Enfrijoladas — Mexico

Enfrijoladas are a Mexican dish made of corn tortillas rolled or folded around a filling and covered in a savory bean sauce. They resemble enchiladas in shape, but are coated in a sauce made from refried or blended beans rather than chili peppers, giving them an earthier, less spicy character. The dish is typically served with cheese, sliced onion and crema, and it is also eaten in parts of Central America with regional differences to the recipe. In Mexico, enfrijoladas are often served as a breakfast dish, sometimes alongside eggs or a side of avocado. To prepare it, cooked beans are blended with a little of their cooking water, or mashed and thinned with water, to reach a pourable, sauce-like consistency. This purée is simmered with fried onion and garlic, and warm tortillas are dipped into it to coat them before being folded around a filling such as shredded chicken, or served unfilled with the sauce simply poured over. Home cooks vary the bean variety used, the thickness of the sauce, and the choice of filling, ranging from plain cheese to shredded meat, but the coating of tortillas in a bean-based sauce, finished with cheese, onion and crema, is what generally identifies enfrijoladas, whatever else accompanies the plate.