Fried Tortilla Extravaganza!
By Marie Aromin | 09/10/07 | Food

Disclaimer: I have been cooking with oil for several years, so I am capable of making these delights on my own without assistance. I must say however, this can be dangerous, since we are working with searing hot oil, and if not gone about properly, you can end up with a nasty burn! So if you are not familiar with using oil, I suggest you ask an adult for assistance, for I can’t be responsible for what happens in your kitchen.

Now let’s get started!

Ingredients:

Tortillas, cooking oil (Canola or vegetable), Cheese, Refried or Chili Beans (or etc)

Optional: Vegetables, Guacamole etc

Items: A pan for oil and another pan if you are cooking beans, plate[s] with a paper towel resting upon it. Bowl if necessary. Tongs for flipping the tortillas

Depending on what tasty dish you want to make, there are several ways to go about it.

(That’s why I included pictures!)

First off, let’s explain how to cook the tortillas.

Make sure you have oil in a pan (like in the picture) about at least an inch deep, and have it heat up on medium heat. (for instance, my stove is from simmer (1) to high (6) so I put it on 3 ½ to 4)

Now, you can either cut the tortillas into fun shapes, or leave them whole.

Then you wait until the cooking oil is good and ready*.

Then you carefully start to place in the piece(s) of the tortilla in the oil.

But be careful! They cook really fast! (and oil is dangerous!)

So in just a few seconds, the tortillas will start to bubble up, that’s your cue to turn them over. (with the proper tongs)

Now keep flipping back and forth every few seconds until you have it to the texture you desire (from soft to crispy).

Then immediately take it out of the oil, one-by-one, on to the plate with the paper towel.

The tortillas will be extremely hot for a few moments.

From here, if you want chips & dip, then there you have it! Put cooked beans in a bowl, and adorn it with the chips you just made.

Now if you wanted the whole tortilla, then after its cooled down, just spoon on the beans, cheese, veggies, or whatever have you~ and there you go!

But perhaps if you wanted to make a fried a Burrito~ then there is a few little things more you have to do.

1. Get a cold tortilla, and put whatever ingredients inside

2. Wrap the burrito

3. Carefully put in burrito, ( flap side down but make sure you hold down the burrito with tongs for the flap likes to come undone in the oil)

Cook for a few more seconds than you would the plain tortillas, and flip, and repeat until it’s the golden crispiness you desire.

4. And there you have it! Dig in~

*How to tell the oil is ready?

There are several ways to tell. First off, if you have never worked with oil before, I suggest you ask an adult. But if you are going to go about it solo, then try these ways:

Safest: Drop a piece of a tortilla in the oil, if it starts to quickly cook, its ready, if not, then wait a few more minutes.

If you tip the pan to the side, and if the oil runs with the consistency of water, that should mean it’s ready.

Hope you enjoyed this weeks recipe!~

Stay reading for next week!