Rancher's Eggs

Or: Huevos Rancheros

From Dos Caminos Mexican Street Food, via ckbk.com

This is eating like a king!!

Ranchero Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• ¼ cup tomato paste
• 6 medium tomatoes, roasted (I used a small can of diced tomatoes, drained)
  
• 2 canned chipotles en adobo
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup crumbled cooked bacon
• 2 red bell peppers, roasted, seeds and membranes removed, and diced
  
• 2 poblano chiles, roasted, seeds and membranes removed, and diced
• Salt

1. Heat the oil in a medium-size pan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until lightly browned, 5 to 6 minutes; stir in the garlic and continue to cook until soft, 2 to 3 more minutes. Note: I roasted the peppers on the bbq which worked really well (instead of heating up the oven).
   
2. Stir in the tomato paste and sauté briefly. Add the roasted tomatoes, chipotles, and chicken stock; stir to blend and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes (I found I simmered it without the lid for like, a half hour to reduce it to a thicker sauce). Transfer to the jar of an electric blender or food processor and purée until smooth. Stir the bacon and bell and poblano peppers into the finished sauce, season to taste with salt, if needed, and keep warm.

Refried Beans:

• 1 pound dry black or pinto beans (used 2 cans black beans)
  
• 2 avocado leaves (did not have avocado leaves...)
  
• 2 slices bacon, cut crosswise into ½-inch strips
• 1 small white onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 jalapeños, seeds and membranes removed if desired, minced
• ½ cup lard
  
• Juice of 1 lime
• Salt
• Crumbled Cotija cheese, to garnish (optional)

1. Rinse the beans and soak overnight in a large pot of cold water. (If you don’t have time to soak overnight, put the beans into a pot of water to cover by at least 2 inches and bring to a boil; turn off the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour.) The following day, bring the pot of beans to a boil, add the avocado leaves, turn the heat down, and simmer until tender, 2 to 3 hours. (Had to skip all this as I was not able to find dry beans, and did not have avocado leaves!! So: open 2 cans of black beans and drain).
   
2. In a large skillet, cook the bacon over medium-high heat until golden brown; add the onion and sauté until golden, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and jalapeños and cook for about 3 minutes, adding a little lard or bacon fat, if necessary, to keep from sticking.
   
3. Drain the beans; reserve the cooking liquid (as there was no cooking liquid from the beans, I used a bit of broth in place of the bean water, referred to in the next step). Scrape the onion mixture into the container of a food processor along with about 2 cups of the cooked beans and purée. Combine the purée with the remaining the beans. (I just pureed it all).
   
4. In a large, heavy casserole, melt the lard over medium-high heat; add the beans and fry for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the lime juice and season to taste with salt. If the mixture seems dry, add some leftover bean water (or broth) until you reach the desired consistency. Serve topped with crumbled Cotija cheese, if desired. (Feta works in place of Cotija. They now sell Cotija at the Bulk Cheese Warehouse). 

The Whole Shebang:

This is a recipe for making it all at once, but I made this for just myself and made a serving of it at a time.

• Ranchero Sauce
• 4 cups My Refried Beans, warmed
• Vegetable oil, for frying
• 8 (6-inch) corn tortillas (I used small Casa Mendosa Triple-baked corn tortillas)
  
• 16 thin slices ham, preferably Serrano (it's fine without ham, I didn't have any)
  
• 16 large eggs
• 2 cups queso fresco, crumbled (feta works)
  
• 2 avocados, preferably Hass variety, peeled and diced

1. Prepare the Ranchero Sauce and My Refried Beans.
2. In a skillet, pour in enough oil to measure about 1 inch deep and heat to 375°F on an instant-read thermometer. Cook the tortillas until crisp and golden, turning once. Spread each tortilla with about ½ cup of refried beans. Place each in the center of a plate and top with 2 slices of ham.
3. Cook 2 eggs per portion and place them on the ham. You can cook the eggs however you'd like, I think sunny-side is traditional, you could scramble eggs, I think over-easy or medium is great as the yolk mingles with the sauce and is really good! For those who like that kind of thing. Ladle ¼ to ½ cup Ranchero Sauce over the top, sprinkle with crumbled queso fresco, add a few slices of avocado, and serve. Pass the extra sauce at the table.