Southwest Potato Breakfast Burrito

Why this Recipe

On the West Coast, I learned that it was breakfast burritos only; no more breakfast sandwiches. While I have to admit, I need Italian Breakfast Sandwiches in my life, when you're really hungry, nothing compares to a southwest potato breakfast burrito.

It is the most filling breakfast that I make and it's perfect for a post-workout meal, a hangover mender, or a late-night snack. When I lived in Vegas, I would occasionally walk from my office to this hole-in-the-wall taco place and they would make me a breakfast burrito the size of my arm, but the inspiration for this breakfast burrito lies in San Diego at a place called Konos, which has the best breakfast burritos known to man.

There was an assortment of different breakfast burrito haunts that I frequented while living on the other side of the country but for some reason, potatoes with peppers and onions for breakfast always called my name. However, at this one particular place near my job, they would serve tacos de lengua some days and they really got me hooked.

How to Make the Crispy Potatoes

My favorite way to cook crispy-on-the-outside but soft-on-the inside-potatoes is two-fold.

Step 1: Chop the potatoes and then par-cook them in boiling water for about 8-10 minutes. While they are cooking, I preheat the oven to 425° and place a pan with a thin layer of oil already on it, inside the oven to preheat.

Step 2: Strain the potatoes and then add olive oil, and season with your favorite seasonings. For breakfast burritos, I use paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper.

Step 3: Pour the potatoes onto the preheated pan and roast in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes. When you drop the potatoes onto the pan, they sizzle and you'll see why it makes them so crispy.

This method always makes sure the potatoes are soft enough for a burrito and crispy enough to have a great taste and texture. A good breakfast potato is the key to the southwest potato breakfast burrito. Or skip the breakfast potatoes and substitute Crispy Hash Browns.

Bacon

Everyone has a preference for how they cook their bacon. I pan-fried my bacon, placing the bacon on the cold pan and heating up the pan to medium heat. This is my preference mainly because it's how I've always done it. You can also substitute the bacon with leftover barbacoa from Dutch Oven Barbacoa Tacos.

People swear by the oven method on parchment paper. I just hate cleaning a big greasy pan after it's covered in oil. I find it so much easier to put the grease into a can and get rid of it that way. Cook the bacon however you please.

Peppers and Onions

Cook the peppers and onions in the same pan that the bacon was cooked. Leave some of the bacon grease, and toss in the peppers and onions while the pan is heated to medium-high heat. Season with salt and pepper. The same pan will give the peppers and onions a nice char. Cook for 8-10 minutes, stirring often.

Scrambling the Eggs

Scrambling the eggs is another one of those controversial things that everyone does differently. I subscribe to the Gordon Ramsay Method. Scramble and cook them low and slow and then add something at the end to slow down the cooking process. I usually use sour cream or ricotta cheese. Remove the eggs while they are still slightly runny. Salt and pepper to taste at the end.

The easy cheat code to soft scrambled eggs is just to cook them with 2 slices of American cheese. Works every time. The southwest potato breakfast burrito works best with really soft eggs. The eggs meld into every nook and cranny and bring all of the ingredients together.

Southwest Sauce

I made a really quick chipotle sauce with equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise. In a food processor add ¼ cup mayo, ¼ cup sour cream, and 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce. Spritz with lime and process. This is such a quick sauce and is perfect for this burrito.

You could also skip this and substitute our Cilantro Lime Ranch Dressing or Avocado Lime Crema.

Wrapping a Burrito

This is always the hardest part for people. It isn't easy to wrap a burrito especially when you add a lot of fix-ins. The problem is we never know we added too many ingredients to the burrito until it is too late. Think about when you get a new employee wrapping your burrito at Chipotle. They make a huge mess. But there is a way to fix this.

1. Don't add too much! Put less than you think you need, you can always have a second burrito.
2. Microwave the tortilla for 10 seconds. This will make it more pliable.
3. Wrap the burrito on aluminum foil. Then immediately wrap it in the aluminum foil so that you can place it on a pan.

I only use flour tortillas for my burritos because they are very forgiving. I'm aware that won't work for everyone but it does for me. Wrap the burrito as tightly as you can, while it is placed on a sheet of aluminum foil. Don't worry if it rips. Then hold it down and quickly wrap it tightly with aluminum foil.

Put a frying pan on the stove, bring it to medium-high heat, and cook each side of the burrito for 1-2 minutes. The rips in the burritos will almost melt together, solving the issue. The burrito will come out perfectly.

Cut right through the aluminum foil and slowly unwrap the aluminum foil as you eat if you really ripped it up good. But otherwise, you should be able to completely unwrap it and enjoy it as most of the tears in the tortilla should have cooked back together.

FAQs