This bacon-wrapped burrito is a Hermosillo special. Where to find it in west Phoenix

The burro enrollado at Catos inside the Mercado de los Cielos is wrapped in bacon and stuffed with carne asada and carne adobada.

Inside an old Mervyn's department store at the West Side's Desert Sky Mall, a sprawling and labyrinthian swap meet boasts more than 200 different stores. You can shop for Mexican tamarind candies, try on wedding dresses or browse the medicinal herbs at the Yerberia.

The space, called Mercado de los Cielos, also has a food court where vendors sell uncommon dishes like the Mexico City machete, a footlong quesadilla that takes its name from the farmworker's tool that inspired a string of Danny Trejo action movies.

And now, a new food stand called Catos is bringing a savory superstar of borderlands cuisine to the Valley—the bacon-wrapped burrito.

This burrito is a Hermosillo special

Uninitiated members of the bacon-wrapped burrito club may have questions. So, I'll break it down for you. If the bacon-wrapped Sonoran hot dog had an ostentatious cousin from the tortilla side of the family, it would be the bacon-wrapped burrito.

Popularized in the capital city of Hermosillo, but found throughout the Mexican state of Sonora, the bacon-wrapped burrito is a behemoth of saturated fats and flavors.

Technically you could wrap bacon around any burrito. Just roll some raw slices around a finished burro and throw it on the flattop to cook until the exterior crisps up. But most of the time when you're talking tocino burritos, you're talking percheron.

Also the word for a Clydesdale horse, the weighty percheron is a classic Sonoran burrito combination of carne asada, tomatoes, avocado and melted cheese.

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There are many variations on this theme, including extra toppings like roasted green chiles and mushrooms, or giant burritos like the one found at the food truck El Burro por Delante in the border city of Agua Prieta. The mammoth, bacon-wrapped El Mastodonte is literally a yard long and takes three oversized tortillas sobaqueras to hold it.

Many Sonoran burrito spots like the internet-famous Percheron Mexican Grill in Tucson even have Italian burritos made with pepperoni and mozzarella cheese that you can get wrapped in bacon.

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Catos has Italian burritos too, plus other Sonoran bangers like fried lorenza tacos and cheesy Mexican baked potatoes called papas locas. The bacon-wrapped burrito is actually buried among a tantalizing array of percheron-style burritos, caramelos and quesadillas.

The last item on the menu, the burro enrollado features an armlength Sonoran tortilla sobaquera stuffed with carne asada, avocado, melted cheese, tomato and green chile that's then wrapped in bacon and seared up on the flattop.

Catos' version also includes carne adobada, or chile-glazed pork, the borderland version of al pastor. For an extra dollar, you can add some "Philadelphia" or cream cheese to it.

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What's in the burro enrollado?

I took mine and found a seat in the mercado's food court next to a raspados stand.

The tinfoil wrapped burrito shared its plastic food basket with two red salsas and a side of mayonnaise. As I cut through the middle, white cheese oozed out the edges. I peeled away the foil to find that the bacon didn't completely cover the tortilla. There were just a few strips weaving their way around the flour exterior, so I could taste both layers in one bite.

While not as unabashedly bacon-forward as the one at Percheron Mexican Grill in Tucson, this burrito was still a beast. The finely chopped carne asada steak linked arms with the spicy pork adobada. The silken avocados tried to fight their way through the sheer power of the spicy green peppers.

I was only able to eat half. But I wanted to eat more.

This bacon-wrapped burrito is definitely worth every penny of the $14.50 price tag, and the mercado is a great place to walk it off.

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Catos

Where: Inside the Mercado de Los Cielos at the Desert Sky Mall, 7611 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix.

Hours: 10 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, closed Tuesday.

Price: Burritos $13.50-$14.50; tacos $3.75 apiece; caramelos $5; percheron quesadillas $12.50.

Details: 602-693-4196, facebook.com/catosaz.

Reach reporter Andi Berlin at amberlin@azcentral.com or 602-444-8533. Follow her on Facebook @andiberlin, Instagram @andiberlin or Twitter @andiberlin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Best burritos in Phoenix: The bacon wrapped percheron burro