Chilaquiles With Pepitas, Charred Corn, and Black Beans Recipe

Crisp tortilla chips are soaked in a tangy, smoky salsa verde for this vegan version of the Mexican breakfast classic.

By
J. Kenji López-Alt
Kenji Lopez Alt
J. Kenji López-Alt
Culinary Consultant
Kenji is the former culinary director for Serious Eats and a current culinary consultant for the site. He is also a New York Times food columnist and the author of The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science.
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Updated December 18, 2023
Chilaquiles with pepitas, charred corn, and black beans are served in a black earthenware platter.

Serious Eats / J. Kenji López-Alt

Why It Works

  • Charring the tomatillos, onion, chile, and garlic under a broiler gives the salsa a subtle smokiness.
  • Black beans, avocado, and toasted pumpkin seeds are flavorful and satisfying stand-ins for the eggs and other proteins that typically adorn chilaquiles.

During my vegan months, I rapidly discovered two things that offer a particular challenge to someone who is used to eating milk, eggs, and cheese: breakfast, and high-quality protein. The temptation to replace meat with more carbs is difficult to resist, especially when pasta is so easy to cook, but as I've found, it's a losing strategy.

You get hungry faster, and at least my stomach doesn't completely appreciate the change.

That said, there's no reason to resort to mock meats or egg and cheese substitutes (to each their own, but I find them all pretty universally revolting) when there are beans and nuts to be had aplenty.

Chilaquiles are a classic Mexican breakfast dish that can be pretty aptly described as a fried tortilla casserole. Crisp chips are soaked in salsa (in this case a bright and tangy salsa verde made from tomatillos—charred to add some bitter, smoky depth) until just barely softened but still mildly crunchy.

If you're only vegetarian, scrambled or fried eggs along with some crumbled cotija cheese are a great way to add good protein to the mix, but I think even meat eaters will agree that black beans are delicious. This recipe combines black beans with charred corn, along with a few slices of avocado and a handful of toasted pumpkin seeds for a meal that's not only balanced in carbs, protein, and high in good green vegetables, but is crazy delicious to boot.

January 2012

Recipe Details

Chilaquiles With Pepitas, Charred Corn, and Black Beans Recipe

Prep 5 mins
Cook 50 mins
Active 30 mins
Total 55 mins
Serves 4 servings
Cook Mode (Keep screen awake)

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, peeled and cut in half
  • 6 cloves garlic
  • 1 small onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 serrano or jalapeño pepper
  • Kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 1 ear corn, kernels removed
  • 12 ounces corn tortilla chips
  • 1 cup canned black beans (about half of a 14-ounce can), drained and rinsed
  • 1 avocado, thinly sliced
  • 1 small onion, thinly sliced, slices placed in a bowl of cold water for 10 minutes
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • 1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)

Directions

  1. Preheat broiler to high. Place tomatillos, garlic, onion, and pepper on a foil-lined heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet. Broil without moving until well charred on top side, about 15 minutes. Flip vegetables with a spatula and continue broiling until well-charred and completely softened, about 15 minutes longer.

  2. Transfer vegetables to a food processor and process until roughly puréed. Season salsa verde to taste with kosher salt and set aside (see note).

  3. Heat oil in a medium skillet over high heat until smoking. Add corn kernels, toss to coat, and cook without moving until charred on one side. Toss and continue to cook, tossing occasionally until well charred all over, about 6 minutes total. Season to taste with kosher salt and transfer to a small bowl.

  4. Heat 1 1/2 cups salsa verde and 1 cup water in a large saucepan until simmering. Add tortilla chips and fold with a rubber spatula until all the chips are coated. Transfer chips to a large serving dish or individual serving plates. Top with charred corn, black beans, avocado slices, sliced onion, chopped cilantro, and toasted pumpkin seeds (see note). Serve immediately with a side of vegan refried beans if desired.

Special Equipment

Rimmed baking sheet, aluminum foil, skillet, large saucepan, flexible spatula

Notes

Prep time can be significantly reduced if you use store-bought salsa verde. One 12-ounce jar is sufficient for this recipe. This recipe will produce more salsa verde than necessary. Extra salsa verde can be stored in the fridge in a sealed container for up to 1 week.

This recipe can easily be made vegetarian by adding a drizzle of Mexican crema, crumbled cotija cheese, or a fried egg.

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