Jan 28, 2008

Breakfast Burritos

Credit: Chris Granger

MAKES 4

Easily transportable breakfast burritos are a staple during Iowa's famous bike ride the RAGBRAI. The Howlin' Coyote Grill vendor sold this version near Charles City.

1⁄2 lb. breakfast sausage, casings removed
4 medium boiling potatoes, peeled and grated
on the large holes of a box grater
1 tsp. onion powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 eggs, beaten
4 10" flour tortillas, warm
1 cup grated cheese, such as colby, jack, or cheddar
3⁄4 cup tomato salsa

1. Preheat oven to 200°. Brown sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up meat with the back of a spoon, 12–15 minutes. Transfer meat with a slotted spoon to a heatproof bowl, cover, and keep warm in oven. Pour off all but about 6 tbsp. of the rendered fat in skillet and set skillet aside.

2. Squeeze water out of potatoes. Put potatoes, onion powder, and salt and pepper to taste into a medium bowl and mix well. Heat rendered fat in skillet over medium-high heat. Add potatoes, stir until well coated, then spread out in skillet to make an even layer. Cook potatoes, shaking skillet over heat occasionally, until golden brown on bottom, 6–8 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, carefully flip potatoes, and cook until browned and crisp on second side, 4–5 minutes more. Slide potatoes onto a cutting board and coarsely chop. Put potatoes into a heatproof bowl, cover, and keep warm in oven.

3. Heat same skillet over medium-high heat. Add eggs, season to taste with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until soft curds form and eggs are just set, 2 1⁄2–3 minutes.

4. To assemble: Lay 1 tortilla on a clean surface. Scatter one-quarter of the cheese in center of tortilla and spoon some of the salsa over cheese, then top with one-quarter of the potatoes, meat, and eggs, in that order. Fold left and right edges of tortilla over filling by 2", then roll up tortilla, starting with edge closest to you, completely encasing filling. Repeat process with remaining tortillas, cheese, salsa, potatoes, meat, and eggs. Wrap burritos in foil and keep warm in oven.

This article was first published in Saveur in Issue #67

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Ratings & Reviews (3)

by RICK BARBATA on 2010-11-10

That looks really good!

by eruba521 on 2010-11-10

You can substitute refried beans spread on the tortilla instead or in addition to the potatoes...another suggestion is to use the uncooked tortillas and cook as needed...vast improvement on the pre-packaged tortillas...

by CRAMOFT on 2012-03-01

I am very familiar with eggs cooked this way. My mother served them to our family for as long as my siblings and I were home. She was taught how to make them by her English mother, sometime in the very early 1900's. My grandmother brought the recipe from England when she came to the US. In her family's household they referred to them as "Cockeyed Pop-Eyes". The idea was to use the bread from the hole to pop the eye (the yolk). I prefer to use the toasted hole for jam or jelly and cut up the toast surrounding the yolk, making sure each piece gets some yolk.

For many years I made them for breakfasts on the weekends for my wife and kids. When I was away from home on business trips my wife also made for our kids, they soon started calling the toasted hole a "toast cookie". At 78 we still have them once a week for breakfast.

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