Lunch: Speedy Huevos Rancheros

Time: 25 minutes. You can make these in minutes if you use store-bought salsa and canned refried beans. You must, however, buy all of the groceries ahead of time. Then you'll be ready to go on New Year's afternoon, when you wake up and need your huevos.

Ingredients

2 cups store-bought hot red salsa*
Vegetable oil for frying
8 smallish corn tortillas (5 to 6 in.)
8 eggs
1 cup coarsely shredded jack cheese, plus extra for sprinkling on beans
1/4 cup chopped green onions
3 tablespoons grated cotija or parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano or 2 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
2 cans (15 oz. each) refried beans*, thinned with water if you like and warmed up in the microwave

Instructions

Put 4 heavy dinner plates in oven and preheat to 200 °. Heat salsa in a small saucepan over low heat, covered.
Fill a large frying pan with 1/2 in. oil and heat over medium heat until the handle of a wooden spoon bubbles when you stand it in the oil. Remove plates from oven. Using tongs, fry each tortilla 2 seconds per side. Drain against side of pan, then overlap 2 tortillas on each warm plate. Pop in oven to keep warm.
Reduce heat to medium low. Cook 4 eggs, gently spooning oil over yolks to set them, 2 minutes for firm whites and runny yolks.
Spoon about 3 tbsp. warm salsa onto each plate of tortillas. Using a slotted spatula or spoon, transfer 2 eggs to each plate, draining against side of pan first, and top with another 3 tbsp. salsa. Keep warm in oven while frying and plating remaining 4 eggs. (You may have to increase the heat a little for the second batch.)
Sprinkle eggs with jack cheese, then green onions, cotija, and oregano. Spoon beans alongside and top with jack cheese.
*If you can spend more time cooking, check out our recipes for Salsa Ranchera, Chorizo Refried Beans, and Mexican Red Rice.
Note: Nutritional analysis is per serving.

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