Huevos Rancheros (Mexican Rancher's Eggs)

This easy Huevos Rancheros recipe makes a delicious brunch - for few or a bunch! Sauce-poached eggs and savory beans sit atop fresh tortillas; garnished with fresh salsa, sour cream, guacamole, olives, cilantro, cheese, and anything else you can think of. 

Huevos rancheros, or “rancher's eggs," are fresh, hearty, and satisfying; perfect for weekend brunches, holiday breakfasts, and Cinco de Mayo mornings. Add some chorizo if you want, or keep it vegetarian - either way, they'll be coming back for seconds! 

Jump to:

• What's the Story on this Huevos Rancheros Recipe
• Ingredients for Huevos Rancheros
• How to Make this Recipe for a Few or a Crowd
• How to Serve Huevos Rancheros
• More Tex-Mex Recipes
• Huevos Rancheros (Rancher's Eggs)

What's the Story on this Huevos Rancheros Recipe

I was first introduced to Huevos Rancheros many years ago - in Iowa, of all places. My young family and I were visiting my older brother and his family for holidays, and as was their family tradition, my sister-in-law served Mexican-style Huevos Rancheros -  for Christmas breakfast. I loved both the meal and the tradition and immediately decided to steal adopt them as my own. 

The timing of this celebratory meal, however, presented a problem: as you might imagine, in a house packed with preschoolers, any breakfast that takes more than five minutes to prepare on Christmas morning is simply out of the question. 

The solution came with New Years Day - a traditionally slow, lazy morning in our home. And that, my friends, is the story of how Huevos Rancheros became our way of welcoming the New Year. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

One of the reasons we love serving these flavorful ranch-style eggs for the holidays is because they are so easy to make for a crowd. Plus, all of the basic ingredients can be prepped ahead of time!

Basic huevos rancheros consist of a tortilla topped with refried beans, poached or fried eggs, and sauce. We like to zhuzh them up, and set out a colorful spread of toppings and condiments so everyone can customize their own plate. 

Ingredients for Huevos Rancheros

• Enchilada Sauce
  • Option 1: Quick & Easy Ranchero Sauce - My SIL's quick and easy Ranchero Sauce, included in the recipe below, is easy and delicious. You can have it done and ready to serve in just a few minutes. 
  • Option 2: Homemade Enchilada Sauce - If you want to up your huevos rancheros game, make a batch of our homemade Slow Cooker Enchilada Sauce, which will raise whole dish to another level. The sauce can be made well ahead of time (it's freezer-friendly!) so it's not much extra effort at all. 
  • Option 3: Canned Enchilada Sauce - Use 4-5 cups of your favorite canned enchilada sauce.
• Beans: We have used a variety of beans over the years. Our favorite is simple refried black beans. Use your favorite refried beans.
• Tortillas: We usually serve both corn and flour tortillas with this dish. If you have the time, homemade tortillas are a wonderful addition.
• Eggs: Use the freshest eggs you can find. The fresher the eggs are, the more likely the yolks will stay intact while poaching. Older eggs may have a weak vitelline membrane, and as the yolk becomes flatten and weakens with age, it is more likely to break when handled.
• Toppings: There are so many topping possibilities!
  • shredded cheddar cheese
  • grated cotija
  • sliced olives
  • sliced jalapeños
  • fresh lime
  • salsa verde
  • sliced avocados
  • sour cream
  • guacamole
  • salsa
  • chopped cilantro
  • chopping green onions
  • cooked chorizo

Our favorite toppings include chorizo, lime slices, grated cheese, salsa, chopped cilantro, fresh tomatoes, guacamole, green onions, cotija, chili verde, and olives.

How to Make this Recipe for a Few or a Crowd

Make the sauce. There are three options for making the sauce, depending on how much time and effort you have to give.

Option 1: Quick & Easy Ranchero Sauce. You can have this simple sauce made up and ready to serve in about 20 minutes. 

To make this quick, easy rancheros sauce:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-low.
2. Saute the chopped green onions and green chilis in olive oil for about 3 minutes.
3. Add garlic and sauté one more minute, then add tomato sauce and enchilada sauce and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat and simmer on LOW for 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Continue to next step. 

Option 2: Homemade Enchilada Sauce. If you want to up your huevos rancheros game, make a batch of our homemade Slow Cooker Enchilada Sauce, which will raise whole dish to another level. The sauce can be made well ahead of time (it's freezer-friendly!) so it's not much extra effort at all. 

Put 3-4 cups of homemade sauce in the bottom of a large, heavy skillet. Stir in about 1 cup of water. Heat over medium low until the mixture simmers. Continue to next step. 

Option 3: Canned Enchilada Sauce. Use 4-5 cups of your favorite canned enchilada sauce. Heat over medium-low until the sauce is barely simmering. Continue to next step. 

Warm the beans. You can do this in the microwave, or in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Cover and remove from heat.

Fry or warm the tortillas. Place prepared tortillas in a tortilla warmer or wrap them in a clean kitchen towel to keep them warm. (Want to go all-out?!? Make some of our easy homemade flour tortillas, too!)

Poach the eggs. Eggs for huevos rancheros can be made any number of ways, according to your preferences. 

Option 1: Poach Eggs in Sauce. This is our preferred egg-cooking method when serving this recipe to a large group. If you have an electric skillet, we recommend using it for this step, because it is easier to maintain a consistent temperature. Set the skillet to at 225°F (107°C).

When the enchilada sauce is prepared, heat a large, heavy bottom skillet full of sauce over very low heat until it is just barely simmering. Carefully break the eggs directly into the simmering enchilada sauce.

Cover the pan immediately and cook for 8-11 minutes, or until the yolks are almost as done as you want them. (They will continue to cook after you turn off the heat.)

If you are familiar with shakshuka, this eggs-in-sauce cooking method is basically a Tex-Mex version of the same thing.

Option 2: Poach Eggs in Water. When we are making huevos rancheros for only few, or when we have lots of time ot spare, poaching eggs in water is the way to go. The eggs turn out much prettier, and it is easier to achieve a perfectly runny yolk. However, it can be time consuming and even frustrating if you are trying to feed a crowd. 

Option 3: Pan-fry eggs. Fried eggs also work fine for this recipe. 

How to Serve Huevos Rancheros

Layer ingredients on a plate in this order: warm tortilla, beans, eggs, and sauce.

Top with additional toppings as desired, including: grated cheddar, cotija, sour cream, sliced olives, avocado slices, guacamole, sliced jalapeños, fresh salsa, chopped cilantro, and cooked chorizo.

More Tex-Mex Recipes

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