# Educate me about burritos, please **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [January 15, 2022, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849 "2022-01-15T14:55:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/141 "2022-01-18T02:14:38Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I’ve only seen that applied to (American style) corn hard shell tacos. SWMBO likes tacos dorados. She calls them ‘double-fried tacos’. Make the filling. Soften corn tortillas. Put meat filling in. Fry in oil until golden (hence the name). Drain, and add whatever. (She prefers cheese and sour cream.) I think American-style, hard-shell tacos (i.e.m ,the pre-made shells) are ‘tacos duros’. ---
**Author:** ![DesertDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/desertdog/32/11503_2.png) [@DesertDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DesertDog)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/142 "2022-01-18T09:37:56Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > When I was in Merida and Progresso (Mexico), I do remember seeing _burros_ at some places, but they weren’t particularly big or anything. Same here in Arizona. When I was a kid they were ‘burros’ then on moving to California they were ‘burritos’ but not especially smaller. Coming back to Arizona some decades later, they were ‘burritos’ here as well, I assume to stop confusing California immigrants. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/143 "2022-01-18T11:22:45Z")
> [@lobotomyboy63](#): > > What I really didn’t get is why they call it “little donkey.” If you make it bigger, does it become a burro? We don’t talk about burros, no, no… > [@silenus](#): > > At what point does an omelette become a full-fledged omel? It becomes an omela. But they’re pretty big, and some people walk away from omelas. Why no, I have nothing of value to add here… ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/144 "2022-01-18T12:54:35Z")
South Texas native here. I’ve eaten in many different taquerias and had homemade Mexican food all my life. Here’s what the differences would be here in South Texas. A taco is soft, rolled in a tortilla, and eaten by hand, so there’s no sauce on them. A burrito is very similar, but usually larger, and typically covered in a meat and cheese sauce and eaten with a fork and knife. Tamales here are typically northern Mexican style, meaning wrapped in a corn husk, with a corn flour masa, and filled with some type of ground meat, traditionally pork or venison, but these days with many versions including beef, chicken, and raisins. > [@pulykamell](#): > > > [@Turble](#): > > > > An enchilada is served on a plate, covered in sauce, and eaten with a fork; the tortillas are often stacked rather than rolled. > > I don’t know about “often” outside an area of the Southwest US. That’s the only place I’ve ever encountered stacked enchiladas. The usual is rolled. I’ve never seen stacked enchiladas. All the ones I’ve had are rolled. They’re prepared casserole style, with the enchiladas sitting next to each other in the casserole dish when they’re placed in the oven, but then served individually and eaten with a fork and knife. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/145 "2022-01-18T13:11:17Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > A taco is soft, rolled in a tortilla, and eaten by hand, so there’s no sauce on them. A burrito is very similar, but usually larger, and typically covered in a meat and cheese sauce and eaten with a fork and knife. Well, that somewhat explains Taco Time Northwest, our regional PNW chain which my sister (who manages a location) describes as the whitest Mexican food to ever exist. Their “soft tacos” are rolled up exactly like the “soft burritos” are, with the difference being that the burrito consists only of meat, cheese, and hot sauce, whereas the taco adds lettuce, tomato, and (saints preserve us) ranch dressing. You’ve also got your choice of a crisp taco (the standard American preformed corn shell variety) and a crisp burrito ( a giant taquito filled with meat and cheese). It’s my understanding that Taco Time also exists outside the PNW and is even whiter in those regions, but the western WA franchise is for all intents and purposes a completely different chain with a different menu in much the same way that Dairy Queen Texas is distinct from the national chain. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/146 "2022-01-18T15:42:07Z")
> [@FlikTheBlue](#): > > A taco is soft, rolled in a tortilla, and eaten by hand, so there’s no sauce on them. Salsa? > [@Smapti](#): > > Their “soft tacos” are rolled up exactly like the “soft burritos” are, with the difference being that the burrito consists only of meat, cheese, and hot sauce, whereas the taco adds lettuce, tomato, and (saints preserve us) ranch dressing. I can enjoy tacos gringos with lettuce and tomato but ranch is simply too far. ---
**Author:** ![FlikTheBlue](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fliktheblue/32/10972_2.png) [@FlikTheBlue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlikTheBlue)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/147 "2022-01-18T15:51:55Z")
> [@jnglmassiv](#): > > Salsa? In the taco yes. On the outside of the tortilla no. ---
