Okay… I’ll admit they’re hits with me, and you may not agree. I’ve recently tripped across a few pairings and combos for burrito and taco filings that might seem nutty at first – but only until you try them. This is what ultimately comes from acquiring the Breakfast Burrito habit…
Thai Sweet Red Chili Sauce: Try it in ways you never thought of before…
I’m sure you’re already aware of my COVID-19 Era breakfast burrito campaign. It’s a hard habit to break once you get hooked. And it does justify itself by how excellently it fulfills the oft-quoted dietary rule that breakfast – being the most important meal of the day – should also be your biggest meal (with lunch being less so, and supper less so than lunch).
A burrito state of mind
I can pinpoint the event that got me thinking big about breakfast in the first place. It was a lifestyle feature on some TV newscast in which a chubby, middle-aged reporter squared off with a dietician over what was the healthiest breakfast. There was an array of choices, from fresh grapefruit and wheat toast to a slice of last night’s leftover pizza. The reporter chose the grapefruit, thinking it was a virtuous way to go. But the dietician chose the pizza – noting that it had lots of good things on it from different food groups, and enough carbs to fuel one’s morning, if not their whole working day. You could avoid the temptation to stoke up with sugary stuff at coffee breaks, and no more 11 o’clock let-down!
And that got me started thinking about the ideal day-starter. I mean, you can’t eat pizza every morning, can you? Let’s not go there. In the broader sweep of dining history, this was about the time that breakfast burritos came into vogue and captivated just about everyone. A good place to start, I thought. But much could be done to elevate the concept.
Hence, my quest to create the ideal breakfast burrito, and my pandemic lock down preoccupation with repurposing leftovers as breakfast burrito fillings.
Early attempts
My first foray into the ‘accidental burrito tourist’ wilderness is memorialized in an October 28, 2019 post titled ‘Burrito Roulette’. This blow-by-blow account reveals the genesis of the idea and the creation of the first proto-burrito of its kind. The concept was to rescue leftovers that threatened to go into the garbage if not repurposed in some clever way. The example I chronicled – a leftover chicken vindaloo – was not particularly a breakfast specialty, but hindsight shows it would fit into the concept.
My experimentation continued right through the worst of the pandemic, to an update just a few weeks ago, which demonstrated how much my imagination had stretched its legs over time.
Now, some new discoveries…
I’ve been toying with the idea of different, ‘unlikely’ savoury condiments on breakfast burritos – burritos for all day parts, really – and I have some really fantastic finds to report!
The first is Thai Sweet Red Chili Sauce (TSRCS). No, really. If you’ve ever had a chili-topped taco or a chili-beans-rice burrito you’ll know how well hot peppers fit the format. Do you eat your eggs with ketchup? TSRCS is just a small step further to the left on the flavour scale. And why not try TSRCS as a hot sauce? Elevate your old ‘red sauce’ habit a few more floors!
Curry anything (but especially classic Indian Yellow Curry Sauce) will almost magically go with anything in a burrito. Rice and beans or lentils are naturals, but add Fajita-style beef or chicken chunks or whatever you have, and you’re hitting a burrito home run. My other star Asian condiment right now is Butter Chicken Sauce. A little milder than full-on Curry, but a full-flavour experience you’ll enjoy with any number of burrito fillings. Now, it’s your turn to jump in and experiment!
Whole Grain Mustard is another new love of mine. All that rich, zingy mustard flavour without the burn of regular prepared mustards. I’ve had it on all kinds of things, from Pigs in Blankets, to Sausage Rolls, to the classic scrambled Eggs and Bacon (‘Western Omelet’) breakfast wrap. Whole Grain Honey Mustard is even more interesting as an experimental condiment. It opens up a whole new realm of sweet burrito stuffings for your consideration!
While you’re at it…
Try the TSRCS or the Whole Grain Mustard instead of Ketchup with a Grilled Cheese sandwich. Do Curried Scrambled Eggs. Bring together a simple dish of rice and stir-fried veggies with a dash of TSRCS. Let your imagination run wild!
And remember: If you’re not having fun cooking and creating, you should be doing something else!
~ Maggie J.