The first time I had a breakfast burrito was in Phoenix with my friend Dan. We used to work together and he would always talk about these breakfast burritos he got across the street from our office at the City Hall cafeteria. We’d been working together for probably 3 or more years before I finally got down there to try one. I think we went two days in a row. I was hooked on breakfast burritos! Unfortunately, there aren’t many restaurants around here that serve them. So one morning I made my own.
As it turns out they are surprisingly easy and I was able to make it out of things I just had in the fridge. Speaking of, I didn’t have any thawed bacon or sausage so this version is a vegetarian breakfast burrito, but if I had it you can definitely believe I’d be adding meat. It was great without it though.
This is also a really filling breakfast, so it’s perfect for a day when you’re going out fishing, working in the yard, etc. and might not be able to break for lunch at your usual time.
Here’s what you need:
Although the burritos I got with Dan had hashbrowns, I decided to use potato chunks because I was feeling too lazy to grate potatoes. If you happen to have leftover boiled or baked potatoes those would work great, otherwise just nuke some potatoes in the microwave until tender (poke them with a fork first – I had little Yukon golds that would only take about 4 minutes). Cut the potato into small ¼-1/2 inch chunks.
Heat a medium skillet with a little oil over medium heat. Fry the potatoes until golden, about 3-5 minutes.
The peppers and onion were leftover as well. If you are starting from fresh just sauté for a few minutes to soften. I just added a small amount of oil to a skillet and warmed the peppers up over medium heat. Then beat together two eggs with about a teaspoon of water (a trick I learned from America’s Test Kitchen – the water creates steam when it cooks and helps make the eggs fluffy) and pour into the pan with the peppers and the onion. Scramble the eggs.
Warm the tortilla so it’s pliable to roll together. I have a cool tortilla warmer that I use in the microwave, but you can also put the tortilla over a gas burner for 10 seconds or so.
Start by adding the potatoes.
Then half the cheese. I used chipotle cheddar and pepper jack, because that’s what I had around – feel free to use whatever you have on hand or prefer.
Top with the eggs.
Add the rest of the cheese.
And some chopped cilantro.
Now it’s time to roll them. Those of you who love Chipotle as much as I do, never even realized that they were giving you a burrito rolling lesson each time you went there. Start by folding the tortilla over the ingredients and push gently towards you. Then fold the sides in. And finish rolling it.
Now to keep the burrito from unrolling, Chipotle wraps it in foil. We’re going to take it a step further and toast it in a pan. This is going to seal it together so it doesn’t unroll as well as create this wonderful toasty flavor and crunch. Cook the burrito for about a minute per side over medium heat until golden. Be sure to start seam side down so the seam seals.
Serve the burrito with salsa and sour cream.
- 1-1/2 small Yukon gold potatoes (about ¾ cup), cooked and chopped into ¼-1/2 inch pieces
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Red pepper, chopped (2 T)
- Onion, chopped (2 T)
- 3 eggs
- 1 large flour tortilla
- 2 oz shredded cheese – I used chipotle cheddar and pepper jack
- 2 t cilantro chopped
- Salsa
- Sour cream
- Optional: cooked breakfast meat like bacon, sausage, or chorizo
- Heat a little olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the potatoes and a pinch of salt. Sauté until golden, about 3-5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat another skillet with a little olive oil over medium heat. Cook the onions and peppers until softened. Beat the eggs with a teaspoon of water and add to pan. Scramble with onions and peppers.
- Heat the tortillas until soft and pliable.
- Build the burrito by layering on the potatoes, half the cheese, eggs, remaining cheese, cilantro. Roll the burrito by folding the tortilla over the ingredients, fold the sizes in, and roll until it up.
- Return the burrito to the skillet you cooked the potatoes in, steam side down. Cook over medium heat for 1 minute per side, until golden.
- Serve with salsa and sour cream.
[…] you. The fold in the left and the right edges and roll together tightly. See pictures on my breakfast burrito […]