This week sees the nationwide launch of Burger King’s Whopperrito. No, you didn’t read that wrong – the fast-food king has really put a Whopper in a burrito.
Like KFC’s burrito project before it, the Whopperrito is a bland reminder that mediocre meals remain mediocre even when they put on new party clothes.
But it points to a new trend in hipster food: the burritofication of all food types. Jeffrey Pilcher, a food historian and author of Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food, says the burrito and the taco have become a new kind of shorthand for chefs. “Put something in a burrito and it acquires this cool edge,” he says. “It’s a way of Americanizing foreign food, but without that McDonald’s feel.”
In San Francisco, the birthplace of the “Mission-style” burrito – the meaty, rice-filled, bean-and-cheese experience that most will recognize – a growing number of cooks are experimenting with the burrito blueprint. The basics remain the same: a carpeting of carbs (usually rice), meat or fish, and something fresh (avocado, salads or vegetables) twisted up in a tortilla, bread or other wrap. But the results vary wildly.
So if the burrito – not the burger – is now America’s favorite food playground, who’s getting it right and who’s getting it wrong? I ate my way through nine burritos in four days to bring you the answer.
What doesn’t work
The Whopper-rrito
Burger King’s burger in a burrito launched nationwide on Monday. Yes, we tried it. And yes, it’s pretty lame. It lacks inspiration, texture and bite. It’s a taco-flavored burger in a tortilla and none the better for it.
KFC tried a similar stunt last year by releasing a fried chicken and a pulled chicken burrito in the UK. I tried it on a rainy day in London and it was miserable, tasting simultaneously of nothing at all and overwhelmingly of artificial cheese.
Conclusion: good burritos can be made in the same amount of time it takes to get a fast-food burrito and they aren’t much more expensive (my Whopperrito meal cost nearly $7). Treat yourself to the real deal.
The ramen-rrito
Some restaurants in California have been putting ramen noodles inside burritos and, while I have not actually tried it (nearby restaurants no longer serve them. You work out why), the premise is terrifying. Innovation is always commendable – and the ramen burger has some serious fans – but there are certain foods that should not be friends. Slippery ramen noodles and chewy tortillas feel like two of them. It’s like putting an octopus in a straight jacket.
The cousin of the ramen-rrito is the pho-rrito. While these LA foodies didn’t hate it they did conclude “we might prefer just having a good old bowl of pho”. If it ain’t broke …
The heart attack-rrito
No one is pretending burritos are healthy, but there is a line that can be crossed. Putting doughnuts inside a burrito is one way to cross it. Two hot dogs, three strips of bacon, cheddar cheese and beef chili is another. French fries, jalapeños, bacon, mac ‘n’ cheese, hot dogs and beef chili is yet a third. And Googling “pizza burrito” gets you here; which, be warned, is a corner of the internet that will put you off your lunch.
What works
The sushi-rrito
A sushirrito is exactly what it sounds like: a giant piece of sushi rolled like a burrito. But this is more than a copycat, it’s something new and delicious that combines atypical ingredients (think ginger-spiked avocado, lotus chips or sweetcorn) into a dish that’s heartier than sushi but lighter than the Mexican-American classic. It’s delicious.
Of all the faux burritos I tried the sushi burrito is the farthest departure, but it works by reminding us of everything these two great dishes have in common.
The curry-rrito
The curry burrito makes sense – after all, what’s a curry without naan, chapati or paratha to mop it up? This is the non-burrito that feels most like a burrito.
The depth of spicing in south Asian cooking is a natural complement for Mexican cuisine. I ate a Punjabi burrito (from Avatar’s in the Bay Area) which swaps Spanish rice for basmati, pico de gallo for pickles and chutney, sour cream for yogurt, and carne asada for curried chicken or lamb.
The chicken tikka masala burrito (I tried one from Curry Up Now) is saucy and spicy, given levity by a sour chickpea garnish called chana. I spent most of my time eating it thinking, why haven’t I eaten this before? And when can I get another one?
The fried rice-ritto
Rice is often the unwelcome guest at the burrito party so it’s great to see some establishments give it a starring role.
Photograph: Charlotte Simmonds for the Guardian
The “korrito” (from a food truck called Seoul on Wheels), featuring bulgogi (grilled, marinated beef), cilantro, sour cream, sriracha and cheddar cheese, is a good example of rice-minded thinking. Their rice laced with kimchee was so good it actually made me excited to eat the rice side of my burrito.
San Francisco’s mega-hip Mission Chinese does a “kung pao” burrito, which comes with kung pao pastrami, home fries, cheese, scallions and salt cod fried rice. While their pastrami teeters dangerously on the edge of over-salted, the rice has deliciously fishy undertones and a pleasant pop of peanuts.
The new meat-ritto
Meat is the burrito’s headline act, and some of the best fusion burritos use the format to showcase a signature meat dishes. Roy Choi’s Kogi food truck in Los Angeles is a well-loved example, stuffing caramelized Korean barbecue inside tacos and burritos.
Sweet and smoky jerk chicken also feels at home inside a tortilla. I tried one stuffed with rice, beans, plantains and a tomato cucumber relish.
A sour and savory Filipino specialty called “sisig”, made from marinated and charbroiled pork, also works well as a burrito heavyweight. Señior Sisig in California is leading the charge here, and even swaps out rice for french fries. Crunchy, greasy, fabulous.
