The sauce:
1 cup salsa (preferably medium hot)
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles, undrained
1 (14-ounce) can pinto or kidney beans, rinsed well in a strainer
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
The fixings:
1 (11-ounce) bag corn chips (about 8 cups)
1 cup sour cream
2 cups grated Monterey Jack
2 tablespoons minced cilantro, optional
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine all the sauce ingredients in a large bowl. Pour half the sauce into a shallow 2 1/2-quart (12 by 7 by 2-inch) baking dish, and top with half the corn chips. You can crumble the chips slightly to make an even layer. Drop little spoonfuls of half the sour cream all over the chips, then sprinkle on half the cheese. Top with the remaining chips, sauce, sour cream, and cheese.
Bake 35 minutes, or until hot and bubbly around the edges. Sprinkle the top of the casserole with the cilantro and serve. You can cut it into squares and serve using a spatula, or use a large spoon to scoop out the chilaquiles.
Cook's Note: Some packaged corn chips are very salty. Look on the back of the bag for the sodium content and choose a brand that has no more than 110 milligrams of sodium per serving. These will be the most flavorful corn chips and won't be overly salty to eat or use in the casserole.
For advance preparation: Make the sauce up to a few hours ahead and lay out all the other ingredients. Don't assemble chilaquiles, however, until the last minute so the corn chips retain a tiny bit of texture when baked.
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