**Author:** ![Jasmine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jasmine/32/2964_2.png) [@Jasmine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jasmine)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/148 "2022-01-18T15:57:24Z")
Your “vague impression” is essentially a correct one. Basically, you have bean, ground beef, chicken, pork or steak mixed in with lettuce, tomato, chorizo, lettuce, cheese, onion, jalapeño or whatever, You just roll it up. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/149 "2022-01-18T15:59:24Z")
Ranch! Egads. Tacos are quite variable. They are almost never rolled here (Chicago, except in the case of deep fried taquitos/flautas.) Almost always folded over – two (soft, griddled/warmed up) corn tortillas tends to be the usual for one taco, though when I make them I tend to use one tortilla, as I don’t like them as stuffed with ingredients as they are here. Flour tortillas are fine for certain styles (like tacos arabes.) They can be crispy (tacos dorados – in those, the filling are stuffed in the tortilla; they are folder over and deep fried. My favorite version is where they’re stuffed with mashed potatoes.) Typical fillings for our area are: steak, carnitas, chiles rellenos, tongue, chicken, spit-roasted pork (al pastor), barbacoa, chorizo, picadillo (seasoned ground beef) etc; more specialist places will have cabeza (beef cheek), birria (goat), fish, shrimp, cochinita pibil (Yucatecan roast pork), squash blossoms, huitlacoche (corn smut), chicken tinga (a chicken stew), tripe, brain, etc. If you can fit it in a tortilla and fold it over, you can put it in there. Something like machaca (dried beef) is not represented much in Chicago – not too much Sonoran influence (at least I think that’s where machaca hails from). I only see it when I go out to the Southwest. Much of Chicago’s Mexican population is from farther south: Michoacan, Jalisco, etc. ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/150 "2022-01-18T16:27:41Z")
When was the last time anybody had a handheld burrito in a sit-down restaurant? Even when they’re not covered in sauce and cheese they always need a knife and fork to eat. I remember ordering burritos in the 70’s and they were definitely small enough to pick up. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/151 "2022-01-18T16:32:49Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > Even when they’re not covered in sauce and cheese they always need a knife and fork to eat. You’re clearly not eating them right. I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen someone eat a non-smothered/sauced burrito with knife and fork. It’s always been hand-held food for me. This would be the size of an average burrito for me around here: [![](https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/11/f6/a8/9b/a-regular-sized-burrito.jpg) ](https://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/11/f6/a8/9b/a-regular-sized-burrito.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/152 "2022-01-18T16:36:16Z")
You shouldn’t need a fork unless they are not wrapped properly or use a tortilla not big enough to contain the fillings. Tortilla size is a real pet peeve for me. In stores, the corn ones are mostly too big for a proper taco, and the flour ones two small for a proper burrito. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/153 "2022-01-18T16:36:21Z")
The key with the above type of burrito is to unwrap as you eat, not all at once. The foil keeps everything where it belongs rather than in your lap. Peel, bite. Repeat as necessary. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/154 "2022-01-18T16:47:28Z")
I’ve never seen anyone entirely unwrap a burrito before eating it. ETA: To be clear, I’m talking about the foil or the paper wrapper; as is silenus. Unwrapping the tortilla would be really weird! ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/155 "2022-01-18T16:49:46Z")
That looks like a Chipotle burrito, and that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m referring to sit-down restaurants only, not fast casual. I’m trying to find a photo on Yelp of a burrito on a real plate that isn’t covered in sauce and I’m not having any luck. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/156 "2022-01-18T16:50:38Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > I do intend to fry them, even it it’s not necessary: > > 1. They contain shredded cheese. Gooey melted cheese \>\>\> cold shredded cheese. > 2. I like crispy/crunchy things in general. > 3. It’s winter! Everything possible should be served hot. Really, your tortilla should at least be warm and the fillings should be hot, so there’s not really a concern about the cheese not melting. Burritos are like breakfast sandwiches in that wrapping it in foil and letting it sit for a few minutes helps all the ingredients mingle. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/157 "2022-01-18T16:52:03Z")
Yeah, it’s kind of that style although the burritos around here often do not have rice (I do not like rice in my burrito.) But that’s about the average size of them—sometimes even bigger. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/158 "2022-01-18T16:55:10Z")
If they’re folded properly, it’s not an issue. I eat them with the foil off. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/159 "2022-01-18T16:57:51Z")
I’ve never seen anyone do that. What do you do if you want to put the burrito down? ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2022, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849/160 "2022-01-18T16:58:22Z")
I put it down. What’s the issue? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/educate-me-about-burritos-please/957849.md?page=9)