Traditional Mexican Style Molletes Snack Recipe Collection
There is nothing simpler than the Mexican street and comfort food snack known as Molletes. They are simply refried beans on toast smothered with cheese and broiled or grilled until bubbly.
Essentially they are the Mexican equivalent of the American grilled cheese. The ingredients are simply beans, cheese, salsa, chilli, herbs, and others food items on toasted bread.
Molletes are easy to make and are a tasty and immensely satisfying comfort food you can make and eat at any time of the day.
However, there are some tricks you need to know to make truly wonderful and perfect Molletes
Well made Molletes are an Art Form - Easy to Do, but Hard to Get Right!
Some of the tricks include:
- properly toasting and buttering the bread,
- adding just the right amount of beans and cheese,
- carefully melting that queso or other cheese under the broiler or grill until golden and bubbly, but not a flooding sea of cheese.
Traditional Classic Molletes Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup refried beans either black or pinto
- 1/2 cup Pico de Gallo or good quality salsa
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter at room temperature
- 6 oz (170 g) Chihuahua cheese or provolone cheese, shredded
- 2 large rolls, preferably kaiser, teleras, Portuguese or ciabatta, split or cut in half
Method
Preheat your oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Heat a large skillet or Dutch oven over moderate heat until it’s hot and has just started to smoke. Spread the butter liberally over the cut surface of the half rolls. Transfer the rolls, with cut sides down into the skillet and cook them until light brown in color and crisp (1-3 minutes). Next, spread the refried beans in a thin layer of all over the toasted surface of each roll. Then, add some cheese in a second thin layer. Place the molletes under the broiler or a grill, or on a baking pan in the oven. Cook until the cheese has just melted and started to turn golden brown in places on the top (generally 3-5 minutes). Serve the molletes immediately with the Pico de Gallo or salsa on the side.
Molletes Recipe with Homemade Refried Beans and Pico de Gallo
Ingredients
For the Refried Beans
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- Kosher salt to taste
- 2 large onions, chopped
- 2 x 16 oz (450 g) cans pinto beans, rinsed
For the Pico de Gallo
- 1 small lime, juiced
- Kosher salt, to taste
- 1 medium tomato, chopped
- 1 small red onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
- 1 tablespoon chopped seeded jalapeño
For the eggs and assembly
- 4 large free range eggs, fried
- 1/4 cup chilli sauce (for serving)
- 1 avocado, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup pickled or sliced red onion
- 4 tablespoons salted butter, at room temperature
- 1 pound (500 g) Oaxaca cheese, or Monterey Jack, coarsely grated
- 2 birotes, bolillos, telera rolls, or other crusty rolls, halved lengthwise
Method
Make the refried beans by heating the oil in a heavy frying pan of Dutch oven over moderate heat. Add onions and fry, while stirring frequently until they just start to soften and turn golden brown (10–15 minutes). Add the drained beans and a bay leaf. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until beans start to soften, (about 9–11 minutes). Taste and season beans with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Then, remove from heat and discard bay leaf. Mash cooked beans with a fork or potato masher until smooth and creamy.
Next, make the Pico de Gallo by combining the tomato, cilantro, jalapeño, red onion and lime juice in a small bowl and seasoning with salt. Pre-heat your broiler, grill or BBQ. Generously spread butter over the cut sides of roll. Transfer, buttered side up, to a baking sheet with a medium rim. Broil, grill or barbecue until the butter just starts to melt (about 1-2 minutes). Next, remove the rolls from under the broiler, grill of BBQ and spread 1/3 cup of the refried beans all over the cut side of each half-roll. Sprinkle cheese along the center of each roll. Broil, grill or BBQ until the cheese starts to melt and turn brown in patches (about 2-3 minutes).
To serve, place a fried egg on each mollete and top with some of the pico de gallo, avocado, and pickled onion. Serve with hot sauce.
Molletes Recipe with Cilantro and Black Bean Puree
Ingredients
- 3-4 bread rolls
- butter (optional)
- 1-2 cups shredded cheese
- 2 cups refried beans (or bean puree)
For the Pico de Gallo
- 1 lime
- 1/2 onion
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 jalapeno chilli
- 2 large plum tomatoes
- 20 sprigs fresh cilantro
For the black bean puree
- 1/2 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 can black beans
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 chipotles in adobo
- 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- 1/2 cup water (or stock)
- freshly ground black pepper
Method
Make the bean puree by sauteing the chopped onion and garlic in 1 tablespoon of oil over moderate heat for 5-8 minutes. Drain and rinse the tin of black beans. Then, add the black beans to the onion mixture along with 1/2 teaspoon cumin, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 2 chipotles in adobo and 1 tablespoon adobo sauce, 1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper and 1/2 cup stock (or water). Simmer for several minutes until heated through. Transfer the bean mixture into a blender or food processor and pulse briefly to retain some texture. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
Next, make fresh Pico de Gallo, by adding 2 chopped tomatoes, 1/2 onion, 1/2 jalapeno, 15-20 sprigs cilantro, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the juice of 1/2 lime to a small bowl. Combine well, taste and adjust the seasoning. Cut the bread rolls in half and bake them in a 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) oven to make them crisp on the outside and soft inside. Remove and butter each roll. Spread a serving of black beans and shredded cheese onto the buttered rolls. Bake for 4-8 minutes or until the cheese starts to melt. Top with a serve of the freshly made Pico de Gallo and serve warm or hot.
