Huevos Rancheros usually does not need a translation. “Ranch Eggs” doesn’t do it justice, anyway. Visualize two soft corn tortillas spread with well-seasoned refried beans (Frijoles Refritos), topped with two sunny eggs, and Salsa Ranchera, cilantro and crumbled fresh cheese. Carry your visualization through to reality and you will have in front of you what is probably the most requested breakfast in Mexico. If you just made Salsa Ranchera with me a few days ago and still have some in the fridge, and if you have left-over Frijoles Refritos also in the fridge, you are more than halfway to having this popular, authentic breakfast on the table.
The key to making Huevos Rancheros is preparation, also known as mise en place. With everything heated, measured and chopped, you are ready to sit down and eat five minutes after you start cooking the eggs.
Huevos Rancheros serves 2
- 1 cup Salsa Ranchera, heated
- 1 cup Frijoles Refritos, heated
- 4 very fresh eggs
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 corn tortillas
- vegetable oil for softening and warming tortillas
- 3 tablespoons crumbled queso fresco,or cheese of your choice, such as Monterey Jack
- chopped cilantro for garnish
- Heat a skillet with 1 tablespoon each of butter and olive oil. When butter is no longer foaming, cook eggs sunny-side up.
- While eggs are cooking, heat 2 teaspoons of oil for softening tortillas. Cook each tortilla 30 seconds per side. You may need to add more oil. Blot on paper towels. Do not overcook, otherwise they will become leathery.
- Place two tortillas on each plate. Spread each tortilla with about 1/4 cup of hot beans. Top each tortilla with one cooked egg, salsa, cheese and cilantro.
In Mexico, Huevos Rancheros are served stacked like pancakes.
Notes:
- For a quick version, you can always use commercial salsa and canned refried beans, but I don’t recommend them if you want an authentic dish. Make the salsa and refritos the day before, and you will have Huevos Rancheros ready in minutes.
- If four pans on the stove at once seem daunting to you, heat the salsa and refritos in the micro-wave oven, and keep covered until needed.
- Some recipes call for poached eggs, probably because of their perfect roundness, provided you know how to properly poach an egg. No Mexican cook I know poaches eggs for Huevos Rancheros. They would probably find this idea laughable.
- Cheese is optional, and not always served on traditional Huevos Rancheros. Actually, chopped cilantro is not used, either, if we are talking Mexican tradition, but I can’t break my habit of garnishing everything. It’s not a bad habit — the eyes see before the tongue tastes.
Cooking in Mexico 
You made me chuckle about the poached egg. I didn’t know what a poached egg was until I moved out on my own. And you’re right about the cilantro.
Ha-ha! I wrote this so long ago, I had to go back and read it again to see what I had written about cilantro.And yes, cilantro on everything!
I feel as though i have found gold ,ahhhh my significa amor will be blown away with nuestro cocina that will now contain la Real comida he was accustom to, having grown up in la OLD World ways en México. Gracias! ! I cant wait to see his expresión: )
What an enthusiastic comment! I, too, hope your significant other likes my recipes. I have tried to present them the way they are traditionally cooked in Mexico. Buen provecho!
Huevos Rancheros one of my favorite breakfasts ever!!! Best ones I ever had were in the Hotel Victoria in Oaxaca, Mexico years ago. They used black bean frijoles refritos which I hadn’t had before (it was 1985). I like your recipe. I made huevos rancheros today and used some of the guajillo chile salsa I made from your recipe instead of ranchera salsa, it was really good with the eggs. I also like to put my tortillas on top of a bed of fresh spinach because I am a spinach fanatic.
What a good idea to use fresh spinach as a base for huevos rancheros. I often use a bed of mixed salad greens under main dishes, but have not served huevos rancheros this way. I will have to try it. Guajillo salsa is especially rich tasting to me — a good accompaniment to eggs and a good way to use left-over salsa. Good to hear from you. Have a great week-end!
Having just finished whipping up a big breakfast for 6 people with good food, I think it does feel like it will be a good weekend. You’ve got the best Mexican food blog I have seen, lots of inspiration in your pages.
Wow, Birgit, my cheeks are burning. Such a compliment — thank you! Maybe I will have to get back to blogging some day! Glad your breakafast got your week-end off to a great start!
Oh and sorry. For arabic eggs, you cook down tomatoes and peppers until they are meltingly soft (in olive oil) then you add the eggs and just and leave them sunny side up. Then you douse all that with olive oil (there should be puddles), sprinkle with parsley and eat it with warm arabic bread – with your hands (if you can manage to do that without spilling it all down your front!)
This sounds really delicious! All my favorite ingredients. Mmmm …
This is on the menu at a popular chain restaurant in London called giraffe. I ordered it once and almost cried! Cold tortillas, a few black beans scattered around and some cheddar. I must have been Mexican in my other life because this is my favorite breakfast dish. Even over Arabic fried eggs!
I can imagine how disappointed you must have been! I would suggest you make this at home, but I don’t know if you can even buy tortillas, what kind of dry or canned beans are available, what kind of chiles…?
I used Google to look up Mexican restaurants in Berlin. Have you tried Viva Berlin http://www.toytowngermany.com/berlin/viva_mexico.html , run by a German and a Mexican named Rosie? Also, there is Casa del Gatto
Apparently, you can get tortillas at a place called La Tortilla Atomica.
This is a comment from the web site for Viva Berlin: you guys should try out the 2 new Mexican places on Skalitzerstrasse – one is Ta’ Cabron, run by guys from Sinaloa. It’s more a small imbiß but the food is really good and about as Mexican as you’re going to get in Berlin. They even have tamales!! The other is Maria Peligro across the street from Ta’Cabron – more of a bar-cum-restaurant but the food there is also good. I prefer Ta’Cabron but both places are good.
Another place I found is called Casa del Gatto http://rgmjapan.tripod.com/RESTAURANTSGERMANY.html
Oh, I hope you read this, because I want to know what are Arabic fried eggs???
Let me know if you are successful finding decent Mexican food.
Kathleen! Wow, thank you so much for doing all that research for me. I am printing this out NOW and putting it into my little “must visit” scrap book I keep. I will certainly send you an update!
You are welcome. I look forward to hearing if you find a Mexican restaurant that is really authentic in Germany.