Chicago chef Rick Bayless, of Frontera Grill and author of Authentic Mexican, believes the chimichanga originated in Baja, where it was known as a chivechanga, but the history of El Charro restaurant in Tucson says that one day, many decades ago, founder Monica Flinn accidentally dropped a stuffed burrito into a vat of sizzling oil, christening what came out of the fry kettle a chimichanga, meaning “thingamajig.” However it came to be, the chimi is now one of the most popular items on Mexican-American menus all around the country—basically a deep-fried burro that looks like a gigantic egg roll. Like burritos, chimichangas can be filled all sorts of ways: with carne seca, shredded chicken, pork, or only vegetables, including beans.