Huevos rancheros wake up the taste buds
Huevos rancheros are like breakfast and lunch stacked into one meal, the components designed to stimulate your taste buds, not comfort them.
Eggs "ranch" or country style, the Mexican favorite, are popular well beyond their country of origin and the southwest. Huevos rancheros are on the menu at many Boston-area eateries. Like an open-faced sandwich -- but eaten with a knife and fork -- the dish includes two fried eggs topped with tomato sauce or chunky salsa, always freshly made, and served on corn or flour tortillas. Accompaniments often include refried beans, rice, avocado, and potatoes.
A truly authentic version is at Tu Y Yo in Somerville. Sunny-side-up eggs on two soft corn tortillas are covered with a zesty homemade tomato sauce that hints of chipotle pepper. Also on the plate is a mound of gently seasoned refried beans. "The way we cook in Mexico is the way we cook here," says Epigmenio Guzman , owner of the seven-year - old restaurant that serves this dish for brunch on weekend mornings.
"We eat a heavy breakfast in Mexico," says Guzman, who was born in Veracruz and raised in Mexico City. As early as 7 a.m. people sit down to a glass of juice, a plate of fresh fruit, and a main dish, which might be eggs, enchiladas, or chilaquiles, he explains. (Chilaquiles are crisp, warm tortilla chips smothered in green tomatillo salsa with chopped onion, shredded chicken, and crumbled cheese.) Tu Y Yo's brunch menu features a variety of traditional egg dishes, with garnishes that include chorizo, cactus, and the nutritious seeds of the amaranth plant. One specialty is called huevos divorciados or "divorced eggs," in which one egg is covered with green salsa, the other with red.
Huevos rancheros are also served at non-Mexican restaurants and energetic breakfast eaters who might normally pitch their forks into pancakes are sopping up eggs and tortillas. "It's our number-one selling egg dish," says Andy Husbands, chef and owner of Tremont 647 in the South End, where the Mexican-style breakfast is featured at the weekend pajama brunch.
Husbands's interpretation comes in a large shallow bowl with rice and beans forming a bed for two fried eggs (or any way you want them). Mounds of guacamole and pico de gallo along with a grilled flour tortilla, are on the side. "To me, it's comfort food," says Husbands, who is known for big flavors.
Far from Boston's hip South End, in the seaside town of Marshfield, diners are digging into huevos rancheros at Arthur & Pat's restaurant. All kinds of customers come in for the dish, explains Artie D'Allessandro , chef and co-owner of the restaurant that his late parents, Arthur and Pat D'Allessandro, opened more than 30 years ago. "It's a whole range, from teenagers to seniors, who order it," he says.
D'Allessandro's version starts with a flour tortilla spread with refried black beans perked up with cumin, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper. Two eggs any style (he recommends fried-over-easy) are sprinkled with a four-cheese blend, then slipped under the broiler. The melted cheese is topped with dollops of guacamole and fresh tomato salsa and sprinkled with baked corn tortilla strips, which are added for crunch.
"I personally don't like all that stuff on my eggs," says the restaurateur, but he understands why others do. "People's tastes have been changing," he says. "They're a lot more educated about food and willing to try new things."
In this case, it's a dish that's incredibly satisfying. Says D'Allessandro: "One customer told me that after she eats this, she's set for the whole day." 