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Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe

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My husband is one of those people who will literally eat anything.  He grew up in a family of 8 children, and there was no room for being picky.  All of his siblings are the same way and it is awesome – and amazing.  How did his mom do it??  One thing she did is that she always had a garden and so they ate lots of fresh veggies.  I have never met people who love to just take a bite out of a tomato like they do.  And they all love beets………and Swiss chard.  And Brussels sprouts.   You get the idea.

So when we got married, my husband was a bit surprised to find out that I had a more ‘discriminating palate’ as I like to call it. Because he is so un-picky (there has got to be a better term for that) he really likes to try new and different foods.  He never orders the same thing at a restaurant.  Ever.

The longer we have been married, the more his influence has rubbed off on me and I started wanting to try more foods.  I remember thinking mushrooms were completely disgusting and were classified as a fungus for a reason.  But of course my husband LOVES mushrooms.  And so I began forcing myself to eat them over and over in the hopes that one day I would appreciate their unique texture and flavor.  And guess what happened?  It worked!  I now can honestly say that I love mushrooms.  I did this with quite a few foods.  And even entire food groups.  I was never a big Mexican food fan.  Enter husband who lives for spicy foods.  And now?  I LOVE Mexican food.

I am not sure chimichangas are classified as Mexican food, but for my purposes they are.  They are typically deep fried and stuffed with beef or chicken and cheese.  A big deep fried, meat filled chimichanga would probably feel the same as a pound of rocks sitting in the bottom of your stomach.   But they sounded delicious one afternoon and so this is a lighter version I came up with.

The great thing about this Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe is that you can switch up what you fill them with.  If you can’t have dairy – no problem.  Leave out the cheese.  If you don’t really care for black beans, then you are loco in the cabeza!  Ha – just kidding.  Use a different kind of bean.  I used 2 kinds of beans for a double fiber experience, plus it gives it is a littler flavor and texture variety.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

I used refried beans (without added fat), and mixed them with El Pato Salsa de Chile Fresco. (It is a little yellow can – you can find it at pretty much any grocery store) It gave it nice flavor and a tiny bit of spice. Spread a little of the refried beans, black beans, and cheese down the center of the tortilla.  You can add any other filling you want.  I kept ours simple for the filling, because you can always add other fresh toppings at the end.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

Next fold your tortilla in half and brush with a little of the egg white.  I used uncooked tortillas, but you could use any kind you want.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

Keep folding in the edges and sealing with a little egg white.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

You will end up with a little pouch.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

Next you will flash fry the chimichangas. Put 1 or 2 teaspoons of oil in a pan and heat over medium-high heat.  When the pan is hot, place the chimichangas in the pan.  Cook each side for about 1 minute until it is golden brown.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

Place on a baking sheet covered in foil  Bake at 350 degrees F for 12-15 minutes.

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

They come out hot crispy, and gooey inside.  Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, cilantro, and sour cream or plain yogurt.   We LOVED these.  I wasn’t even super hungry when they came out of the oven, but I ate an entire one by myself.

Try them out on your deep fry lover!

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4.5 from 10 votes

Crispy Baked Chimichangas

Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
Total Time12 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 434kcal

Ingredients

  • 6 medium tortilla, whole wheat
  • 1 large egg white
  • 15 ounce refried beans, canned, fat-free
  • 1/2 cup enchilada sauce
  • 15 ounce black beans, canned
  • 2 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Toppings

Instructions

  • Add egg whites to a bowl and mix with whisk.
  • Stir the enchilada sauce into the refried beans. Add beans to the middle of tortilla, and sprinkle with cheese.
  • Begin folding tortilla. Start with one side and fold up an inch and then fold sides and then add more egg white where you make the last fold.
  • Flash-fry chimis by placing in a pan of 2 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Heat on both sides for 1 minute until golden brown.  Place chimichangas onto a pan covered in foil, seam-side down.
  • Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes.

Nutrition

Calories: 434kcal | Carbohydrates: 71g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 8g | Cholesterol: 24mg | Sodium: 1819mg | Fiber: 21g | Sugar: 8g
Keyword : baked, beans, Chimichangas, vegetarian, Veggies

www.superhealthykids.com

Crispy Baked Chimichangas Recipe. No need to deep fry chimichangas. This baked version is SUPER crispy!

Natalie Monson

I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.

Learn More about Natalie

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42 Comments

Mmm… I am sooo trying this recipe! Looks delicious!

(And yes, my husband is the same way–drives him crazy that I have “classic” items I like at restaurants. I always tell him that’s what I have him for. He’ll order it, and I get to try it and decide if I like it instead of ordering it myself and finding out I don’t.)

Great way for me to use some left over taco meat!! Made tonight with shredded cheese, refried beans, fresh chopped onions and left over taco meat!! Melted shredded cheese the last few minutes in the oven and then topped with warmed up Red Enchilada Sauce and sour cream! YUMM!!!

I made these tonight and they were great!! My husband and two year old both just loved them. Do you think these could be frozen?

Thanks Natalie! I made these last weekend and froze them after using the egg wash to seal the seams. I froze them spread out on wax paper then put them in a freezer bag. Today I let them thaw gradually in the fridge, drizzled enchilada sauce on them and baked for 15 minutes. They turned out great! I used the enchilada sauce because I thought they might be a little too dry but they really weren’t. I have a two year old and am pregnant with out second one in two weeks so I was looking for things to make ahead of time and freeze. These are perfect!! Thanks so much for the great recipe!

We have been making these regularly since your post. My two-year old daughter loves them and so do I. It is a great way to get beans in the little one, who doesn’t like mushy food right now. Thank you for your recipes!

Yummy! Anything that includes a tortilla or salsa is always fabulous 🙂 I don’t like to fry things either so I cooked them in my George Foreman & they were incredible!

We all loved these tonight! Even my picky daughter-although hers just had cheese… I made whole wheat tortillas, salsa, and refried beans in the crock pot the night before and they were sooooo good!

I skipped the egg whites and rolled the short ends in first, then rolled the long ends in and put that end down when I “fried” them and they stayed together perfectly.

I tend to freeze a lot of foods for my 1-1/2 year old so I can pull them out and send them to daycare with her for lunch. Have you tried freezing them? If so, how well did that work for you?

What is El Pato Salsa de Chile Fresco? Is it salsa or green chile sauce? just trying to find a substitute in case kroger doesn’t sell them.

These are a HUGE hit with the entire family, my 5 and 3 year old lovveee them. The black beans aren’t in the written out recipe section so I sometimes forget to put them in (they’re just in the photo by photo area) but no one seems to miss them.

4 stars
I really enjoyed these! The directions were a little lacking (when do I add the sauce – inside? as a topping?) but I improvised and added corn and black olives and they were really good.

2 stars
The recipe misses important directions e.g where to put the enchilada sauce. The ingredients lists also mentions 1 egg white and the directions mention “egg whites”. Please be more careful next time, this looks great but it’s lacking some details.

Help! I do not know what to do with the enchilada sauce. Do I put it inside with the 2 kinds of beans?