New ideas for tacos?

[She Eats Cheese]

Tonight I made tacos for dinner and I usually make it from a box recipe but I'm getting bored with that. Anybody have some ideas how to spice up my tacos?

 

[Hammster]

Could you share your box recipe? That might help people provide ideas that aren't part of the box recipe.

 

[She Eats Cheese]

Sure I usually buy the Ortega taco kit which supplies the hard shells, taco seasoning and taco sauce. I use fresh ground beef and add the lettuce tomatoes and cheese. I'm just bored of the packaged stuff and would like to learn how to make tacos from scratch!

 

[Dawgluver]

You might try any of these: Pickled radish, cabbage slaw, diced avocado, smashed up beans, mixing chorizo in with the burger. Also, marinated minced pork (see Panzeretti's recent recipe), crema, diced fresh peppers, olives, green onion. Switch up with shredded chicken or fish. Flour or soft corn tortillas. Different cheeses. Any packet of taco seasoning, or make your own!

Love tacos!

 

[pacanis]

I make tacos in one form or another all the time. I just made some new (to me) tacos last Sunday. Tacos are fun because you can vary them so much by just changing a few simple things, hard shell, soft shell, sauce, ground burger, grilled steak, chicken, fish, different cheeses... and I've made these before, too, for something really outside the box Must Have Mushroom & Cheese Tacos - Recipes at Penzeys Spices
Nothing wrong with the box either. It's TNT IMO. I prefer Old El Paso shells though, as they are lighter tasting than Ortega. Plus you can get them in super stuffer size.
Loooooove tacos.

 

[Dawgluver]

I make tacos in one form or another all the time. I just made some new (to me) tacos last Sunday. Tacos are fun because you can vary them so much by just changing a few simple things, hard shell, soft shell, sauce, ground burger, grilled steak, chicken, fish, different cheeses... and I've made these before, too, for something really outside the box Must Have Mushroom & Cheese Tacos - Recipes at Penzeys Spices
Nothing wrong with the box either. It's TNT IMO. I prefer Old El Paso shells though, as they are lighter tasting than Ortega. Plus you can get them in super stuffer size.
Loooooove tacos.

Agree on the OEP box tacos, Pac.

 

[She Eats Cheese]

I make tacos in one form or another all the time. I just made some new (to me) tacos last Sunday. Tacos are fun because you can vary them so much by just changing a few simple things, hard shell, soft shell, sauce, ground burger, grilled steak, chicken, fish, different cheeses... and I've made these before, too, for something really outside the box Must Have Mushroom & Cheese Tacos - Recipes at Penzeys Spices
Nothing wrong with the box either. It's TNT IMO. I prefer Old El Paso shells though, as they are lighter tasting than Ortega. Plus you can get them in super stuffer size.
Loooooove tacos.

Thanks for that link. I think I'll try that but I don't know about adding carrots lol

 

[bakechef]

I buy taco seasoning in bulk from penzys, which is great for seasoning other things. I will take some of the seasoning, lime juice, fresh garlic and some olive oil and make a marinade for chicken, let it marinade for a couple hours in the fridge and grill ( pound mine flat before marinating for even cooking). I slice the grilled chicken and use what ever toppings I'm in the mood for, I prefer the flour tortillas for this one.

 

[pacanis]

Thanks for that link. I think I'll try that but I don't know about adding carrots lol

Well you said you were getting bored
To tell the truth, I didn't even notice the carrots, but they had to be good for me... Being a veggie and all

 

[She Eats Cheese]

I can be daring so I'll give it a try. Not Sure if my husband will like it!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I can be daring so I'll give it a try. Not Sure if my husband will like it!

That's a case of, "Don't ask me, just take a taste, then you can tell me if you like it or not." VERY few things are not tasted and it's usually just because he knows what the ingredients are. Shrek has found out he likes a lot of things he thought he hated.

 

[jess11]

Ooo - we love tacos at our house!

My favorite way - get your hands on some shredded roast (I bottle beef so I can just use a pint of that for my recipes). Soften some chopped onion in oil, add the beef, maybe some canned green chiles (I'll also add black beans if I'm wanting to stretch the meat to feed lots of people) and then season up with stuff like garlic salt & cayenne pepper, maybe some cumin if you're adding the beans. Get that all heated together

Then - for the shells, get some small corn tortillas and soft fry them in oil. This really makes the tacos

We opt for typical toppings like finely shredded lettuce & tomato, sour cream, shredded cheese and a great taco sauce. Out here, I buy something called "Macayo's" - its a local restaurant. Very good!!!

