S & W Country Diner - Breakfast Burrito Review

Their Breakfast Burrito is the bomb, or a gut bomb! Served on a plate with Mexican Rice and Refried Pinto Beans, the Breakfast Burrito from S & W Country Diner is loaded. This is a Cali/Mex classic grande burrito.

The eggs are scrambled, the bacon is crisp and in large pieces, and the hash browns are of the shredded variety.

 The Pico de Gallo of chopped onion, tomato, and cilantro is fresh, all wrapped in a large flour tortilla topped with a mild Salsa Verde (green tomatillo) and melted, shredded Cheddar Cheese. Who could ask for more?

The Breakfast Burrito is bookended with Refried Beans and Mexican Rice. The Refried Beans are made the way I like them. Refried Beans are sometimes mashed to mush, but I like them with a bit of texture from small, solid pieces. The Mexican Rice is tangy and blushed with tomato sauce/paste. This is the way I had Beans and Rice when I lived in the Mexican border state of Texas.

The flour tortilla is extra-large and bulging with typical breakfast ingredients. The Breakfast Burritos I've had usually are stuffed with beans and rice, but this version has Hash Browns instead - I enjoyed this version.

You can skip lunch after this breakfast. My wife kept it simple with Eggs Over Easy, Hash Browns, and Turkey Sausage.

They make a darn good cup of Joe. We arrived after the breakfast rush. The service is quick and efficient, keeping the coffee cup filled - you don't even have to ask for water.

Click on any photo to see larger.

The decor is old-school diner with vintage posters and classic metal signage. You seat yourself at the counter or tables - we sat in a roomy red upholstered booth.

Bring a fat wallet as the Diner is "Cash Only". Breakfast with coffee for two was $41.86, excluding the tip. 

The Breakfast Menu is as large as the Lunch Menu. All the familiar diner classics are here to enjoy.

In the heart of Culver City and next to the Kirk Douglas Theater, S & W Country Diner has metered parking out front and parking structures nearby. 

S & W Country Diner is home cooking in the big city with a small-town atmosphere. They are open for breakfast and lunch and closed by 2pm.

I think my next breakfast will be  Eggs Over Easy with Biscuits and Gravy.

S & W COUNTRY DINER

OPEN 8AM – 2PM DAILY

9748 Washington Blvd. 

Culver City, CA 90232

310.204.5136

Website: https://sandwdiner.com

Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/s-and-w-country-diner-culver-city

Chilaquiles & Eggs - Tortilla Chips, Salsa, Cheese, and Eggs

My latest recipe is one pungent breakfast.  If you like salsa with your eggs, then this recipe might be for you, and if you have leftover tortilla chips lying around (I seldom finish a bag in one or two sittings), then fry some eggs and mix it all together for a classic Mexican breakfast of Chilaquiles & Eggs.

My version uses a green salsa called Salsa Verde, which is a combination of tomatillos (green tomatoes) and green chiles. Another version is made with Salsa Roja, a red salsa that is a combination of red tomatoes and red chiles. These salsas go by a few names, but basically look for a combination of tomatillos (green tomatoes) plus green chiles, or tomatoes plus red chiles.

Both types of salsa can be found in small cans or jars in the Latin or International section of large grocery supermarkets. Actually, any favorite or easy-to-get salsa will do, whether green or red.

The other main ingredients are Cojita Cheese and Tortilla Chips. Plain Tortilla Chips are best, as there are many over-the-top flavors around these days. If you want to experiment with flavored tortilla chips then go for it.

Cotija Cheese is similar to Feta Cheese (a good substitute). It's not as tart as Feta, but the texture and color are almost the same. Of course, you can use any favorite cheese you have on hand or a dollop of sour cream.

       Click on any photo to see larger.

Eggs have increased in price since the devastating Bird Flu. You can make this recipe with one or two eggs.

The basic recipe is to heat the salsa in a frying pan and then mix in the tortilla chips. While salsa and chips are heating, fry a couple of eggs over-easy or sunny-side up. Finally, combine it all with a favorite cheese. To keep it authentic, use crumbly Mexican cheeses called Cotija or Queso Fresco.

For a Mexican-style breakfast, I make Huevos Rancheros the most, but when you leave out the bean you have delicious Chilaquiles & Eggs that are just as good.

Chilaquiles & Eggs - VIDEO

Play it here, video runs 2 minutes, 37 seconds.

My YouTube video link for viewing or embedding, just click here.

