Huevos Rancheros- a tasty breakfast choice

In case you haven't had the pleasure of ordering a plate of Huevos Rancheros for breakfast in the Southwest, I would like to share that pleasure with you.

Huevos Rancheros, Gabriel's Restaurant

Like many regional dishes, Huevos Rancheros make their appearance in different forms.  The basic ingredient is a soft corn tortilla topped with a fried egg (I order my eggs 'over hard'.)  The creativity of the dish lies with the sauce covering the eggs.  Some Huevos Rancheros are topped with a rich, thick red chile sauce, in which case the dish tastes similar to enchiladas.  Other Huevos Rancheros, like the ones pictured above, have a sauce made by sauteing tomato, onion, garlic and some type of green pepper (from mild to really hot!).

Side dishes will almost always include beans, called refritos, because the already cooked beans are fried in oil. Some restaurants also offer a spicy rice dish as a side, but I prefer the vegetable mixture pictured above. Huevos Rancheros are not a plate to order if you are watching calories, fat intake, or cholesterol levels, so eating more vegetables at least relieves some of the guilt.  Huevos Rancheros are often accompanied by flour tortillas, sometimes served in a small basket wrapped in foil or a cloth to keep them warm.  

At this point, I have talked myself into setting out for a Mexican food restaurant.  But I didn't want to fail to mention the location, because it is my 'old stomping ground', Ysleta, an historic area now part of El Paso, Texas.  

Gabriel's Restaurant at 9100 Alameda Avenue in El Paso's Lower Valley.

It has great service and food, and the rainy Saturday morning we were there, a friendlyguitar player was singing Mexican ballads.

Gabriel's Restaurant- interior

 Gabriel's is located across the street from the Ysleta Mission, the oldest mission in Texas.

Mission grounds 

This is the historic chapel that has been rebuilt several times because of floods and fires.

Chapel

For more information about the history of this area, here's a link Ysleta Mission.

Isn't there an old saying about not appreciating what is in our own back yard?  Huevos Rancheros at Gabriel's in El Paso was a memorable experience that I enjoyed sharing with you.