Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Chorizo, Crispy Potatoes, and Egg

From the kitchen of Carly

Spiced ground pork meets crispy potatoes in these breakfast tacos that actually taste homemade. Chipotle and garlic chorizo gets cooked right in the pan with cubed potatoes until golden. Quick, messy, satisfying, and nothing like the diner version.

Breakfast Tacos with Homemade Chorizo, Crispy Potatoes, and Egg

Breakfast tacos built from the ground up: homemade chorizo with real heat from chipotles, potatoes that shatter into crispy edges, and soft scrambled eggs folded in at the last second. The trick is patience on those potatoes, low heat for a creamy interior that contrasts with the char. Stack them on warm tortillas and load with cheese, avocado, and hot sauce.

Prep
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Cook
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Total
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Servings
4
Difficulty
medium

Ingredients

4 servings

  • 3garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1/2 tspkosher salt
  • 8 ozground pork
  • 1 smallcan chipotle chiles in adobo
  • 1 tbspdistilled white vinegar
  • 1 largerusset potato, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 2 tbspdistilled white vinegar
  • 1Kosher salt
  • 1 tbspneutral vegetable oil , plus more if needed
  • 1/2 tspfreshly ground black pepper, divided
  • 2 tbspunsalted butter, divided
  • 2scallions, thinly sliced
  • 6 largeeggs
  • 2 tbspmilk, half-and-half, or cream
  • 8 smallflour tortillas
  • 1/2 cupgrated cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
  • 1Creamy Jalapeño Sauce or your favorite hot sauce
  • 1Sliced avocado
  • 1Cilantro leaves

Instructions

  1. Smash the garlic cloves flat with the side of a knife, then chop them finely. Sprinkle with salt, then press the flat of the blade into the garlic and drag it across the board repeatedly until a smooth paste forms. Put the pork in a medium bowl and work in the garlic paste. Finely chop 1 medium chipotle chile with its seeds (you should end up with about 1 tablespoon), and add it to the bowl along with 2 tablespoons of adobo sauce from the can and the vinegar. Stir everything together until well combined.

  2. Pour 8 cups of cold water into a large pot and set it over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes and vinegar, season the water generously with salt, and bring to a boil. Drop the heat to medium-low and simmer until the potatoes are just tender, about 5 minutes, then drain them well.

  3. While the potatoes simmer, set a large cast-iron or non-stick skillet over medium-high and add 1 tablespoon of oil. Crumble in the chorizo and break it into small pieces with a wooden spoon as it cooks, 4 to 6 minutes, until browned and cooked through. Lift the chorizo out with a slotted spoon into a large bowl, leaving the fat behind in the skillet. Check that you have about 3 tablespoons of fat remaining, adding more oil if needed.

  4. Bring the skillet down to medium, then add the drained potatoes, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Toss to coat everything in the fat and cook, stirring often, until the potatoes are golden brown, crispy on the outside, and fully cooked through, about 18 minutes. Keep the heat steady and resist the urge to rush this step, as slow cooking guarantees a fluffy interior with a properly crisp crust. Stir in the scallions and 1 tablespoon of butter and cook until the scallions soften, about 2 minutes more. Tip the potato mixture into the bowl with the chorizo and set the skillet aside.

  5. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Separately, warm the tortillas in a dry medium skillet over medium heat until hot and lightly toasted, or wrap them in damp paper towels and microwave for about 20 seconds. Keep them wrapped in damp paper towels and tucked between 2 plates to stay warm.

  6. Return the reserved skillet to medium heat and melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Pour in the egg mixture and cook, stirring occasionally, until just barely set, about 2 minutes. Add the chorizo and potatoes back to the skillet and stir until everything is heated through, about 2 minutes more.

  7. Lay 2 tortillas on each of 4 plates and divide the egg mixture evenly among them. Finish each taco with cheese, hot sauce, sliced avocado, and cilantro leaves.

  8. The chorizo can be made up to 3 days ahead and kept in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.

Tips from the kitchen

  • Make the chorizo paste ahead, then cook it fresh when you're ready to build. The uncooked paste keeps in the fridge for up to three days and freezes well.
  • Don't rush the potatoes. Medium heat and frequent stirring gives you fluffy insides and golden, crispy edges. High heat will just burn them before they soften.
  • Scramble your eggs in a separate skillet with the butter just before serving so they stay creamy and warm on the plate. Add them to the potato-chorizo mix right at the end.
  • Warm your tortillas directly over a gas flame or in a dry skillet for ten seconds per side so they stay pliable and pick up a light char.

Variations

  • Crispy carnitas: swap the homemade chorizo for shredded leftover pork that's been crisped in the same skillet, skip the chipotle and adobo, and let the potatoes be the star.
  • Sheet pan version: toss cubed potatoes with oil, salt, and a pinch of smoked paprika, roast at 425°F until golden (about 25 minutes), then crumble cooked chorizo over the top and serve family style.
  • Vegetarian: replace the chorizo with crumbled pressed tofu tossed in adobo sauce and cumin, or use a store-bought plant-based chorizo and cook it the same way.
  • Breakfast burrito: wrap everything (chorizo, potatoes, eggs, cheese, avocado, cilantro) in a larger flour tortilla, then pan-fry until golden and crispy on both sides.

Make ahead and storage

Chorizo and potatoes keep for three days in an airtight container in the fridge and reheat gently in a skillet over medium heat. Don't make the eggs ahead. The cooked chorizo freezes well for up to a month.