavor scrambled eggs. It’s a dish that embraces the liveliness of Oaxaca in many ways.

My inspiration for this dish is from a recipe in a “Flavors of the World” section of the April 1992 issue of Bon Appétit. It’s the same issue that led me to try Torta de Calabacitas.

The ingredient list for Huevos Oaxaca didn’t look daunting, and the thought of having a crispy tortilla half alongside my flavored scrambled eggs tempted me to try this recipe. Since the original recipe served four, I downsized it for the two of us. It turned out to be a simple breakfast to make, yet a special way to start the day.

Preparing the tortillas

I did make some changes to the Bon Appétit recipe that started with opting to bake the corn tortillas instead of frying them. Just 10 minutes in the oven yielded crisped tortilla halves and no skillet of oil to clean up. While the tortillas baked, I readied the rest of the ingredients for the eggs.

Flavoring the eggs

I made changes in the egg preparation, too. The original recipe mixed the raw eggs with freshly chopped green onions and peppers. Instead, I decided to cook the onions, red bell pepper, and jalapeño briefly. I wanted to mellow out the flavors of each a bit before introducing the eggs.

Once the vegetables were softened, I added the egg mixture—flavored with cumin, fresh cilantro, crumbled tortillas, and cheese—to the skillet.  

The eggs cooked in a matter of minutes over the gentle heat. Dividing the scrambled eggs between two plates, I crowned each with a crunchy tortilla half, sprinkled on some extra cheese, and a few extra leaves of cilantro.

Our plates looked like they had miniature suns rising from them.

Every forkful of this dish is full of flavor, from the green notes of the onions and cilantro to the bright touch of the peppers.  The softened tortillas give the eggs heft but don’t weigh them down. And each bite scooped up with the crisp tortilla is just fun.

I hope that Oaxaca will be among our destinations to return to when we can safely travel again.  Until then, we’ll be eating Huevos Oaxaca and brightening our days that way.

Huevos Oaxaca

Dawn Dobie

A sunny Mexican breakfast dish of eggs, corn tortillas and vibrant seasonings

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Servings 2

Ingredients

  

For the tortillas

• 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil --I used canola
• 3 corn tortillas cut in half

For the eggs

• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil --I used canola
• 3 green onions white and green parts thinly sliced
• 1/2 jalapeño minced
• 1/4 red bell pepper diced
• 6 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon water
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 2 ounces feta cheese or queso fresco --crumbled and divided (see below)

For garnish

• Fresh cilantro sprigs

Instructions

 

For the tortillas

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Lightly brush a baking sheet with the vegetable oil. Brush each side of the tortillas lightly with oil and place on baking sheet.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, flipping the tortilla halves halfway through the baking time.
• Remove the baking pan from the oven, and transfer the tortillas to a plate lined with paper towels to cool.

For the eggs

• Beat eggs with 1 teaspoon of water in medium bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add cumin and cilantro and whisk until combined. Crumble in 4 tortilla halves. Allow the egg-tortilla mixture to stand while you cook the onions and peppers, about 5 minutes.
• Heat 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in 10-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add green onions, red bell pepper, and jalapeño to skillet. Cook for 3-5 minutes, stirring often.
• Mix 1/2 of crumbled cheese into egg mixture. Pour egg mixture into skillet and cook until eggs are just set, stirring frequently.
• Divide egg mixture between two plates. Sprinkle remaining crumbled cheese over cooked eggs. Place one tortilla half upright into each mound of eggs. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.

Notes

Adapted from a recipe in Bon Appétit (April 1992)

Can be doubled.