Easy Baked Beef Chimichanga Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the main ingredient in chimichanga? ›

Traditionally, a chimichanga is filled with a combination of rice, beans, meat and cheese, similar to a burrito. You can opt for seasoned Mexican-style rice or yellow rice or even plain white rice. As for the beans, refried beans, black beans or pinto beans are traditional.

There is just something about a warm flour tortilla wrapped around spicy, tender Mexican shredded beef and fried up all nice and crispy on the outside, then topped with shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream and guacamole that makes my soul sing like a mariachi band.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove plastic wrapper. Place frozen chimichanga on baking sheet in center of oven. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until hot.

Burritos might also have vegetables, eggs, or condiments like guacamole or salsa, whereas a chimichanga won't be filled with any cold ingredients. Instead, a chimichanga parades them on top or to the side of it.

Any fan of Mexican food is likely familiar with the chimichanga, but the reality is not many people know how they were invented. Many don't know that they're not really Mexican. Most culinary historians suggest this delectable dish was accidentally created in the United States.

A chimichanga is a deep-fried burrito. The Tex-Mex staple usually features a flour tortilla filled with rice, beans, cheese, and meat – but you can get as creative as you want with specific ingredients.

Chimichanga conundrum

Chimichangas invariably fall into two basic categories: dry and wet. The former is crisply fried, topped with sour cream and guacamole and perhaps a little cheese. The latter is smothered with a sauce or salsa.

Assemble the chimichanga: Place the cooked meat, cheese, beans, and vegetables on one side of the tortilla. Fold the sides of the tortilla inwards and roll it tightly from the bottom. Secure with toothpicks: Use toothpicks to secure the chimichanga and prevent it from falling apart during frying.

You can add a salad or a side of corn or beans if they are not already in it. Chips and salsa or or chili con queso sometimes even some heated Chile from a can topped is great on a burrito. I would add shredded cheese and chopped onion.

What makes a chimichanga chimichanga? ›

Chimichanga is a Mexican appetizer or entre that includes a tortilla filled with a meat or bean mixture, typically deep fried to make it crispy on the outside. Chimichangas are basically deep-fried burritos. They're usually served topped with salsa, sour cream, or guacamole, and a side of Mexican rice.

1922), accidentally dropped a burrito into the deep-fat fryer in the early 1950s. She immediately began to utter a Spanish profanity beginning "chi..." (chingada), but quickly stopped herself and instead exclaimed chimichanga, a Spanish equivalent of "thingamajig".

A: Nothing other than the outside of the chimichanga is deep fried and the burrito is not. Helpful? Thank you for your feedback!

Chimichangas tend to have a slimmed-down list of ingredients and a drier, stickier filling to help them survive deep frying. Burritos have a lot more ingredient freedom, which almost makes them harder to define other than being wrapped in a tortilla. Want the delicious flavors without the carbs of a tortilla?

The main difference between these two Mexican favorites is that a chimichanga is deep-fried.