Tlayudas – large crisp Oaxacan tortillas with beans, cheese and tasajo
Tlayudas are Oaxaca's large, thin corn tortillas. Here they're spread with lard and black beans, topped with Oaxaca cheese and toasted crisp in a pan, then served with cabbage, tomato, avocado, seared salted beef (tasajo) and a chile de árbol salsa. In Oaxaca they're often folded in half and toasted over charcoal.
- 51 minTime
- 51 minHands-on
- 4Portions
- 60 gprotein per portion
- 860kcal per portion
Ingredients for 4 portions
- 3Tomatoes, for the salsa
- 1 cloveGarlic
- 5Chiles de árbol
- to tasteSalt
- 400 gCecina (salted dried beef), tasajo
- 200 gWhite cabbage
- 2Tomatoes
- 1Avocado
- 450 gRefried beans, black
- 4Tlayudas (large Oaxacan corn tortillas)
- 3 tbspLard, ideally unrefined (asiento)
- 300 gOaxaca cheese, pulled into strips
Method
- For the salsa, roast the tomatoes and garlic in a dry frying pan for about 10 minutes, until charred in patches and soft, and the chillies for just a few seconds. Blend everything coarsely with some salt.
- Sear the tasajo in a very hot, dry frying pan for 1–2 minutes per side and cut it into strips.
- Finely shred the cabbage and slice the tomatoes and avocado.
- Warm the refried beans with a splash of water until spreadable.
- Spread each tlayuda with a thin layer of lard, then with beans, and scatter over the cheese.
- Toast the tlayudas one at a time in a large frying pan over a medium heat for about 4 minutes, until crisp underneath and the cheese is melting.
- Top with the cabbage, tomato, avocado and tasajo and serve with the salsa.
