This Blackstone Crunchwrap is so close to the crunchwraps made famous by that Mexican-themed restaurant you are going to think you have gone through the drive-thru! This copycat recipe is, in my opinion, better than the original. The reason? You can make everything yourself, no store-bought cheese sauce or store-bought taco seasoning. You control everything, and it tastes amazing!
For some other fabulous recipes with that south-of-the-border flavor, why not check out this Skirt Steak Fajitas recipe? Or how about this Smoky Chicken Nachos platter, perfect for game day?
Of course, if you need dinner for a busy weeknight or need to take a shortcut for dinner, you can always use store-bought ingredients. I understand that sometimes you need to do whatever it takes to get dinner on the table.
The great thing about this recipe is that if you make everything yourself or buy some ingredients from the store, it is still better than going through the drive-thru! You can also make parts of the recipe ahead of time, like the cheese sauce or the taco seasoning.
HELPFUL ITEMS FOR THIS RECIPE
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small portion from qualifying purchases at no extra charge to you.
What do You need to make a crunchwrap?
The ingredients will change slightly. Depending on whether you are making the cheese sauce.
You will need a few more ingredients if you make your cheese sauce. (I do recommend it.) But if you are pressed for time, using store-bought can be a quick solution.
INGREDIENTS
Crunchwrap
- Vegetable oil – Use an oil like canola oil that has a high smoke point.
- Sweet onion – If you can find them, Walla Walla onions are amazing, but any sweet onion will suffice.
- Kosher salt – I always use Kosher salt when I’m cooking.
- Lean ground beef – Look for 80/20 ground beef, 80% lean meat, 20% fat.
- Garlic clove – Fresh garlic works best for this recipe.
- Paprika – Use sweet paprika for this recipe. I find smoked paprika to be a little overpowering the crunchwrap.
- Chili powder – Chili powder adds a hint of Tex-Mex flavor to the crunchwrap.
- Hot sauce – Use your favorite hot sauce here.
- Grande-size flour tortillas – Make sure you buy the large tortillas so they can be folded properly. The flour tortillas work much better in the recipe than corn.
- Hard corn tostada shells – You need round, crispy corn tostadas.
- Sour Cream – Make sure you are purchasing real sour cream. I noticed recently in the grocery store something called “sour cream product” that isn’t sour cream at all!
- Romaine lettuce, chopped – You can use iceberg lettuce as a substitute for romaine. You want to make sure the lettuce has some body to it.
- Cheddar cheese, grated – I like medium cheddar cheese, but you can use mild or sharp cheddar instead.
- Roma tomatoes, diced – Roma tomatoes have a firm texture and are perfect for this recipe.
Cheese sauce
- Butter – You can use either salted or unsalted butter; if you use unsalted butter, you will need to taste for seasonings and perhaps add some salt to the sauce.
- AP Flour – Regular all-purpose flour works best.
- Evaporated milk – Provides a rich flavor to the cheese sauce.
- 1% milk – You can use skim or 2% if you don’t have 1% milk.
- Cheddar cheese, grated – Use medium or sharp cheddar for the cheese sauce.
- Pickled jalapeno brine – This helps not only to reduce the thickness of the cheese sauce but also to add some real flavor.
- Pickled jalapenos, chopped – Because everyone needs a little heat in their cheese sauce!
How to make a Blackstone Crunchwrap
To make the crunchwrap, preheat your blackstone grill or cast iron griddle to low heat. Once preheated, add the oil, onion, and Kosher salt to the grill. Increase the heat closer to medium while the onions are cooking. Cook the onions turning them on the grill until they are softened and are turning translucent.
Place the ground beef directly on top of the onions. Add the garlic, paprika, chili powder, and hot sauce to the beef. Using a metal spatula or wooden spoon, mix and chop the ground beef.
You want the onion and the beef to be fully incorporated. Continue to cook the beef while chopping with the spatula and mixing it with the spices and onions until it is nicely browned.
Once the beef is nicely browned, move it to one side of the grill and turn the heat off. This will keep it warm but not overcook it.
How to make a Blackstone Crunchwrap cheese sauce
Place a cast iron saucepan on the Blackstone and allow it to heat up. Add the butter to the saucepan and let it melt.
Once the butter has melted, add the cheese and stir occasionally. When the cheese has melted, add the milk, evaporated milk, pickled jalapeno brine, and the chopped jalapenos. Stir, making sure that everything is mixed well.
Once that has been incorporated, add the flour and stir, making sure that there are no lumps. Simmer the sauce over low heat for 10 – 12 minutes. You want your sauce to be heated through, but you don’t want it to boil. (If it boils, it will burn to the bottom of the saucepan.)
