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Carrie Baird

Huevos Rancheros
S22E3 Mexican/Latin · 2019

Carrie Baird made it to the finale of Top Chef Season 15, which is fourteen eliminations worth of evidence that she can cook under pressure with a clock on the wall. She now runs Fox and the Hen in Denver, which is a neighborhood restaurant operating at a level the neighborhood doesn't always expect from a neighborhood restaurant, and she arrived at S22E3 like someone who had recently survived things harder than this.

Huevos rancheros is a stack problem: if any layer is wrong, the whole thing fails. Baird's salsa roja is a blister-and-broil construction — roma tomatoes, serranos, and white onion directly under the broiler at 500°F until the skins are black and the flesh has collapsed, then blended with the charred skins included for smoke and body. The eggs go into individual ramekins with a thin layer of the sauce on the bottom, which cooks the underside of the white through convection rather than direct heat.

Fox and the Hen in Denver is the kind of restaurant where brunch is treated like it matters. Bobby Flay's version of huevos rancheros was treated like something he'd done before, which is not always the same thing as doing it well.

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Huevos Rancheros

20 min Prep
35 min Cook
4 Serves
  • 2 lb Roma tomatoes, halved
  • 1 medium white onion, quartered
  • 3 jalapeños, stemmed
  • 4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
  • 2 tbsp olive oil, divided
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp cumin
  • ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
  • 8 corn tortillas
  • 8 large eggs
  • 4 oz queso fresco, crumbled
  • ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1 lime, cut into wedges
  1. Char tomatoes, onion, jalapeños, and garlic cloves directly over a gas flame or under a broiler at 500°F for 8-10 minutes, turning occasionally, until blackened and blistered on all sides. Transfer to a bowl and let cool for 5 minutes.
  2. Peel the charred garlic cloves and transfer all charred vegetables to a blender. Add salt, cumin, and cayenne pepper. Pulse 8-10 times until you reach a chunky salsa consistency—do not over-blend. Transfer to a saucepan.
  3. Warm the salsa over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it reaches a gentle simmer. Taste and adjust salt and spice. Keep warm on low heat.
  4. Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Char each tortilla directly in the oil for 30 seconds per side until lightly blistered and pliable. Stack on a plate and keep warm.
  5. Wipe out the skillet and add remaining 1 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Crack all 8 eggs into the skillet, spacing them evenly. Cook for 3-4 minutes until whites are set but yolks remain runny, tilting the pan occasionally for even cooking.
  6. Arrange 2 warm tortillas on each serving plate, slightly overlapping. Ladle ¼ cup warm salsa ranchera onto each pair of tortillas. Top each plate with 2 fried eggs.
  7. Spoon additional warm salsa around the eggs, scatter queso fresco over the top, garnish with fresh cilantro, and serve immediately with lime wedges on the side for brightness and acidity.
Inspired by Carrie Baird’s winning huevos rancheros. This is a plausible recreation, not the chef’s original recipe.
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