the Older Bolder Life Friday Feast: Migas

Living roughly half of our lives in Texas, and in particular spending a chunk of that time in San Antonio and parts South toward the Rio Grande and the border with Mexico, my lovely wife and I have unabashedly enjoyed our share of what is called around these parts Tex-Mex cuisine over the years.

Since becoming Primally-aligned in our food plan now pushing five years ago, we don’t often indulge in some of the most beloved Tex-Mex classics (I’m looking at you Mr. Cheese Enchilada plate), though we both hold a soft spot for a great breakfast taco enjoyed now and again.

Besides the various preparations for skirt steak we’ve shared here on the Older Bolder Life, probably the most common Tex-Mex inspired food we cook at home is Migas.

Cooking great migas at home isn’t rocket science, and we’ve not used a recipe for the past twenty years or so in making these at home, though one key element of the classic preparation has changed for us as follows.

Classically when making migas fresh corn tortillas are cut into thin strips and fried prior to folding into the egg and vegetable mixture before serving; no doubt in most eateries the tortillas are fried in some ghastly seed oil (yet are delightfully crunchy). Since becoming primally-aligned we debated how to address the tortilla issue – migas (at least for some) wouldn’t be migas without the corn tortilla crunch; there are three decent options to address this below.

One option, and perhaps the most obvious, is simply to leave the tortillas out of the recipe for those avoiding grains altogether; this prep is still delicious using that approach. Another option is to use a gluten free tortilla substitute, like those made by Siete, prepping them in the oven with a spritz of avocado oil and spices. They’re surprisingly crunchy and tasty, to our palate very close to a traditional tortilla. In the image below, Siete tortilla strips on the right look almost identical to an artisanal corn tortilla strips on the left.

Finally of course you can add a small amount of the best corn tortillas you can source; we’d never fry them, but instead spritz with oil, dust with a bit of salt, cumin, and chili powder, and toast to a crispy crunch in the oven. It just takes a tablespoon or two to make a serving of migas more interesting, and frankly, we’re willing to take the grain exposure hit for what these bring to the migas table now and again.

Our daughter is visiting from Montana again, and I just stirred up a batch of migas for the three of us. Our approach is to make this a kitchen sink sorta cook – we throw in what’s handy and add three eggs per person if this is a main meal of day event. Almost always we use a fairly large onion, poblanos, a red bell or several Fresnos, and a jalapeño or serrano chile or two as our base vegetable medley. The recipe below is modeled after this most recent cook intended to serve three, adjust according to suit your diners.

Most migas, at least those in the southern half of the Lone Star State, have a sprinkle of cheese (cotija or Monterey Jack most often) and are topped with fresh cilantro and perhaps a spritz of lime. You make the call…

Optional tortilla crisps
3-4 artisanal corn tortillas or Siete gluten free tortillas
1 tbsp avocado oil
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp chile powder
1 tsp good salt

1 large yellow or white onion, medium-small dice
2 poblano chiles, trimmed, medium-small dice
1 red bell pepper, trimmed, medium-small dice OR
4-5 Fresno chiles, trimmed, medium-small dice
1-2 jalapeño or serrano chiles, trimmed, small dice
4 tbsp grass fed butter
9 eggs, lightly beaten
3-4 ounces grated cheese of your choice
Salt to taste

Optional
2-4 tbsp chopped cilantro (leaves and tender stems)
1-2 tbsp chopped jalapeños
Salsa or hot sauce of your choice
A spritz of fresh lime juice

IF making the tortilla crisps, cut the tortillas into thin strips approximately 1/8-inch by 2 inches; throw in a small bowl, add the avocado oil, cumin, chile powder, and salt and stir to coat, then spread out in a single layer on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for approximately 20 minutes at 350 until toasted, turning half way through the bake.

Prep the onion and various peppers, then melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté the vegetables until crisp tender, note you’re not trying to brown or caramelize the vegetables, just soften a bit.

Now stir in the eggs and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft set and well combined with the vegetables. I often stir in just a bit more cumin and chile powder at this point too.

Remove from the heat, sprinkle with 3/4’s of the grated cheese and the toasted tortillas if using, then serve immediately with a sprinkle of more cheese and the toppings of your choice.

Enjoy.