big fat taco party

This menu will serve 6-8 people

The Best Guac & Roasted Tomato Salsa

{serve with plantain & corn chips}

3 perfectly ripe avocados

1 lemon

1 lime

1/2 basket Sungold cherry tomatoes - halved

1/4 - 1/3 cup chopped cilantro leaves

1. Halve and pit avocados. Scoop out flesh with a spoon and roughly chop. Put into medium mixing bowl.

2. Gently mix in juice of both lemon and lime. Season with salt. As a sneaky trick I like to add in a few spoonfulls of my salsa for extra depth. Taste for seasoning now.

3. Fold in cilantro leaves and cherry tomatoes. Done!

Elote

6 ears of sweet corn - shucked and each ear cut (or snap as I do) in half

1 cup crema - totally worth the trip to a Mexican market...or sub creme fraiche/sour cream

1 package queso anejo - mexican aged cheese, crumbled

1 cup chopped cilantro

2 TB dried chile powder - this heirloom chile from Chimayo, NM will blow your mind

1. Preheat oven to 450. Place corn in single layer on baking sheet, rub with olive oil and salt. Roast in oven, turning occasionally until lightly blistered on all sides.

2. Place all other ingredients individually into little bowls. Pile the corn up on a platter, with the little bowls of toppings around. I like to also put out salt and lime wedges. Let folks create their own elote!

Taqueria Style Chopped Beef

4-5# chuck roast

2 bay leaves

4 cloves garlic - peeled and smashed

3 TB salt

1 TB black peppercorns

1 yellow onion

1 cup chopped cilantro

1. Remove string if there is one around meat. Please in a large pot along with garlic, bay, peppercorns and salt. Cover with water until meat is barely covered.

2. Set over lowest heat and cover. Monitor it regularly to make sure it's not boiling. Should be at a super low simmer. 

3. Cook approximately 3 hours until meat is very tender. Remove from broth and chop into small pieces. It will almost shred it's so tender. Taste and season for salt.

4. Warm tortillas on a dry skillet. Fill each tortilla with meat, top with roasted tomato salsa, chopped onion and cilantro. I will assemble a large platter of them so folks can just grab. If it's a large party, keep the items separate and they can build their own tacos.

Red Cabbage Slaw 

1 head red cabbage

2 apples

1 bunch cilantro

4 limes

1/2 cup olive oil

3 TB salt

1. Using a mandoline if you have it, shred the cabbage. I usually quarter it first and go at it that way. If you don't have a mandoline, use a sharp knife and slice it as thinly as possible.

2. Slice the apple into planks, stack up, and slice into sticks. Pick the leaves off of the cilantro. Toss in a large bowl with the cabbage.

3. Salt the mixture, mixing well. Add limes juice and olive oil. Taste for salt and add more lime, salt or oil if necessary.

Pot Beans

{or how I transform a can of beans into pure magic}

2 cans black beans

1 TB olive oil

1 yellow onion - chopped

1 TB ground cumin

2 TB salt

1/2 bottle of beer

1. Heat oil in pot. Add onions and stir until transluscent and a little brown, about 5 minutes. Add the salt and cumin. Stir

2. Empty the cans of beans into the pot, liquid and all. Stir and cook for a few minutes. Empty 1/4 bottle of beer into the pot. Stir. Continue cooking for at least 30 minutes, adding in the rest of the bottle of beer. Stir frequently, smashing the spoon against the side of the pot to break up some of the beans. Taste for salt and cumin. Adjust as necessary. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot when stirring, beans will build up down there.

3. You will know that it's done when the liquid is reduced to a thick paste, and the beans resemble re-fried beans. Add a little chile flake for heat.