Building your crunchwrap
Once your meat is cooked and the cheese sauce is prepared, you are ready to build your crunchwrap. Ensure you have the shredded lettuce, the tomatoes diced, and the cheese grated before you start assembly.
Place 1/4 of the ground beef in the center of a large flour tortilla. Top the ground beef with a drizzle of the cheese sauce. Then, place a crunchy tostada shell on top of the cheese sauce.
Next, add some shredded lettuce and then the grated cheese. Finally, spread some of the diced tomatoes on top. The last step in the build process is to fold your crunch wrap.
Fold the side closest to you to the center. Then rotate about 1/5 of the way around and fold that side into the center. Repeat until you have folded all the sides into the center. I like to have 5 folds to create the shape of the crunch wrap. Repeat this process with the other 3 tortillas.
Place all of the prepared crunch wraps back onto the griddle for 3 – 4 minutes over medium heat. Make sure you place them with the wrapped corners face down on the griddle to start. This will help them crisp closed. Carefully flip the crunch wraps and allow the other side to brown.
Remove them from the griddle and cut them in half or serve whole. You can serve them with salsa, sour cream, lime slices, and your favorite hot sauce. Enjoy!
Pro Tips
- It’s a good idea to make sure you have all your ingredients prepped and ready to go before you start cooking. This will ensure that the whole process goes smoothly.
- If you don’t have a Blackstone Griddle, you can use a removable cast iron griddle and simply place it on your grill or BBQ. It works just as well.
- If you decide to buy the cheese sauce rather than make it yourself, purchase a good-quality queso cheese sauce. It will make a difference in the taste.
Pin it HERE!!
Pin it HERE!!
Blackstone Crunchwrap
Ingredients
Crunchwrap
- 4 Tbsps vegetable oil divided in half
- 1/2 cup sweet onion finely diced
- 1/4 tsp Kosher salt
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/2 tsp paprika
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 2 tsps hot sauce
- 4 large burrito grande size flour tortilla
- 4 hard corn tortilla tostada shells
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1 cup romaine chopped
- 1 cup cheddar cheese shredded
- 2 roma tomatoes diced
Cheese Sauce Ingredients:
- 4 Tbsps butter
- 2 Tbsps all purpose flour
- 4 ounces evaporated milk
- 2 ounces 1% milk
- 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
- 3 Tbsps pickled jalapeno brine
- 1 Tbsp pickled jalapenos roughly chopped
Instructions
- Have all of your ingredients prepped and ready to be used. This will allow for a smooth cooking process without having to turn the heat off, or worse… burnt food!
- Place a small cast iron saucepan directly on the griddle and turn on your Blackstone.
- Turn on griddle to low heat. Keep your oven mitts handy so you can move the pan and take it off the griddle when done!
- On the preheated Blackstone Griddle surface, add oil, onion, and salt.
- Turn the heat up closer to a medium heat now that the cast iron has been preheated.
- Add the butter to your cast iron saucepan and allow it to melt.
- Stir, flip, scrape the onions around in a pile until they are turning translucent and starting to soften.
- Directly on top of the onions, add the ground beef, garlic, paprika, chili powder, and hot sauce.
- Using a metal spatula, wooden spoon, or even a silicone scraper, mix and chop the ground beef until the onion is fully incorporated and the meat is browning evenly.
- Add to the saucepan with butter, cheese, stirring occasionally.
- Don’t forget about the browning ground beef. Keep scraping/chopping into it so the ground beef crumbles and browns.
- Once it is sufficiently browned, create a pile with the spatula and turn the heat off on the side of the griddle that has just the meat.
- To the cheesy butter mixture, add milk, evaporated milk, pickled jalapeno brine, and roughly chopped jalapenos.
- Once that has all been incorporated, add the flour. Stir often so there are no lumps of flour.
- Simmer on low heat for 10 – 12 minutes. It is important to not let the cheese boil. You want it to get hot and really melt but not burn.
- Remove from heat when ready to prepare the crunchwraps, and turn off all the burners on the griddle.
- First layer of the crunchwrap is the largest flour tortilla, followed by 1/4 of the browned ground beef.
- Top the ground beef with some drizzled cheese sauce.
- Put a crunchy tostada shell on top of that with a layer of sour cream spread all over it.
- Next, you will add lettuce, then tomatoes, then shredded cheese.
- The last step is to fold the crunchwrap. Take a corner and fold it into the center. I used 5 folds to get it into shape. Repeat this process 3 more times.
- Now, go put all of the prepared crunchwraps back on the griddle for 3-4 minutes. Place them with the wrapped-up corners down so they crisp closed. Make sure to turn the griddle back on to medium heat.
- Flip over each Crunchwrap and brown the other side, too.
- Cut in half or serve whole; it’s up to you! These are also tasty when paired with salsa, lime slices, and your favorite hot sauce. Enjoy!
Leave a Reply