Review: Taco Bell - Smothered Burrito

Taco Bell's Smothered Burrito features a warm flour tortilla filled with Latin rice, refried beans, creamy chipotle sauce, and the choice of new shredded chicken, seasoned beef, or steak. The burrito is then covered in red sauce, a melted 3-cheese blend, and reduced-fat sour cream. It looks like it's served in the same container as a Cantina Bowl.

I picked up the shredded chicken version for $4.09.

It looks like the Enchirito is off the menu board to make room for the Smothered Burrito, which makes sense given their similarities. But don't fret Enchirito fans. Since they still have the ingredients on hand, you can probably still order one.

Compared to the Enchirito, the Smothered Burrito seems at least twice the size for a less than twice the price (if you get the comparable seasoned ground beef version, which carries a suggested price of $2.99; $3.29 at my local Taco Bell though).

There's no lack in the cheese, sour cream, and red sauce coverage. The cheese mostly adds creaminess and a gooey, stretchy texture. The sour cream mixed into the sauce for some additional creaminess. The sauce carries a nice tang and a light pepper flavor.

Inside the burrito is a somewhat indistinguishable mix of rice, beans, shredded chicken, and sauce. Being a knife and fork affair, I cut the burrito into fairly large, bite-sized pieces. Between the chicken, the chipotle sauce and the red sauce, the Smothered Burrito gets a bit salty and there isn't enough beans and rice to balance it out.

I think either the chicken or the chipotle sauce adds just a touch of heat, but it's hard to tell with everything mixed together.

While I wish Taco Bell's Smothered Burrito was a degree or two less salty, I enjoyed the overall flavor profile, which combined the familiar seasoned flavor of the chicken, the earthiness of the beans and rice, the creaminess of the cheese and cream, plus the tang of the red sauce in a tasty fashion.

Nutritional Info - Taco Bell Smothered Burrito (387g)
Calories - 650 (from Fat - 250)
Fat - 28g (Saturated Fat - 10g)
Sodium - 2230mg
Carbs - 67g (Sugar - 4g)
Protein - 34g