# Holy Fried Burrito Batman!



## ajhuff

Slow day today at work so I tried a chimichanga idea out. Fail.

How do you fry these things! Is there a special basket? I tried nesting my fry baskets but they still floated and fell apart.

Thanks!

-AJ


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## Vertigo

Pin them closed with a frill pick.


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## ajhuff

Vertigo said:


> Pin them closed with a frill pick.



Boy do I feel silly, but what's a frill pick?

-AJ


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## DeepCSweede

I use a little bit of flour water paste to keep mine together.


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## Pensacola Tiger

ajhuff said:


> Boy do I feel silly, but what's a frill pick?
> 
> -AJ









I'd pull the cellophane off, but any toothpick will work.


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## sachem allison

ajhuff said:


> Slow day today at work so I tried a chimichanga idea out. Fail.
> 
> How do you fry these things! Is there a special basket? I tried nesting my fry baskets but they still floated and fell apart.
> 
> Thanks!
> 
> -AJ



I pan fry mine, come out great, cook fast, never unravel. just make sure you don't have the heat too high.


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## knyfeknerd

butcher twine or if you sandwich it right, just one fryer basket on top of the other. Oh yes they do make a special basket too.


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## Crothcipt

If you use flour tortilla you can use water to close off the roll. I think you can doe the same with corn, but never tried it. I also do the stacking fryer baskets. If you have to much filling coming out use frill picks to help seal and support the seams.


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## tk59

sachem allison said:


> I pan fry mine, come out great, cook fast, never unravel. just make sure you don't have the heat too high.


+1. Another variation that I do when I only want to make one or two is to just brush on some of my oil of choice and just broil it (you'll have to flip it, of course).


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## ajhuff

Crothcipt said:


> If you use flour tortilla you can use water to close off the roll. I think you can doe the same with corn, but never tried it. I also do the stacking fryer baskets. If you have to much filling coming out use frill picks to help seal and support the seams.



Thanks. I want to use up some store bought whole wheat tortillas we have for some reason. They are not very big so stacking the fryer baskets did not work. I don't have the time to fiddle trussing them. I'll try the toothpick trick tomorrow. I'm not too keen on pan frying but if I can't pull these off in the fryer I'll try something on the flat top.

Thanks again.

-AJ


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## Pabloz

sachem allison said:


> I pan fry mine, come out great, cook fast, never unravel. just make sure you don't have the heat too high.




This is actualy the best way to fry them.....the trick to keeping them together is all in the roll-fold-roll trick. If you do deep fry them then paste them shut as recommended above like an egg roll.


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## Kriegs

I am originally from southern California where chimichangas are all over the place..as far as I can gather, they have all been deep fried. I worked in a place where we did taquitos with flour tortillas and we used the pick method plus sandwiched the baskets in order to keep them submerged and evenly cooked. I have also pan fried many a home-made burrito, and had quite tasty results. However, they have always ended up like a flat-top grilled burrito rather than what I know as a true chimichanga. But then again, its possible that I have never used enough oil when doing this. Either way, it's all pretty delicious. 

-Kriegs


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## ThEoRy

Or a no frill pick. Plastico no bueno.


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## [email protected]

wait! what does "chimichanga" mean?


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## ajhuff

I have had luck at work pinning with two pick (I cut the frills off) and sandwiching between the baskets. Run greasier than I would like but maybe that is because we use a sandwich wrap and not a true flour tortilla? Cool that it worked but really ties up the fryer so won't be running any lunch specials of these .

-AJ


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## ajhuff

Sara, a chimichanga is a deep fried burrito.

-AJ


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## Namaxy

On a related note, anyone have a good method for deep frying mini taco shells? I cut 2 to 2.5 inch rounds of corn tortillas, but they don't work well in a regular taco basket. I ended up 'devising' a mold of sorts out of stiff wire - but it's labor intensive doing one at a time. Any my apologies to AJ if I've gone too far off topic.......:O


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## Kyle

I have no experience with them but they do make specific fry baskets for chimichangas.

http://www.zesco.com/Pronto-891-Chimichangas-Burritos-Fryer-Baskets-pz566D008.htm


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## Carl

At home I fry yesterday's burritos and they stay together fine, I guess the day inthe fridge under wrapps helps that.

As for tiny tacos, I use the edge of my spatula.


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## Andrew H

Namaxy said:


> On a related note, anyone have a good method for deep frying mini taco shells? I cut 2 to 2.5 inch rounds of corn tortillas, but they don't work well in a regular taco basket. I ended up 'devising' a mold of sorts out of stiff wire - but it's labor intensive doing one at a time. Any my apologies to AJ if I've gone too far off topic.......:O



Neal, about four minutes into this video AB makes a cool rig for doing full size corn tortillas. I don't see why you couldn't scale it down. 
[video=youtube;tUx_RQfrZxs]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tUx_RQfrZxs[/video]


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## hax9215

Simple. Roll your chimi ike a large egg roll, tight and sealed with egg wash or sour cream in a pinch. Load them in the bag and put in the sous-vide for a half-hour or so, until reaching an internal temperature of about 140 degrees, then you can flash-fry and JUST KIDDING!!! :rofl2:

It just so happens I spent 3 1/2 years at the best Mexican Restaurant in the country; the country was Bermuda but we were it! The trick with a chimichanga is to get it hot and melted all the way through in the fryer (or the pan on top of the stove at home)without burning the shell. We would put one basket inside of another and listen tor the steam escape in the oil. Roll them nice and tight like an egg roll, no air pockets or leaks, and no more than 2-21/2 inches through the middle. Usually we would roll a nice, big, fat burrito; these are difficult to fry. Actually, one of the best ways if you are not pressed for time i.e. a full dining room dot them with manteca or butter at home and bake at 350 until a nice, even golden brown.

Hax the Cook CLEAVERS RULE!!!


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## swarfrat

[email protected] said:


> wait! what does "chimichanga" mean?





ajhuff said:


> Sara, a chimichanga is a deep fried burrito.
> 
> -AJ




Since Sara lives in a hotbed of American Mexican cuisine, I'm guessing she knows what it is and she's asking for the origin of the word.

according to dictionary.com:

*Origin:*
< Mexican Spanish (Veracruz, Tabasco) _chimichanga_, _chivichanga_
trinket, trifle; of unexplained orig.


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