Ingredients

• 1 or 2 Eggs - Fried eggs or Over-easy eggs.
• Tortilla Chips - about 12 Tortilla Chips or a handful.
• Cotija Cheese or Queso Fresco - add as much as you like. Use Mexican cheese that is semi-soft and crumbly, similar to Feta Cheese. Okay to use any favorite cheese or sour cream.
• Salsa Verde - A green Salsa made with tomatillos (smaller than green tomatoes) and chile peppers. Okay to use any favorite Salsa. Salsa Roja is a red salsa also used in Chilaquiles & Eggs.
• Oil - 1 teaspoon for frying an egg or two.
• Salt and Pepper - for eggs.

Directions

Add Salsa Verde to a medium heated pan. Cook until simmering for a minute, then add tortilla chips.

Coat tortilla chips with Salsa Verde, turning tortilla chips a few times. Heat Salsa Verde with tortilla chips for a couple of minutes until hot. 

Keep warm while frying an egg or two. Fry the egg any way you like.

Assemble Chilaquiles and Eggs. Add tortilla chips and Salsa Verde to a plate. Crumble on Mexican Cotija cheese. 

Finally, top with a Fried Egg or two. Could you scramble the egg? Sure, why not?

Roasted Salsa Verde (Tomatillo Salsa)

Bright and tart, The 99 Cent Chef's Roasted Salsa Verde will have you emptying a bag of tortilla chips. So I apologize for showing you how to made a delicious salsa that you can't stop dipping chips into.

This taco truck favorite cools down any grilled carnitas or carne asada taco filling. It's always difficult choosing sides: spicy and smokey Salsa Roja (recipe here,) fresh chopped Pico de Gallo (recipe here,) or a tart Salsa Verde.

Los Angeles has Latin markets in almost every neighborhood, so it's easy to find the main ingredient in a Salsa Verde, tomatillos. Even some regular markets around town carry them. And they are certainly cheap enough, usually less than a dollar per pound.

Select a tomatillo that's pale to bright green (under the papery husk) and hard like an apple. You are basically making a dipping sauce for chips, veggies, or a topping for tacos, burritos and enchiladas.

Every Lating eatery make their own version. Some are made mild with boiled and crushed tomatillos, others are roasted sweet with black flecks of charred tomatillo and chiles (my version,) and at the Border Grill, here in LA, they do theirs super sour and fresh, with what must be barely cooked, or raw tomatillos! I love them all.

I like to roast my tomatillos with a bit of onion, garlic and a chile or two, then blender it all together. I find that baking the veggies makes a sweeter salsa. But you could just boil the tomatillos for a few minutes or more, the longer you cook them the less tart the salsa. (Next time I'm doing the boiling method for variety.)

So if you can find tomatillos by all means try out the Chintzy Chef's brightly flavored Roasted Salsa Verde - it will be a new favorite for you.

Ingredients (enough for a party of 3-5)

• 3 pounds of tomatillos - or about 10 medium sized tomatillos
• 1 whole large onion - white or yellow
• 1 clove chopped garlic - or 1/2 teaspoon from jar.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• 2 large chiles or a couple smaller ones - optional. Mild like a pastilla (poblano,) anaheim, or any peppers. Okay to add a jalapeno, but add a little at a time to desired spicyness.

Directions
Heat oven to 375 degrees, Peel off papery husk covering to reveal bright green tomatillos. Also peel a large onion and cut into quarters.

Spread out tomatillos, chiles, and chopped onion on a large cookie sheet (or large pan.) It's okay if veggies touch each other - you could even do some stacking if your pan is too small.

Bake for about 45 minutes until tomatillos start to brown/blacken. They do not need to blacken all over - same with the chiles. Okay to remove any ones early, that blacken too much. I like to have about half black/green tomatillos.

After roasting tomatillos, onion and chiles in the oven, remove and allow to cool about 5 minutes.

For the chiles, peel off some of the skin and remove the stems and seeds. You don't need to remove all the charred skin.

To a blender or food processor add the roasted tomatillos, chiles, onion and one teaspoon chopped garlic. Pulse/blend until smooth, about 30 seconds to a minute. (You can blend half the ingredients at a time if you have a small food processor like mine.)

Finally salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Hindsight
I made my Roasted Salsa Verde with mildly spicy chiles, but you could leave them out for a cooler version.

You can just low boil or steam the tomatillos and onions for about 10-20 minutes until soft. Or simmer for 5 minutes for a fresh and tart salsa. Finally blend it all together.

Salsa Verde will keep a week or so refrigerated.