Disney Cruise Line's Mexican Hot Pockets (2024)

4.86 from 7 votes

Course: Appetizer, Breakfast, Main Course, Snack

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Author: Victoria

Mexican Hot Pockets:

• ▢ 1 pound ground beef
• ▢ 1 ounce diced red onion
• ▢ 2 ounces diced green bell pepper (a little less than half a pepper)
• ▢ 2 ounces diced red bell pepper (a little less than half a pepper)
• ▢ 1 ½ tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon paprika
• ▢ Pinch chili flakes
• ▢ Kosher salt
• ▢ 2 ounces (scant ½ cup) drained and rinsed canned kidney beans
• ▢ ¼ cup (1 ounce) grated cheddar cheese
• ▢ 4 burrito size flour tortillas 10-inch diameter

Cheese Sauce:

• ▢ ½ teaspoon vegetable or canola oil
• ▢ 1 (½-inch-thick) slice onion
• ▢ 1 slice jalapeno
• ▢ ½ teaspoon peppercorns
• ▢ Pinch kosher salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon white wine vinegar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon white wine
• ▢ ⅓ cup heavy cream
• ▢ ⅓ cup (a little over 1 ounce) grated cheddar cheese
• ▢ ⅓ cup (a little over 1 ounce) grated American cheese (or hand chop a couple slices of American cheese from the deli counter)

• For the filling: In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute beef with onions and peppers until beef is no longer pink. Add tomato paste, cumin, paprika, chili flakes, and salt to taste. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to 10 minutes until fully cooked through, and any excess liquid is evaporated.

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• Remove from the heat, add the beans and cheese, and mix until thoroughly combined. Allow the mixture to cool.

• For the cheese sauce: Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, jalapeno, peppercorns, and salt, and cook, stirring often until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and wine, and cook until the liquid has almost completely evaporated. Stir in the cream. Remove the pan from the heat and let the cream steep for 30 minutes to build flavor.

• Return the saucepan to the stove and heat over medium heat until very warm, but not boiling. Meanwhile put the cheeses into a medium heatproof bowl. Pour the hot cream through a strainer (to remove the solids) over the cheeses, stirring until the cheese melts, and the sauce is smooth, about 3 minutes. Sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 week. You can easily reheat the sauce in a microwave or over a pot of gently simmering hot water. Makes about 1 cup.

• To assemble: Divide the meat mixture onto the four tortillas into a strip down the length of one side (off center), leaving an inch or two at either end empty. Roll the tortilla around the filling from one end to the other, folding over the edges to seal in the sides (like a burrito).

• Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat, add the rolled tortillas seam-side down to the pan (in batches if necessary), and griddle until crispy/brown, rotating the rolls to crisp on all sides and heat the filling through (lower the heat if it’s browning too fast, or else it may not heat the filling before the edges are crisped).

• Remove from the heat, and use a serrated knife to trim the ends, then cut the trimmed roll in half crosswise, and then cut each piece again in half on an angle, to yield 4 pieces that are flat on one side and angled on the other. Repeat with the remaining rolls to yield 16 pieces. Discard the trimmed ends (or eat them if you want). Garnish with cheese sauce, salsa, and cilantro (if desired).

• The original recipe calls for baked beans, which seems odd, so I replaced it with kidney beans

Hot pockets adapted from Disney Cruise Line; cheese sauce adapted from Shake Shack