Where to start to describe the joys of a good burrito? My first, and still the best, was in a no frills eatery on Mission Street in San Francisco. It’s simply a meal in a flour flatbread………and so much more. The original recipe is refried black beans, good grilled beef, salad and a spicy sauce, all wrapped in a light flour tortilla, the result being a divine mixture of flavours and textures.
Now that I no longer eat meat I thought I would have a try at using marinated mushrooms in place of the meat, and it worked rather well. It may seem a lot of work to make burritos at home, but if you cook the beans in advance you don’t have so much to do at once.
This is the first time that I have made flour tortillas, and they were so good and light that I will be making them regularly.
BLACK BEANS – use the chilli recipe in the previous post.
Rewarm the beans.
FLOUR TORTILLAS – this amount makes four tortillas of about 25 cm diameter
200 grams strong white flour
50 ml olive oil
good pinch of salt
125 ml hot water
Put the flour in a mixing bowl with the salt. Add the oil and mix thoroughly until the oil is evenly distributed in the flour.
Add the water bit by bit mixing throughly as you go along, adding it even more slowly as the mix starts to come together. You are aiming for a firm but pliable dough.
Knead the dough on a floured board for five minutes or so to get a smooth textured dough.
Divide the dough into four equal pieces then put it to rest covered in its mixing bowl for half an hour or so.
To cook the tortillas heat a flat iron griddle or a thick based frying pan.
Roll the tortillas into thin rounds and then cook dry until slightly golden on each side.
Wrap in a clean tea towel as each are cooked to keep them warm.
MARINATED MUSHROOMS – per person
65 grams strongly flavoured mushrooms – I used shiitake
pinch ground cumin
pinch ground coriander
pinch smoked paprika/pimenton
pinch salt
olive oil
Slice the mushrooms and put in a small bowl with the rest of the ingredients. Mix well to coat the mushrooms evenly.
To cook, fry in olive oil until nicely browned.
THE SALAD
Tomato
cucumber
avocado – all cut into small cubes
teaspoon of finely chopped spring onion
shredded lettuce
fresh lime juice
Mix salad adding lime juice to taste.
SAUCE – if you want spicy use your favourite chilli sauce. If you are after mild to balance the spiciness of the beans in this case, the either sour cream or I made a cashew nut cream. There are many recipes for this on the Internet.
THE BURRITO
Lay out your warm tortilla on a piece of aluminium foil, put in the centre a line of the beans, then a line of the mushrooms, then the salad and finally a line of your chosen sauce. Using the foil to protect your fingers from the heat of the ingredients, roll up the burrito. The foil will keep the burrito warm while you make the rest.
Serve with pickled Jalapeño peppers and more sauce on the side.
