Baked Huevos Rancheros Casserole

This baked huevos rancheros casserole is made up of layers of crunchy, yolky, spicy brunch goodness. It's a guaranteed crowd-pleaser! 

The first time I ever tried huevos rancheros, I was in the middle-of-nowhere. We were on our roadtrip – in Dubois, Wyoming of all places. It was one of those life-saving and life-changing meals that come along when you least expect them and when you need them the most.

On that fateful morning, we woke up to sunlight streaming in our car windows between makeshift t-shirt curtains and also to the wonderful realization that we had a flat tire. The next realization was that we had a spare but no tire iron with which to swap it out. And the last straw was that nowhere in town was open until 9am. Of course, none of this was helped by the throbbing hangovers that both of us happened to be nursing. [What? The bar was the only place in Dubois that was open when we rolled into town at midnight.]

By the time we got the tire switched out and ready to roll, all either of us could think about was FOOD. For the love of God, freakin' food.

Enter huevos rancheros. Served with homemade salsa, freshly fried corn tortillas and 2 soft tortillas, over-easy eggs, thick refried beans and for whatever reason, hashbrowns. Mom's Cafe of Dubois goes the assemble-your-own route with their dish – scoop it one bite at a time or roll it all up burrito-style – it's your call.

Huevos rancheros is a meal that covers all of the bases and that's the way I like to cook it – all-in-one. You get crunchy, creamy, and juicy in each mouthful and if it's done right, you get spicy and tangy, too.

Make these in a 12" cast-iron skillet to serve a crowd or in a 10" to serve 2-4. If you don't have a cast-iron, you can always use an oiled casserole dish. Also, if you don't have a cast-iron, you need one NOW. We received a Lodge as a wedding gift and it's been essential in our kitchen ever since.

And serve it for brunch with sangria or a crisp white wine – something that won't fill you up too much. Because trust me, the huevos rancheros will take care of that. This is the kind of brunch that puts you into a blissful, satisfying food coma.

Baked Huevos Rancheros

---

• Author: Jordan Cord
• Total Time: 35 minutes
• Yield: 8 1x

Print Recipe

Pin Recipe

Description

Layers of crunchy, yolky and spicy brunch goodness make up this casserole version of Huevos Rancheros.

---

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Rice

• 2 cups white basmati rice
• 2 ¾ cups water
• ¼ cup lime juice
• ¼ cup fresh packed cilantro

Refried Beans

• 2 – 15 oz. cans of refried beans
• 2 oz. chèvre goat cheese
• ½ teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon sea salt

Corn

• 1 cup frozen corn, thawed
• 1 teaspoon chipotle pepper
• ¼ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 yellow pepper, roughly julienned
• 2 cups salsa [we used Simple Truth Black Bean Chipotle]
• 2 cups blue corn tortilla chips
• 6 eggs
• sea salt
• black pepper

---

Instructions

Rice

1. In a pot, combine white rice, water, lime juice, cilantro, and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes.

Refried Beans

1. In a small pot, combine beans, goat cheese, salt, and cayenne and mix to combine.
2. Cook on medium until warm, then remove from heat.

Corn

1. In a small bowl, combine thawed corn, chipotle pepper, and sea salt and mix to combine.

Chips

1. Break apart tortilla chips roughly into bite-sized pieces. The chip choice here is in your court, but I have to recommend Red Hot Blues from Garden of Eatin'. They add a salty, spicy touch that can't be beat in this dish.

Assembly

1. Preheat the oven to 400º and coat a 12" cast-iron skillet with olive oil spray [a 9" x 13" casserole dish will work, as well].
2. Scoop rice into the pan creating a ½" thick layer.
3. Next, spoon the refried beans over the rice and spread using the back of a spoon.
4. Add a layer of seasoned corn over the beans.
5. Spread crunched up chips over the corn.
6. Scoop spoonfuls of salsa evenly over the chips.
7. If desired, toss yellow bell peppers over the salsa.
8. Gently crack eggs over top of everything, being careful not to crack the yolks. Use as many as you see fit – five or six should do the trick.Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper.
9. Bake 20-25 minutes. Eggs should appear white but still be jiggly when you move the pan. They will continue to cook for 5-10 minutes after the dish is removed from the oven, so be careful not to overcook.

• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 20 mins
• Category: Breakfast