Back in the day (a wonderfully ambiguous measure of time) some of us would make a late winter / early spring dash to the (relatively) much more temperate environs of northern New Mexico to fish the San Juan.
This was long enough ago that the river, shops and eateries weren’t lined with Texans and refugees from Albuquerque as often happens today. We always camped as a matter of tradition and to uphold our reputations as cheap, stiff-assed guys from Utah.
One late March or early April day thickening snow squalls and high winds pushed us off the river about the time we’d normally be stopping for lunch. The boys were cranky, cold and famished; tempers were on the short side and the weather forecast looked like one of those big spring storms was cranking up just west of us.
Convictions began to waver; the expedition was teetering on the edge of a knife.
A relative newcomer to the group (Al) saved the day with what has become our clan’s go to version of migas – ever since that day known as San Juan River Migas.
After we kindled a campfire that might have been seen from the space shuttle, Al fired up a big pot of coffee and set a couple of us to working slicing and dicing the peppers. He cracked the eggs, pulled out the grated cheese and produced this masterpiece of a meal.
Spirits were brightened, hands and faces thawed, laughter broke out once again and friendships were saved.
By the time we finished (double the recipe below for 5 guys) eating every morsel of food out of the pan, we peeked out of our dining tent and noted that 4 inches of wet, heavy snow had fallen in the last 90 minutes.
Long story short – camp was packed up wet and we headed home to beat the brunt of the storm. It was worth every mile of that drive to get this recipe.
8 corn tortillas, cut into thin strips
1/4 cup (or more) oil
6 tbsp butter
1 large sweet onion, diced medium
1 green bell pepper, diced medium
1 red bell pepper, diced medium
3-4 pickled jalapeno peppers, finely chopped
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced medium
12 eggs, beaten
2 cups cheddar cheese, grated
Handy to offer: Warmed flour tortillas, salsa, beans
Fry the corn tortillas. Preheat the oil while slicing your corn tortillas into thin strips; fry until brown and crisp. Drain and set aside. Wipe the pan clean.
Sauté time. Melt the butter in the pan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and both bell peppers, sauté until the onions are translucent.
Add the goods. Stir in the tomatoes and jalapenos, pour the eggs over and scramble until the eggs begin to set. Stir in the tortilla strips and cook until the eggs are done to your liking.
Serve it up. Serve immediately on a warmed plate, top with the grated cheese and salsa. We serve with a breakfast bean (maybe even bean cakes if we’re entertaining somebody really important) and warmed flour tortillas.
Pass the salsa bowl. Enjoy.
