Super Easy Tex-Mex Migas

The first time I cooked Tex-Mex Migas, a dish made of scrambled eggs, sauteed peppers and onions, and fried tortillas (and not to be confused with the dish of Spanish and Portuguese origins, “Migas” , which uses stale bread in place of the tortillas), was, ironically enough, in Vermont, where you would be hard-pressed to get further from the Texas-Mexico border while staying within the contiguous US.

I had read up about migas and how they are similar to another Tex-Mex dish: chilaquiles. Gross oversimplification alert: chilaquiles seem to be made from tortillas that are cooked inside of a sauce, which then may be served with eggs and other toppings, whereas migas consist of tortillas that are fried then cooked inside the scrambled eggs (although regional variations seem to blur the lines between these two dishes).

I had been aching to make (and devour) Tex-Mex Migas for a while, and the long weekend in Vermont presented the perfect opportunity to make them, like, every morning: they sounded delicious enough to impress my foodie friends, they were simple to prepare with readily available ingredients, and – perhaps most importantly – the Migas provided a hearty base in our bellies before we set out for a day of brewery visiting and beer drinking.

When I prepared the migas, I did take one potentially blasphemous shortcut – instead of frying my own tortillas, I simply added crushed up tortilla chips to the scrambled egg mixture. I mean, I’ve already added potato chips to my frittata, so this seemed like the next logical step in my downward spiral  breakfast endeavors.

In addition to being the most cumbersome step, the tortilla frying essentially becomes undone once you add the egg mixture to the pan: the gently cooked eggs re-soften the tortillas, undoing all your hard work of freshly frying them Instead,  I waited until the scrambled eggs were about 90-ish percent cooked, turned off the heat, and then stirred in the crushed-up tortilla chips. This helped to preserve the texture of the chips, allowing them to add a bit of a crunch in the final dish and adding a great texture to the soft, scrambled eggs. Sometimes, laziness pays off!

Migas are also infinitely adaptable, so you can basically use whatever you have on hand. I like to top mine off with some salsa and guacamole (or merge both with some Chunky Avocado Salsa), but they are also great with re-fried beans, chorizo, or served on tortillas as scrambled egg tacos. You really can put as much (or as little) effort into them as you wish: you can gussy up the migas by adding garlic to the pepper and onion mixture or using a mix of bell peppers in place of – or in addition to – the jalapeno. You can even go full-on minimalist and eliminate the pepper/onion combo all together (while slightly less flavorful, this works in a pinch… you could have migas ready in under 5 minutes!)

This is a dish that I crave at all hours of the day, and unlike, say … Peanut Butter Pie, is something that is socially acceptable to enjoy for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. So whip up those eggs, crush some tortilla chips and dig in!

Super Easy Tex-Mex Migas

 

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion (or ½ of a larger one), finely diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
• Salt and pepper
• 8 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons sour cream
• ¼ cup queso fresco (feta or crumbled goat cheese work great in a pinch), plus more for garnish
• 2 cups tortilla chips (about 3.5 ounces by weight)
• Optional garnishes: hot sauce, lime wedges, salsa, guacamole, avocado, refried beans, tortillas

Instructions

1. In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, add the olive oil, onion and jalapeno. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until peppers and onions have softened (but haven’t browned), about 6 to 8 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and sour cream. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add egg mixture to the pan, and cook, stirring constantly, until the eggs are almost fully cooked. Add the cheese and give the mixture a thorough stir.
3. Crush the tortilla chips with your hands (they don’t have to be uniform in size) and add to the egg mixture. Stir to combine then remove pan from heat.
4. Serve immediately with desired garnishes, or spoon egg mixture into tortilla (for a Miga-style breakfast taco) and top with garnishes.

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