When you have a stack of waning corn tortillas, your first thought should be this easy migas recipe. Like crusty baguettes and morning newspapers, fresh tortillas seemingly have a 24-hour lifespan, quickly turning brittle and leathery. No amount of careful reheating seems to revive them. But, cut up and crisped in a pan with a splash of oil? Transformative. Suddenly, a stack of stale, crumbly tortillas is full of promise.
Sometimes confused for chilaquiles (a dish of crispy tortilla strips coated with salsa and often topped with a fried egg), migas is a Mexican breakfast and brunch staple that translates to “crumbs” (its Spanish ancestor is made with breadcrumbs). Mexican and Tex-Mex migas comprise fried corn tortillas laced with fluffy scrambled eggs and topped with any number of flavorful garnishes: spicy chorizo, pico de gallo, guacamole, refried beans, Cotija cheese, the list goes on.
This version requires just a few ingredients, all of them economical, and most of them likely in your kitchen already. Can you use store-bought tortilla chips? Because they’re often thin and brittle, we don’t recommend it. Milk and cornstarch stretch the eggs a bit further and render them impossibly silky. Bulked up with a scoop of refried beans and a simple tomato salad on the side, these migas are an affordable breakfast, lunch, or dinner—and salvation for those leftover tortillas.
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What you’ll need
Large Nonstick Skillet
$50 At Amazon
Rubber Spatula
$13 At Amazon
Stainless Steel Mixing Bowls, Set of 6
$39 $36 At Amazon
French Wire Whisk
$18 At Amazon
Citrus Juicer
$20 $15 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
30 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
1
¼
1
1
⅓
2
8
1
6
4
1
1
1
Preparation
Step 1
Gently toss 1 cup halved cherry tomatoes and ¼ cup finely chopped cilantro in medium bowl to combine. Cut 1 lime in half and squeeze juice from a half into bowl. Add a large pinch of kosher salt and toss to coat. Taste tomato salad and season with more salt if needed. Set aside. Slice remaining lime half into wedges and set aside separately for serving.
Step 2
Whisk ⅓ cup whole milk, 2 Tbsp. cornstarch, and 1 Tbsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¾ tsp. Morton kosher salt in a medium bowl until cornstarch is dissolved. Add 8 large eggs and whisk until well combined; set aside.
Step 3
Cook 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil and 6 small corn tortillas, cut into ½"-wide strips, in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden all over and charred in spots, 6–8 minutes; transfer to a plate.
Step 4
Reduce heat to medium. Add 4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, 1 small yellow or white onion, finely chopped, 1 serrano chile, thinly sliced, and 1 tsp. ground cumin to same skillet and cook, stirring often, until butter is melted and onion is softened and translucent, 6–8 minutes.
Step 5
Pour reserved egg mixture into skillet, then add tortilla strips. Cook, stirring slowly but constantly in large sweeping motions, until eggs are almost fully set, about 3 minutes (they should still look a bit runny on top).
Step 6
Divide migas among shallow bowls or plates and spoon reserved tomato salad over. Place some warm refried beans and sliced avocado alongside. Serve with hot sauce and reserved lime wedges for squeezing over.
Leave a Review
Reviews (7)
Back to TopGreat weeknight meal that everyone can customize
Gabby
Atlanta
8/10/2023
Absolutely delicious! Quick, easy, and inexpensive. Adding this one to my heavy rotation!
Ellen
Madison, WI
8/16/2023
where is the third review?
Anonymous
st petersburg
9/3/2023
It’s been over a decade since my one and only weeklong tryst with migas in Austin, TX. It seemed to be on every breakfast menu I came across during my visit. Kinda forgot how much I loved it until I saw this recipe. I made it as directed, but with homegrown heirloom tomatoes and leftover house-made tortilla chips from work. Burlap and Barrel cumin elevates everything. It was considerably better than what I remember! Def going to make this every summer.
mikebakespdx
Portland, OR
9/4/2023
Loved this! Substituted full sized tomatoes from my garden for the cherry tomatoes, and a jalapeño from the garden for the serrano, because that’s what I had. Otherwise made the recipe as written. Such a great way to use up old tortillas!
Jane
Hamden, CT
9/5/2023