Pambazo
Dipped roll with potato and chorizo
Mexico City's guajillo-dipped, griddled roll filled with potato and pork chorizo
MexicanPambazos are a Mexico City street classic, sold at night from griddles outside metro stations and at the fondas that open for Lent and village fiestas. A soft, light roll is split, filled with potato fried with pork chorizo, then dipped in a garlicky red guajillo sauce and crisped on the griddle, so the outside turns deep red, slightly crunchy and a little messy. Inside go shredded lettuce, cream and crumbled cheese, with salsa verde for heat. Eat it straight off the griddle with plenty of napkins. Chef's tip: use day-old rolls; fresh, soft bread soaks up too much sauce and falls apart on the griddle.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the guajillo sauce
- 6 dried guajillo chilliesstems and seeds removed
- 2 cloves garlic
- ½ tsp salt
For the filling
- 1 ⅛ lb waxy potatoespeeled and cut into 1.5 cm cubes
- 9 oz fresh Mexican pork chorizocasings removed
- ½ white onionchopped
- ½ tsp salt
To assemble
- 4 pambazo rolls or soft white rollsday-old, split almost through
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
- 3 ½ oz shredded lettuce
- 2 ⅞ oz queso fresco or fetacrumbled
- ½ cup salsa verde (optional)
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What you'll need
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Soak 6 dried guajillo chillies in 400 ml hot water until soft, about 15 minutes. Blend with 250 ml of the soaking water, 2 cloves garlic, ¼ white onion and ½ tsp salt until smooth, then strain into a wide dish.
15 minStep 2: Boil 1 ⅛ lb waxy potatoes in salted water until just tender, then drain.
10 minStep 3: Fry 9 oz fresh Mexican pork chorizo in a frying pan over a medium heat, breaking it up, until the fat runs and no pink remains, at least 160°F. Add ½ white onion and the potatoes and fry until the potatoes are coloured and soaked in red fat. Season with ½ tsp salt.
12 minStep 4: Fill each of 4 pambazo rolls or soft white rolls generously with the chorizo and potato and press shut.
Step 5: Quickly dip the outside of each filled roll in the guajillo sauce, turning to coat both sides. Don't let it soak: a few seconds is enough, and soaking is the usual reason pambazos fall apart.
Step 6: Heat 4 tbsp vegetable oil on a griddle or wide frying pan over a medium heat. Fry the rolls until the outside is dark red, crisp in places and no longer wet, about 3 minutes a side, pressing gently with a spatula.
7 minStep 7: Open each pambazo and add 3 ½ oz shredded lettuce, ½ cup Mexican crema or soured cream and 2 ⅞ oz queso fresco or feta. Serve hot with ½ cup salsa verde.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 680 kcal
- Protein
- 25 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 37 g
- Fibre
- 6 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pambazo take?
- About 55 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
- What can I use instead of white onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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