Enjoy a lazy Sunday and treat yourself to Migas

| October 7, 2015 | 1 Comment
Migas

Migas make a delicious and satisfying Sunday brunch.

Sometime during my late 20s when I lived in Fort Worth, Texas, it finally dawned on me that Sundays were for slowing down, catching your breath and taking a moment to enjoy just enjoy … whatever.

I had been blindly working myself into the ground since graduating from college, and I was frantically searching for love in my life.

When it finally dawned on me that I needed to take care of myself and just give all the rest up to the universe, I was shocked when good things started happening. I got promoted at work at the Fort Worth Star Telegram from a lowly copy editor to assistant news editor and then news editor. I started swimming at the YMCA to take care of myself and lo and behold, I met the love of my life in the who also was swimming laps.

We’ve been together 25 years and counting. And it was Charles that got me turned on to what became one of our Sunday traditions on the northern part of town near the Fort Worth Stock Yards: Migas at Joe T. Garcia’s. I remember there was always a line at the bakery and cafe portion of the restaurant, which served breakfast, but we never seemed to mind waiting the 15 or 20 minutes to get a table. I usually took the Sunday paper to read while we were waiting.

The line snaked past the bakery, lined with all sorts of tempting sweet baked and fried treats like churros. We were never tempted to buy any to enjoy while we were waiting. We were saving our stomachs for one thing: Migas

There are about as many versions of Migas as you can imagine. It’s basically scrambled eggs kicked up an infinite level, with chorizo (Mexican sausage), tomatoes, jalapeños, cheese, tortilla strips and salsa verde or salsa roja.

Migas are very easy to make. But before you start, there are several decisions to make:

Do you want the tortilla strips crispy or soft? If crispy, you start out as I do frying them in oil first before you add other ingredients. If you want them soft, you add them later right before the beaten eggs.

What kind of cheese? You can use shredded cheddar, pepper jack or even crumble some queso fresco (Mexican cheese).

How kicked up do you want this to be? Besides tomatoes and onions, you could add potatoes and even top it with sliced avocado.

What kind of peppers do you want to use? Anything from mild (bell peppers) to wild (habañeros).

Do you want to use chorizo or a milder Italian sausage? Heck, you could even use leftover barbecued pork, barbecued or roasted chicken that’s been shredded.

And lastly, what kind of salsa do you want to use? Red or Green? Heck, you could even get a tub of both and live a little.

And isn’t that what Sundays are all about? Live a little!

Vic’s Migas

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 corn tortillas, sliced in half and then sliced into strips

4 tablespoons safflower, peanut or other high smoke point oil

½ pound of chorizo (Mexican sausage, available at Roth’s and other grocery stores)

2 large red or golden tomatoes, sliced into large cubes

½ a sweet yellow onion, peeled and sliced into ½-inch pieces

3 jalapeños, seeded and sliced into small pieces

6 large eggs, beaten

1 cup crumbled queso fresco

1 avocado, peeled and sliced into wedges

Red or green salsa purchased from the store

Cilantro for garnish (optional)

Directions

Heat oil in large cast-iron or non-stick skillet over high heat. Add tortilla strips and cook, stirring occasionally  until they begin to turn golden brown.

Add onion and chorizo and stir until onion begins to turn translucent and chorizo is cooked.

Add the jalapeños and stir for a couple of minutes, then add the beaten eggs and let the eggs set a minute before you start to scramble them with a wooden spatula. When the eggs are nearly cooked, add the chopped tomatoes and stir until everything is mixed.

Top with cheese, turn off heat, top with avocado wedges, garnish with cilantro and serve with salsa.

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Category: Brunch/Breakfast, Eggs

About the Author (Author Profile)

Victor Panichkul is a journalist and writer by training; a cook, wine lover and photographer by passion; and a lover of the outdoors since moving to Oregon more than 10 years ago. He is a native of Bangkok, Thailand.

Comments (1)

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  1. Christina Martin says:

    Let’s have this for Sunday dinner one week!

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