Frugal Recipe of the Week: Chili Pork Burritos

Several years ago, when I was shopping at Trader Joe’s a woman standing next to me in the frozen food section picked up a bag of gyoza (potstickers) and asked, “What do you do with these?” I told her that besides just frying them, I used them to make soup and gave her my recipe, one I had come up with on my own using chicken broth, spinach, ginger, soy sauce and the gyoza. She said thanks, and moved on. A few weeks later, when I opened the FoodDay section of our paper, there was my soup recipe! It had been entered into a 5-ingredients-or-less contest and won first prize! Of course I couldn’t prove anything, but I knew it was mine because the ingredients matched exactly, and it specified using Trader Joe’s gyoza. Hmmm.

My reason for sharing that story is that this recipe for chili pork burritos is one of those 5-ingredients-or-less ones (well, if you don’t include the beans and tortillas), and I’ve often thought of submitting it for a contest or to a magazine because it’s so easy and it’s that good. It’s been around our family for as long as I can remember, but my mother was not an adventurous or inventive cook, so know she got it from somebody else whose name has disappeared into the sands of time (I’ve asked and Mom can’t remember who she got it from).

I serve these now as a smothered burrito, with the sauce poured over the top, but they can also be made with the sauce inside only. We have taken them along on picnics, to concerts, to potlucks and they travel well and are easy to hold and eat if they’re wrapped tightly. The sauce is also wonderful served over brown rice, and we like to make breakfast burritos with scrambled eggs and leftover sauce. The ingredients are not costly, especially if you can get the pork on sale. I have tried substituting other meats, and tofu, but nothing tastes as good as the pork does in this recipe.

And, if you decide to ever enter this recipe in a contest, I wish you luck, and hope you’ll think of me!

CHILI PORK BURRITOS

1 pound lean pork, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

1 small onion, cut in half and then cut into thin slices against the grain

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1-2 TBSP vegetable or olive oil

1 8-oz. can of tomato sauce

1 7-oz. can diced green chilis (not jalapenos!)

salt & pepper to taste

refried beans

flour tortillas

shredded cheese (optional)

Put the flour into a bag; add pork pieces and shake until all pieces are coated (you can add a little salt and pepper to the flour if desired). Heat oil in a large, heavy saucepan; when oil is hot add pork pieces and onion, and saute over medium-high heat until pork is browned and onion are semi-soft, being careful not to burn the pork. Add the can of tomato sauce and 3 cans of water; stir to bring up the “crunchy bits” from the bottom of the pan. Add the can of diced chilis and salt & pepper to taste. Simmer for at least one hour over low heat, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens and reduces by at least one-third to one-half.

To make burritos, warm the flour tortillas. Place a small amount of refried beans near one side of a tortilla, top with a large spoonful of the sauce (and cheese, if you are using it). Fold over the top, fold up the sides and then fold again to wrap everything up. Place on a plate and cover with two large spoonfuls of the sauce. If you want to take them on a picnic, add a little more sauce inside and skip the sauce on top.

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