My Favorite Chimichanga

Name: My Favorite Chimichanga
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6 Chimichangas, 6 serving(s)
Ingredients: 6 -8 slices cooked bacon, chopped; 2/3 cup onion, chopped; 1 -2 mashed garlic clove (use garlic press); 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chilies; 2 teaspoons chili powder; 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin; 1/2 teaspoon crushed Mexican oregano; 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice or 1 pinch ground cloves; 1 lb cooked beef (chunked or shredded) or 1 lb cooked pork (chunked or shredded); 2 ripe medium tomatoes, chopped; 3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped; 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice; 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar; 1 dash freshly cracked black pepper; 3/4-1 teaspoon kosher salt; 6 large burrito-size flour tortillas; 2 cups monterey jack cheese (1/2 cup per serving) or 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese (1/2 cup per serving); pure canola oil or corn oil; nonstick cooking spray; sour cream; guacamole; salsa

Submitted by The Spice Guru

"My favorite recipe for chimichangas is my own!"

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photo by DianaEatingRichly

Ready In:: 35mins
Ingredients:: 22
Yields:: 6 Chimichangas
Serves:: 6

ingredients

SAUTE INGREDIENTS
6 -8 slices cooked bacon, chopped
²⁄₃ cup onion, chopped
1 -2 mashed garlic clove (use garlic press)
SIMMER INGREDIENTS
1 (4 ounce) can diced green chilies
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 ¹⁄₂ teaspoons ground cumin
¹⁄₂ teaspoon crushed Mexican oregano
¹⁄₄ teaspoon ground allspice or 1 pinch ground cloves
1 1 lb cooked beef (chunked or shredded) or 1 lb cooked pork (chunked or shredded)
2 ripe medium tomatoes, chopped
3 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
¹⁄₄ teaspoon granulated sugar
1 dash freshly cracked black pepper
³⁄₄ - 1 teaspoon kosher salt
FLOUR TORTILLAS
6 large burrito-size flour tortillas
SHREDDED CHEESE
2 2 cups monterey jack cheese (1/2 cup per serving) or 2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese (1/2 cup per serving)
FOR FRYING
pure canola oil or corn oil
FOR BAKING
nonstick cooking spray
OPTIONAL EXTRAS
sour cream
guacamole
salsa

directions

SNIP bacon into 3/4-inch squares using kitchen shears; COOK bacon in a 2-3 quart heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat until crisp; ADD 2/3 cup chopped onions and saute until softened; ADD 1-2 cloves mashed fresh garlic; SAUTE for 30 seconds longer.
ADD 1 (4 ounce) can diced green chiles, 2 teaspoons chili powder, 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1/2 teaspoon crushed Mexican oregano, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice or 1 pinch ground cloves; SIMMER 2-3 minutes.
ADD 1 lb cooked shredded or chopped meat, 2 chopped ripe medium tomatoes, 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro, 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, 1/4 teaspoon granulated sugar, 1 dash freshly cracked black pepper and 3/4-1 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste); SIMMER 2-3 minutes, stirring as needed; COVER and remove from heat.
HEAT 6 large burrito-size tortillas in a microwave oven on 50% power for 20 seconds to make them soft and pliable.
FILL each tortilla down the center with 1/4 cup shredded cheese, 1/2-3/4 cup of the meat mixture; top with 1/4 cup shredded cheese. Tuck in the sides and roll up firmly, burrito-style.
TO FRY: FRY chimichangas seam-side down over medium heat in 1/2 inch canola oil in clean large skillet; TURN chimichangas carefully using a flat spatula until evenly light golden and crispy.
TO BAKE: PREHEAT oven to 400 degrees F; SPRAY chimichangas lightly and evenly with non-stick cooking spray (or brush with melted butter or margarine); BAKE seam-side down at 400 degrees F for 25 minutes or until golden; REMOVE chimichangas carefully using a metal spatula.
TOP each hot chimichanga immediately with shredded cheddar cheese so cheese melts.
SERVE with guacamole, sour cream and salsa on the side.
SERVING SUGGESTION: Serve with "Mexican Confetti Salad": Julienne crisp iceberg lettuce. Add diced ripe tomatoes, sliced black olives, sliced green onions and chopped fresh cilantro. Blend enough Italian dressing for serving with a squeeze of fresh lime, a pinch of sugar, a pinch of Mexican oregano and a dash of black pepper. Drizzle dressing over salad. Makes a great garnish-type salad with a very light dressing to compliment your favorite Mexican entrees.

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Reviews

This recipe is MY FAVORITE Chimichanga!!! I LOVE mexican foods and have been looking for a long time to make these myself. I have made these about 10 times. AWESOME!!! Since there is bit of work involved, I double the recipe and freeze 1/2 of it without the flour tortilla's, of course. I thaw and cook as usual. THANK YOU for such an awesome recipe!!

Im4miracles
Amazingly delicious. I only made three and had extra filling so put it on top with the lettuce, taco sauce and cheese. Loved the filling with the bacon and the crispy tortilla.

adopt a greyhound
I used burrito sized tortillas, and they were the perfect size. Made 6 chimichangas, and I baked them. Served with black beans and rice, and made for an excellent at home Mexican dinner.

Spankie
I've never made a chimi before, but I love them. So when I boiled up a whole chicken today and was trying to figure out what to do with it after pulling everything off the bones and shredding it, I came across this recipe. It did not disappoint. I had to tweak the recipe a little based on what I had on hand. Didn't weigh/measure my meat, just used about half of the chicken. I didn't add the bacon, so instead just sauteed the onion in some butter, then added the green chilies and meat. And instead of using the spices listed, I cheated and just used a package of taco seasoning with a little water. Didn't have fresh tomatoes, so used a 1/4 cup or so of petite diced tomatoes, drained. Had made some Rotel cheese dip the other night for a tex-mex dinner, so topped chimis with that after pulling them out of the grease. Even my picky 6 y/o daughter said they were good and didn't even notice the tomatoes in the meat. I made 3 with large burrito-size tortillas and 1 smaller, soft taco-size tortilla (for my 6 y/o). Have some of the meat mixture left over, so I'm thinking chicken tacos tomorrow maybe . . .

MommaJen
I really enjoyed this meal. It was the dish that my husband picked for his weekly choice and I'm glad he did. I followed the instructions exactly and I opted to bake the dish because I don't do well with fried foods. I bought fajita size tortillas because I wasn't exactly sure what size "Medium" was and they were way too small to hold the amount of stuffing suggested. I would advise to use an 8 inch tortilla, at least. I used 1/4 c cheese, 1/2 c filling and 1/4 c cheese to fill the wraps that we had and I wound up getting 10 chimichangs (and my skinny, little, tweenaged son ate 5 of them). The only reason I'm not giving this a 5 star rating is because after I used 8 slices of bacon, I couldn't taste it at all in the finished product. I'm not sure if that is how it is supposed to be but I was kind of bummed out about it. My husband (the World's Biggest Bacon Fan) was devastated because that is why he chose this recipe. Other than that, they were pretty good. They even heated up well in the microwave the next day and the shell even stayed nice and crispy. Thank you for posting. We will most likely make this again.

PSU Lioness