Baleadas are one of the national dishes of Honduras. They're kind of like a cross between a taco and a quesadilla. According to one source on the internet, some of the best baleadas can be found in gas stations.
Baleadas start with the tortillas. Yes, I made my own tortillas! (I also bought some in case I screwed them up.) The recipe is simple: flour, salt, baking powder, vegetable oil, and water.
All of that is mixed up and kneaded into a soft ball of dough.
Then divided into equal pieces.
With oiled hands, the pieces are rolled into balls and placed in a bowl covered with a towel to rest while the filling is made.
The main ingredient in baleadas is refried red beans. These red beans are different from red kidney beans (they're smaller) but I used kidney beans since those are much easier to find. Pureed, they look a lot like a delicious berry sorbet.
While the beans are simmered to create that refried bean texture, the torillas are rolled out and cooked. I used a cast iron because that's the closest thing I have to a griddle or "comal."
They're cooked for less than 10 seconds on one side, flipped and cooked for a minute, then flipped again. At this point, you press down a few times with a folded paper towel which makes the tortilla puff up. According to the recipe I used, whether it puffs out or not is how you know a tortilla is well made.
I guess mine were pretty good! I was actually very surprised with how well they turned out.
Along with the beans, I also filled them with queso fresco, sour cream, avocado, cilantro, and hot sauce.
All the toppings are spread on top of a tortilla and then folded in half.
The tortillas were nice and soft and just chewy enough, and the beans with the cheese and other ingredients definitely hit the spot! I've saved this recipe so I can make it again just for regular meals. With added scrambled eggs, these are a popular breakfast food in Honduras, so that is the variety I will try next. And I'll definitely be making my own tortillas more often now that I know how easy they actually are!
Recipes Used: Baleadas
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