Enchiladas de Brisket Estilo Nuevo León
Enchiladas de Brisket Estilo Nuevo León
Domingo BBQ & Recalentado: Weekend Smoke on a Weeknight Timeline
If you think enchiladas mean a soggy casserole swimming in canned gravy and yellow cheese, you're missing the point. Across the border in Monterrey, Nuevo León, the real deal is fresh, vibrant, and pan-fried. This is the ultimate recalentado—taking that beautiful smoked brisket you spent all weekend tending and rolling it in corn tortillas bathed in a deeply earthy ancho and guajillo sauce. The secret is the hot oil. You pass the tortilla through the fat to create a barrier, keeping it toothsome instead of turning it to mush. Served with the canonical garnish of crispy, chile-stained potatoes and carrots, this is where the Texas barbecue pit meets the Northern Mexican home kitchen, ready in twenty minutes.
Ingredients
- Ancho chiles4
- Guajillo chiles4
- beef broth1 1/2 cup
- white onion1/4 med
- garlic2 small clove
- ground cumin1 tsp
- Mexican oregano1/2 tsp
- salt1/2 tsp
- neutral oil1/2 cup
- leftover smoked brisket2 cup
- queso fresco1 cup
- russet potato1 large
- carrots2 med
- yellow corn tortillas12
- iceberg lettuce1 cup
- Mexican crema1/4 cup
Method
- 01
Hydrate and blend the chiles for the sauce.
In a small pot, bring the broth and dried chiles to a boil, then remove from heat to steep for 15 minutes. Transfer the softened chiles and liquid to a blender with the onion, garlic, cumin, oregano, and salt, blending until completely smooth.
- 02
Fry the red chile sauce to deepen its flavor.
Heat a tablespoon of the oil in a skillet over medium-high. Pour the purée directly into the hot fat—it will sputter aggressively—and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes to cook out the raw onion and bloom the spices.
- 03
Parboil the potatoes and carrots.
Boil the diced vegetables in salted water for about 5 minutes until just tender, then drain well. These form the essential Monterrey garnish.
- 04
Moisten the leftover smoked brisket.
Toss the cold chopped brisket with a quarter cup of the warm red sauce. This revives the recalentado, ensuring it doesn't dry out in the oven.
- 05
Fry, dip, and roll the tortillas.
Heat the remaining oil in a skillet. Pass a tortilla through the hot fat for 3 to 5 seconds per side to soften it and create a lipid barrier, then immediately dip it into the warm red sauce. Fill with brisket and a pinch of cheese, roll tightly, and place in a 13x9 baking dish.
- 06
Bake briefly to melt the cheese.
Ladle just enough of the remaining sauce over the enchiladas to keep them moist (do not drown them), top with the rest of the cheese, and bake at 375°F for 10 to 15 minutes.
- 07
Fry the vegetable garnish and serve.
While the enchiladas bake, toss the parboiled potatoes and carrots into the residual oil and sauce left in the skillet. Fry until they are crispy and stained red, then serve over the plated enchiladas with shredded lettuce and a drizzle of crema.
From Cook Tex-Mex.