There’s always something lying around in a family kitchen—some sugar pearls from a cake decoration, the dregs of a barbecue sauce jar kept “just in case” (even past its expiration date, yes, really).
I had about 100g of leftover nixtamalized mote that a friend had given me for experiments. I was a bit disappointed with mote when cooked traditionally. I had planned to serve it as a side for curry, but it was a bit tough to chew and too rustic to stand alone as a main dish without some work or sauce. Nutritionally excellent, but taste-wise, it needed improvement.
However, when ground into flour and mixed 50/50 with wheat flour, it makes excellent tortillas. Which, in turn, make for equally excellent enchiladas.
For 2 people as a main dish
For the tortillas
- 100g mote or corn flour
- 100g soft wheat flour
- 10cl water
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
For the filling
- 6 button mushrooms
- 80g ground beef
- 2 fresh red onions
- 2 tomatoes
- 3 tablespoons of your favorite spicy salsa
(My salsa is also a personal creation, a sweet-and-savory ketchup-inspired mix. I’ll share the recipe if I manage to remember it!)
- 2 teaspoons crème fraîche
- A bit of grated cheese for gratinating (I won’t specify the quantity; I use 30g of grated Comté, but others cover their enchiladas entirely with cheese—do what feels right for you!)
Preparation:
- Make the Tortilla Dough:
Mix the flours in a stand mixer with warm water, olive oil, and a pinch of salt, adding the water gradually. Set the dough aside. - Prepare the Filling:
- Roughly chop the mushrooms into 6–8 pieces each and sauté them with the ground beef over medium heat for about 3 minutes. Set aside.
- Dice the tomatoes and thinly slice the onions.
- Roll Out the Tortillas:
Now, there are two schools of thought here:- If you’re wealthy and/or Mexican, you might own a tortilla press (unlikely).
- Otherwise, do as I do: roll out the dough with a rolling pin.
Divide the dough into two portions and roll them into two thin pancakes. Cook them on a hot skillet for no more than 2 minutes.
- Assemble the Enchiladas:
Lay out the ingredients lengthwise on each tortilla before rolling them up. Each tortilla gets:- Half the mushrooms,
- Half the beef,
- Half the onions,
- A spoonful of salsa.
Reserve the crème fraîche and an additional spoonful of salsa for garnish.
Roll the tortillas, sprinkle with grated cheese, and place under the grill for a minute to gratinate.
- Serve:
Serve preferably on a long plate, with a dollop of crème fraîche and a spoonful of salsa on the side.