Mexican Food Recipe: Chimichangas

Mexican food, while it can seem complex, is most often easy, and relatively inexpensive for the novice chef. Because of the nature of the ingredients, a small investment can have a high yield of food that can last for several days or feed a large group of people, which makes it family-friendly.

Of all the Mexican food recipes, enchiladas and chimichangas reign at the top with the standard tacos and burritos. Here is a recipe for chimichangas.

Ingredients:

3 cups of cubed raw chicken, beef or pork

3 tablespoons of butter or margarine

1 cup of diced white onions

2 tablespoons of flour

¼ teaspoon of garlic powder

¼ teaspoon of cumin

1 teaspoon of seasoned salt

1 cup of diced cooked potatoes

1 can of refried beans (optional)

1 3 ½ ounce can of green sauce(tomatillos and chiles)

1 cup of chicken of beef stock or bouillon

12 large flour tortillas

Toppings of chopped lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream, black olives and shredded Monterrey jack or cheddar cheese.

Directions:

Cook the meat in butter until done. Add onions and cook for 3-4 minutes longer. Stir in flour and mix well. Add spices, potatoes, sauce and stock. If you're using beans, add this now. Simmer until it thickens, which should take 5-10 minutes. Divide the mixture and place on tortillas. Fold into a rectangle (like a burrito) and fry in oil until both sides are browned. Sprinkle cheese over all the chimichangas. Melt cheese under the broiler.

If you don't want to put the beans in the chimichanga, it goes great as a side, accompanied with some Mexican rice. To make a quick version of Mexican rice, simply cook up some minute rice and add some salsa a little at a time to it until the rice is coated with the liquid of the salsa.