We haven't had this in awhile - I think its time to invite some friends over for dinner and do up a huge batch of tacos plus spanish rice!

 

[chocotuile]

A chef I used to work with grew up in Guatemala and he made the most amazing tacos (I still crave them!). It's bit of a pain though, so it's not something to do if you just want a fast dinner.
Take black beans, soak overnight to get them soft, then bring to a boil the next day. Simmer on low until all the liquid has evaporated, keep stirring until it has become a thick paste. This process alone usually takes 1-2 hours. I've tried the canned black bean paste and it is so not the same!
Pair with chili oil, guacamole, a mixture of sour cream, mayo and cheese, ground beef, lettuce, and saffron rice. Stuff all in taco shell.

 

[She Eats Cheese]

Ooo - we love tacos at our house!

My favorite way - get your hands on some shredded roast (I bottle beef so I can just use a pint of that for my recipes). Soften some chopped onion in oil, add the beef, maybe some canned green chiles (I'll also add black beans if I'm wanting to stretch the meat to feed lots of people) and then season up with stuff like garlic salt & cayenne pepper, maybe some cumin if you're adding the beans. Get that all heated together

Then - for the shells, get some small corn tortillas and soft fry them in oil. This really makes the tacos

We opt for typical toppings like finely shredded lettuce & tomato, sour cream, shredded cheese and a great taco sauce. Out here, I buy something called "Macayo's" - its a local restaurant. Very good!!!

We haven't had this in awhile - I think its time to invite some friends over for dinner and do up a huge batch of tacos plus spanish rice!

This sounds awesome I'm gonna try it like that shredded roast sounds interesting!

 

[betterthanabox]

I have been hungry for tacos too. I like to use ground chicken and turkey in my tacos. Then I like to make both hard and soft shells. What I like to do is take a soft shell, cover with cheese, place it in the microwave or oven for a few to melt the cheese and then stick it to a hard shell. Then I fill the inside with meat, cheese, salsa, taco sauce, sour cream, sliced avocado, and a little lettuce. It makes for a tasty combo.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Classic home-made tacos:

Take one chuck roast (two to three pound roast) and braise it in your slow cooker overnight. Season with salt, 1 onion, diced, 1 tsp. ground cumin, 1/2 tsp. ground coriander, 3 tbs. chopped, fresh cilantro, 3 cloves minced garlic. The next day, take two forks and shred the roast. Open a can of ripe, sliced black olives. Have on the table; bowls of diced, raw tomato, a cup of fresh made guacamole, favorite hot sauce, favorite salsa, diced cucumber, and shredded, sharp chedar cheese.

Heat oil in a frying pan, about an inch deep. Take soft, corn tortillas and place in the hot oil for about fifteen seconds. Serve hot and soft to those eating tacos. Let them put the fillings in. Figure 4 to 5 tacos per person.

You can use browned, ground beef, seasoned with chili powder, coriander, cumin, and salt, in place of the shredded beef if you want.

Shredded chicken and pulled pork are great as well. But for all of them, you must use fresh corn tortillas, quickly softened in hot oil.

Seeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[texherp]

When I make tacos that way, I'll add a few tablespoons of chili powder at the end and simmer off the excess water, leaving some to keep the meat moist. I like how the beef fat get dark red from the chilies.

You can also fry the pulled beef in a pan to make it a little crispy/chewy.

 

[pacanis]

These tacos have been on my to-do list for a couple weeks. If they were popular in Oakland instead of LA I would have made them last Sunday for PPPC. I hope to make them next week sometime. I'll be picking up that style of cukes tomorrow anyway for something else.
Korean Style Tacos with Kogi BBQ Sauce | Steamy Kitchen Recipes

 

[PrincessFiona60]

I have been hungry for tacos too. I like to use ground chicken and turkey in my tacos. Then I like to make both hard and soft shells. What I like to do is take a soft shell, cover with cheese, place it in the microwave or oven for a few to melt the cheese and then stick it to a hard shell. Then I fill the inside with meat, cheese, salsa, taco sauce, sour cream, sliced avocado, and a little lettuce. It makes for a tasty combo.

I like to spread hot refries on the flour tortilla and then wrap the hardshell taco with that.

 

[4meandthem]

These tacos have been on my to-do list for a couple weeks. If they were popular in Oakland instead of LA I would have made them last Sunday for PPPC. I hope to make them next week sometime. I'll be picking up that style of cukes tomorrow anyway for something else.
Korean Style Tacos with Kogi BBQ Sauce | Steamy Kitchen Recipes

These just went on MY to do list!