How to make a burrito

Before I begin, i have to confess…

I don’t think this post is necessary. Or at least I didn’t think so. I have several websites that I manage and one of them has to do with serving burritos to the homeless. You may also know that I am addicted to tracking my site traffic via StatCounter.com. one thing I’ve noticed is how many people visit that site by searching for “how to make a burrito”. So, I’ve decided to teach you.

First, it’s really simple and is totally customizable to your taste or talent. A burrito is nothing more than some warm food wrapped in a tortilla.

What you need…
Meat: about 1lb (beef, chicken, pork)
Beans: refried, black or pinto
Tortillas: 8-10 inch, flour (1-2 per person)
Cheese: cheddar or mexi-blend
Rice: optional (white or Mexican)
Sour Cream, salsa, guacamole

Cook the meat. Cook it however you like. Typically, I brown some ground turkey with taco seasoning but you can use your own spicy concoction or marinade some beef/chicken/pork and grill it. Carna Asada, Polo Asada and Carnitas are available pre-marinated at your local store. Also consider grilling some onions and bell peppers while you’re at it.

Heat the Beans. Since you’re probably using refried beans you simply need to heat the beans in a pot. This can be true for black and pinto beans but if you’re more comfortable in the kitchen, feel free to start from scratch.

Warm Tortillas. Tortillas (t?r-t?’y?s) need to be served warm. You can cover them in a damp paper towel and seat them in the microwave for about 30 secs. or you can fire them over an open flame. One method I used was to place a cast iron pan upside down over a burner and “toast” them to perfection. it’s important to only do this with a cast iron pan as you will ruin any other types. Another method is to heat them in oil. Place a small amount of oil in a pan and “shallow fry” the tortillas. it’s my favorite but is obviously less healthy and takes more time – but it’s so worth it!

Everything else is added cold (or room temp)…
salsa (chunky is my favorite)
sour cream
guacamole
shredded cheese
shredded or leaf lettuce
or anything else you can think to add.

Closing a burrito is the hardest part. Try not to over stuff. If you pile on too much you just created a giant soft taco. New parents probably already know how to wrap a burrito since they wrap their baby the same way. Basically, place your filling in the middle of the tortilla in a straight line. Leave a bit of “naked” tortilla at one end but lay out the filling to the edge of the other end. Fold over one side and try to tuck it under the filling a little bit. Fold the “tail” we left onto the filling and then roll the whole thing tight. I’ll add pictures as soon as I make burritos again but feel free to ask questions here or look at other sites until then.

Optional: cook some rice for inside or outside the burrito. When I was working the Burrito and Sock homeless ministry, we had a simple recipe. Beans, cheese, rice, salsa. Because we were limited in funds, time and manpower this quick and easy method really served our needs. We’d cook about four cups of minute rice, and 7lbs of refried beans, spoon them over the tortillas (microwaved), sprinkled with cheese and salsa. This made about 48 small burritos individually wrapped in foil.