Baked Burritos with Tomatillo Salsa Verde Recipe

Don’t these burritos look delicious???  We love to go out for Mexican food, but I wanted to find an easy way to make tasty burritos at home.  This recipe couldn’t be easier because everything is already cooked and I just need to assemble the burritos together. 

To make this all work, I went to my freezer!  Last Sunday I roasted the largest chicken I could find at the grocery store and froze my leftovers in separate serving size baggies {about 1 pound each}.  In my freezer, I also have 1 cup containers of frozen tomatillo salsa verde that I made over the summer from my CSA vegetables. 

These are so easy to make on weekdays and have lots of flavor.  Who said you can’t make your favorite restaurant dishes?!?!

Baked Burritos with Tomatillo Salsa Verde Recipe

Serves 5

Preheat Oven 350^o

1 pound roasted, shredded chicken

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon cumin powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper powder

5 flour tortilla shells

1 can of red kidney beans

1 cup salsa

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1 cup tomatillo sauce

In a small bowl, mix together all of the spices; garlic powder, onion powder, cumin powder, and cayenne pepper.  In a large bowl with the shredded chicken mix in the spice blend and mix until the chicken is well coated.

On a working space, place one flour tortilla down.  Then down the center, sprinkle the cheese.  Then layer on top of the cheese with chicken, kidney beans, and salsa.  Add as much of each of these to your taste, but make sure to fill them up.  Next, roll up the sides and place the burrito onto a baking sheet.  Repeat until you have filled all of your tortillas.

Once all of your burritos are lined up on the baking sheet, pour the tomatillo sauce over all of the burritos. {My tomatillo sauce was frozen, so I placed it in a small sauce pan with a little water to defrost} Sprinkle more cheese on top.

Place in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.    

Tips:

1)      If you don’t have roasted, shredded chicken in your freezer you can purchase a roasted chicken from your local grocery.

2)   If you don't want to use shredded chicken, you can use cooked ground beef or pork. 

3)   Instead of meat, these can also be vegetarian with your favorite sautéed vegetables. 

4)      Feel free to add any of your favorites into the burritos to personalize them for you.

5)      If you don’t have tomatillo sauce, buy it at the grocery store or use salsa.

Tomatillo Salsa Verde Recipe

Since we have joined the CSA, I have been introduced to some amazing produce of all different varieties.  This past week we received tomatillos from the farm.  I will admit, I was very intimidated to cook with them.  The tomatillos have an inedible, paper-like husk surrounding most of the beautiful green vegetable.  Once the husk is peeled off, the outside flesh is a bit sticky, so make sure to wash them well before cooking.  

The process for making the salsa was simple and smooth.  Once I got over my fear of cooking with a very unfamiliar ingredient, I put on some good music in the kitchen and got to work.  We served the salsa over grilled chicken, but I can’t wait to use my leftovers on enchiladas or even just with some nacho chips.  Next time you see tomatillos at your local farmers’ market, purchase them and you will be pleasantly surprised!   



Tomatillo Salsa Verde Recipe

1 pound tomatillos, husked

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 serrano chile pepper, minced

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups water

Place the tomatillos, onion, garlic, and chili pepper in a medium sized sauce pan.  Next, season with the cilantro, oregano, cumin and salt.  Cover everything with the water.   

First, bring the mixture to a boil over high heat.  Then, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the tomatillos are tender, about 10-15 minutes.

Using a blender, carefully puree the tomatillo mixture in batches until smooth.  Serve over grilled chicken, fish, enchiladas or with nacho chips as an appetizer. 

Tips:

1)      I didn’t have some of these ingredients in my pantry, so I substituted some, and it came out great.  Here are what I switched some things out for: 

onion = green onion (scallions)

1 serraon chile pepper = 1 jalapeño pepper

1 tablespoon fresh oregano =  1 teaspoon dried oregano

2)      This sauce makes a lot, so I was able to freeze some of it for later. 

3)      I used my immersion blender for the pureeing process.