Freezer lunches

I was feeling a little nostalgic this past week thinking about our time in New Mexico and decided to make freezer burritos New Mexico style for future lunches.  They go along with our plans of buying less and making more.  Freezer burritos are perfect for work lunches and also for weekends when you don't feel like cooking.  They taste good and are pretty easy on the wallet.  Here are two of the recipes I use:  My black bean and green chili burrito and a "tamale" burrito.

Black Bean & Green Chili Burrito

This is a meatless burrito because there is already lot of protein in the beans. 


8 large tortillas
4 cans of organic black beans
3 small cans of diced green chili's
Cheddar cheese (optional)
1 onion diced
2 cloves of garlic diced
Olive oil
1 tablespoon of red chili powder (I make my own with dried red chili's and a grinder)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp salt

Start by heating a large pan with a small amount of olive oil.  Add onion and garlic.  Cook until soft.  Add black beans.  Add chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, paprika, cumin and salt.  Simmer until beans are soft and fragrant.  Taste.  Add more seasonings if you desire.  Turn off heat and let cool.  Once cool, take one tortilla and add several large spoonfuls  of black bean mix.  Top with a few slices of cheese and several small spoonfuls of green chili's.  Wrap in foil or saran wrap and freeze.  This recipes makes about 8 tortillas.


"Tamale" Burrito

This recipe uses shredded pork like you would cook for a tamale and is so flavorful that you don't need masa or anything else with it. 

6 lbs pork shoulder
9 cups of water
3 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoons of salt
1/2 cup red chili powder (I make my own with dried red chili's and a grinder)
8 tortillas

In a large pot with a lid, add water, sugar and salt.  Stir.  Add pork shoulder.  Cover and cook for four hours, turning it over once every hour.  After four hours turn off your heat and let sit for at least 30 minutes.  Start to take the meat out and shred the pork.  In a skillet, using some of the broth from the meat, cook the meat in the skillet with the red chili powder.  Allow the meat to get a little bit brown but don't let it dry out.  Taste.  Add more seasonings if desired.  When you are finished, add a heaping serving to a tortilla.  Wrap in foil or saran wrap and freeze.  This recipe makes about 8 tortillas.

Another good burrito in New Mexico is the breakfast burrito.  Once these are gone I believe I'll make some of those and hopefully post about them too.