Bean and Cheese Burrito on the Tracks

Whoa, whoa, whoa…hold on a second. This thing is a bean and cheese burrito? Buddy, where I come from, a bean and cheese burrito is supposed to be simple. You eat it at two in the morning and regret absolutely nothing. But then somebody went completely off the rails…in the best possible way. OHHHH, MAN! You got smoked bacon in there! Smoked bacon! That's like putting a leather jacket on a classic rock song. And these Guajillo-seasoned refried beans? They're all smoky and earthy and delicious. Then you've got cheddar and Monterey Jack melting all over the place like they just gave up on following the rules. Wait a minute...there's chipotle queso inside the burrito? So they took a burrito and stuffed it with another cheese sauce. That's the kind of commitment I respect. And the tortilla's griddled with adobo seasoning? That's not a tortilla anymore…that's a flavor delivery system. This thing is cheesy, smoky, spicy, crunchy on the outside, gooey on the inside...it's basically a party wrapped in a blanket. If this burrito ran for president, I'd vote for it. Twice.

Ingredients

for 6 burritos

1 cup pinto beans
1 tbs Guajillo flakes
1 tsp salt
1 slice Applewood smoked bacon
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup cilantro stems
1/2 red onion
1 tbs mexican oregano
1 bay leaf
1/2 cup grated American cheese
1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese
1 tbs butter
1 tbs flour
3 chipotle chilis in adobo sauce
1 cup whole milk
8 oz grated mild cheddar cheese
8 oz grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 tsp Drax’s Paborito ang Adobo Salt
6 8 inch flour tortillas
1 tbs vegetable oil

Directions

In a small stock pot over medium low heat add the bacon, garlic cloves, red onion, Guajillo flakes, and Mexican oregano, cook for 5-10 minutes to allow the bacon fat to render out. Add the pinto beans and salt, cook and additional 1-2 minutes coating the beans in the bacon fat. Wrap the bay leaf, and cilantro stems in cheese cloth and add to the pot. Cover the beans with water and allow to come up to a simmer for 1 hour, add more boiling water as needed to the pot as water evaporates. After 1 hour, remove from heat and cover, let sit for 90 minutes. After 90 minutes, bring beans back up to a simmer for an additional hour, allowing the liquid to evaporate enough to see the beans. Remove the bacon and the cheesecloth with the bay leaf and cilantro stems.
Heat a fry pan over medium heat, add the garlic, onion, and a half cup of beans at a time and mash with a potato masher, add 1-2 tbs of the bean water and allow mashed beans to absorb the liquid. Repeat, adding the beans and liquid until there only is a half cup of beans remains and add the last half cup of beans to the mashed beans if desired or mash in the additional half cup a=fo beans.
In a small stock pot over medium heat, add the butter and flour to make a roux. Chop the chipotles in adobo and stir into the roux. Add the whole milk and grated American and sharp cheddar cheese to the pot and mix together bringing to a simmer. Remove from heat and allow to cool and congeal.
Heat a griddle to 300 degrees F or fry pan over medium heat.
Combine the grated mild cheddar and Monterey jack cheeses. Place 1/3 cup of the cheese mixture in the center of each tortilla, top the cheese with 1 cup of the bean mixture spread to about 1/2 inch thick over the shredded cheese, place 1/4 cup of the congealed queso over the bean mixture and roll up the tortillas. Brush the burritos with the vegetable oil and season with Drax’s Paborito ang Adobo Salt.
Place burritos on the griddle or in fry pan and slowly griddle the burrito to a golden brown color, turning the burrito every 1-2 minutes, about 15 minutes total.
Serve.