Here's another fast-n-easy meal I save for rushed weeknights: Quick Chicken Burrito with Chipotle Crema.
The fridge usually determines what's inside the burritos, and the Chipotle Crema can be whipped up in a matter of minutes.
That's an awesome combo to keep in mind when you are getting hangry and need some good food NOW!
How To Make Quick Chicken Burrito with Chipotle Crema
Relying on the fridge helps this meal come together fast, but there's another reason it's so lightning quick...
The Chipotle Crema can be made in a matter of minutes!
Most salsas roast the tomatoes or tomatillos and that takes time, but this Chipotle Crema is an in-between sauce and it has just a few ingredients:
1 cup mayonnaise or plain Greek yogurt
2 garlic cloves
2 chipotles in adobo
some adobo sauce from the can
squeeze of lime
pinch of salt
Note that you can substitute some of the mayonnaise with plain Greek yogurt or even heavy cream.
I usually do some type of combo. For example, 3/4 cup Greek yogurt and 1/4 cup mayonnaise is a good mixture to try out if you want a lighter version.
Adding in a bit of fat from the mayo or cream can make a huge difference, so I usually try to drizzle some in when making a yogurt version.
This is a great all-purpose sauce to have in your arsenal. You may recognize it from these Baja Fish Tacos.
Note that you can always plop in more adobo sauce from the can if you want to raise the heat a bit. And don't forget the final squeeze of lime -- that burst of acidity really brightens up this sauce!
Feel free to use this Chipotle Crema on tacos, tostadas, or even nachos! But I built some quick burritos for this meal using:
some of these refried beans
leftover cooked white rice
lightly seasoned, cooked chicken
cheese
freshly chopped cilantro
By now you've probably heard me rave about these beans.
I always seem to have some in the fridge and they lead to so many quick meals. But don't worry about making these beans from scratch for this meal -- feel free to use what you have available.
And for the chicken I just chopped up a single chicken breast, gave it a light seasoning, and cooked if off with some onion.
Full instructions for cooking chicken like this.
And for the final touch I cooked this burrito in some bacon drippings to give it a crispy exterior!
I don't always do this, but it's a good fit for this slightly decadent meal 🙂
See that crispy gold layer on top of the burrito in the above pic?
That's the bacon drippings in action! Even just a smidge of lard or bacon drippings can help the tortilla crisp up more readily. If you're curious, try adding an amount that seems too small to make an impact -- most likely you'll find that it's more than enough to give your burrito a crispy exterior.
Here's how the inside of this burrito looked after cooking:
Sure, you can put a layer of the Chipotle Crema inside the burrito, but for some reason I like drizzling some on each bite when making this combo.
I'm not sure why, but there's something really satisfying about sitting in front of the TV with a burrito that was crisped up in bacon drippings and dousing each bite with Chipotle Crema 🙂
Okay I hope this post inspires you to start drenching your weeknight creations with some Chipotle Crema.
This simple sauce can lead to so many quick, impromptu meals, so feel free to get creative with it!
Enjoy!!
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Quick Chicken Burrito with Chipotle Crema
Ingredients
- 1 chicken breast
- 1 cup refried beans
- 1-2 cups cooked white rice
- 3 flour tortillas (burrito sized)
- 1 cup shredded cheese
- freshly chopped cilantro
For the Chipotle Crema:
- 1 cup mayonnaise or plain Greek yogurt (or a combo of them)
- 2 chipotles in adobo
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1-2 tablespoons adobo sauce from the can
- squeeze of lime
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- For the Chipotle Crema, add the following ingredients to a blender or food processor: 1 cup mayonnaise or plain Greek yogurt (or a combo of them), 2 chipotles in adobo, 1-2 tablespoons adobo sauce from the can, 2 peeled garlic cloves, pinch of salt, and a squeeze of lime. Combine well. If it won't combine readily simply add a splash of water. I'm in the habit of scraping out the seeds of the chipotles but this is optional. More info on working with chipotles in adobo.
- Note: feel free to use a combo of mayo and Greek yogurt if you want a lighter version. Something like 3/4 cup yogurt and 1/4 cup mayo works well. Another combo I will sometimes use is 1 cup yogurt and just a drizzle of heavy cream.
- I cooked a single chicken breast for this batch using this simple chicken recipe. Basically you are just seasoning a chopped chicken breast and cooking it off with some onion. It's a great all purpose technique for tacos, burritos, tostadas, etc.
- I had some of these refried beans in the fridge, but don't worry about making these beans specifically for this recipe. This meal is designed to be quick-n-easy, so feel free to use whatever beans you have on hand.
- I also had some cooked white rice in the fridge. If you want to cook some rice from scratch, simply add 1 cup uncooked rice to a saucepan along with a glug of oil. Saute the rice over medium heat until it is just starting to turn golden brown, stirring regularly. Add 1.5 cups water or stock and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, stir, then cover and let simmer over medium-low heat until all of the liquid is absorbed.
- To build the burritos I usually start by warming up the tortilla in a skillet over medium heat, this makes them easier to roll. Each burrito gets a thin layer of refried beans, some cooked white rice, cheese, cooked chicken pieces, and freshly chopped cilantro. Roll tight. You can optionally cook each burrito in a smidge of lard or bacon drippings to crisp them up, or you can cook them in a dry skillet over medium heat. How To Fold A Burrito.
- You can optionally add some of the Chipotle Crema to the insides of the burritos, but for this batch I just drenched each bite in the delicious creamy sauce. While sitting in front of the TV. And guffawing after each mouthful 🙂
Still hungry?!
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Don Harris
I make re fried bean all the time but your recipe for Chipotle Crema is a game changer. I will have this in the fridge always now. Thanks
Patrick
Thanks Don!