Ingredients
Base
- 12small corn tortillas, a day old
- oil, for frying
- salt
Topping
- 400 grefried red beans
- 200 gqueso seco, grated
Curtido
- ½cabbage, finely shredded
- 1onion, sliced
- 200 mlwhite vinegar
- 1habanero
- 1 tspsalt
- 1 tspdried oregano
To serve
- hot sauce
Directions
- Make the curtido at least an hour ahead: toss the shredded cabbage and onion with the vinegar, habanero, salt and oregano and leave it to soften.
- Use tortillas that are a day old and slightly dried, which fry crisp rather than absorbing oil.
- Heat about 1 cm of oil to roughly 180°C (355°F).
- Fry the tortillas one or two at a time for 30 to 45 seconds a side, holding them flat with a spatula, until stiff and lightly golden.
- Take them out just short of the colour you want, because they go on darkening on the rack as they drain.
- Drain them on a rack and salt them lightly.
- Warm the refried beans until thick and spreadable rather than runny.
- Runny beans soften the tortilla within a minute, and the crisp base is the entire point of the snack.
- Spread beans over each tortilla, right out to the edge.
- Top with a handful of drained curtido and a heavy scattering of grated cheese.
- Assemble to order and eat immediately, with hot sauce.
- They are part of the Mestizo street snack repertoire that Belize shares with Yucatán, and they are close cousins of the Honduran catracha.
Technique
- Drain the curtido well before it goes on. Wet cabbage undoes the tortilla in seconds.
- Queso seco is hard, dry and salty rather than melting, and it is meant to sit on top in crumbs.
- They are sold three or four to a plate from street carts, usually alongside panades and salbutes.
Substitutions
- Shop-bought tostadas, which skip the frying entirely.
- Feta rinsed and dried, or ricotta salata, in place of queso seco.
Variations
- With a spoonful of habanero salsa on each.
- With shredded chicken added under the cheese.
- Panades, the fried filled version made with fish.
History
Fried corn tortillas topped with refried beans, cabbage and cheese, part of the Mestizo street snack repertoire shared with Yucatan.
Frequently asked questions
What is Garnaches?
Garnaches is a street food from Belize: fried tortillas topped with beans, cabbage, and cheese. Fried corn tortillas topped with refried beans, cabbage and cheese, part of the Mestizo street snack repertoire shared with Yucatan.
How long does Garnaches take to make?
Garnaches takes 20 min plus 1 hr for the curtido of preparation and 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 12 garnaches. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Garnaches?
Yes, within limits. Shop-bought tostadas, which skip the frying entirely. Feta rinsed and dried, or ricotta salata, in place of queso seco.
What is the most important thing to get right in Garnaches?
Use tortillas that are a day old and slightly dried, which fry crisp rather than absorbing oil.
