🥪 Torta ahogada

Name: Torta ahogada
Total time: 75 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mexico · Jalisco
Ingredients: 600 g pork shoulder, cut into chunks; 4 crusty rolls (birote or baguette-style); 300 g refried beans; 1 onion, sliced, with lime juice for pickling; For the sauce: 500 g ripe tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, 1 tsp oregano; 2–3 dried chiles de árbol, 1 tbsp vegetable oil; Salt, pepper and 1 tsp cumin

Origin: Mexico · Jalisco

630kcal

per serving · 300 g

210kcal

per 100 g

33 gProtein11 g / 100 g

21 gFat7 g / 100 g

78 gCarbs26 g / 100 g

Torta ahogada, “drowned sandwich”, is a speciality of Guadalajara and Jalisco: a crusty salted roll stuffed with tender pork carnitas and refried beans, then drowned in a spicy tomato sauce. A second, fiery chili sauce is served on the side for those who want more heat. It is eaten with a fork, spoon and plenty of napkins.

Diets

✓

Dairy-freeno milk, cheese, butter or yogurt in a typical recipe

Not vegetarianbecause of: pork

Not veganbecause of: pork

Contains porkbecause of: pork

Contains glutenbecause of: bread

Not keto26 g carbs per 100 g

Allergens

Contains (in a typical recipe):

⚠ Gluten

What it is made of

breadporkbeansonionchili peppertomato sauce

Recipe

4 servings75 min

Ingredients

600 g pork shoulder, cut into chunks
4 crusty rolls (birote or baguette-style)
300 g refried beans
1 onion, sliced, with lime juice for pickling
For the sauce: 500 g ripe tomatoes, 3 garlic cloves, 1 tsp oregano
2–3 dried chiles de árbol, 1 tbsp vegetable oil
Salt, pepper and 1 tsp cumin

Method

Season the pork with salt, pepper and cumin, cover with water in a pot and simmer for 1 hour until tender.
Drain, shred the meat and brown it for a few minutes in a hot dry pan until the edges crisp.
Simmer the tomatoes with garlic and a little water for 15 minutes, then blend with oregano and salt for the tomato sauce.
Fry the dried chiles briefly in the oil, blend with a ladle of tomato sauce and strain for the hot sauce.
Slice the onion thinly and marinate it in lime juice with a pinch of salt.
Split the rolls, spread with beans, fill with pork, set in deep plates, ladle over the tomato sauce, add onion and serve with the hot sauce on the side.

How to make it lighter

Skim the pork cooking liquid and use lean shoulder trimmed of visible fat before shredding.
Use less bread: scooping out some of the roll crumb removes calories without losing the filling.
Add the pickled onion and a salad on the side for volume, and keep the hot sauce for flavour rather than extra oil.

History

The torta ahogada is closely tied to Guadalajara, where it is a street-food favourite. It relies on a local crusty roll that holds its shape when soaked in sauce, which is what makes the dish possible. Pork carnitas fill the roll, and the sauce is what gives the sandwich its name and character.

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Similar dishes

Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v15. How we count →