Taco meat!

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Follow up on cooking taco meat from posted recipe. Last night I went ahead with that recipe from that link I posted. All went well with the prep, except i need a better garlic press. I drained the can of chiles a bit, but won't next time because even tho it looked soupy when cooked, after you pull it all apart, that liquid gets absorbed fully. For anyone making this recipe, and cutting the time in half because the roast was half the weight, I found out that 2.5 hour at the 300F wasn't enough time. I put it back in for another hour for a total of 3.5 hours at 300F. Only then did the meat fall apart. Perhaps it's because I used the denser leaner top blade chuck roast.

Anyways, I'm stoked I now know how to make drive thru mexican taco meat, except I don't have to put up with tacos from those places that are often over fried or drip a cup of oil out of them. That recipe is soooo easy. I'll use hot diced chiles next time for an extra kick...maybe a bit more chili powder too. I might even try some chopped up jalapenos, but not sure if thats what people use.

I bought a cheapo 10" ceramic fry pan from Walmart yesterday to fry up the shells. I don't want to use my Calphalon non-stick at those high fry temps. Anyways, I need to practice frying my taco shells. I tend to fold them when they are fried too stiff. Also, I'm going to try and use flour tortillas and put the meat inside, close it using toothpicks and pan frying them in oil. Corn tortillas will fold with meat in them, but inevitably break at the seam before you can get them to the pan.

I just made a packet of Knorrs Taco Rice (so so tasting) and will have some refried beans heated and ready to go. Then in a little while from now I'll try frying corn tortillas again. The taco meat is in the oven on low heat. I'm so pleased having now made authentic taco meat. About the only thing I'm missing now are those foam serving containers used at drive thrus. :ROFLMAO:
 
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Thanks SOOOO much for this report Caslon. It's really wonderful when folks take the time.
About frying the corn tortilla's ........you said..." Anyways, I need to practice frying my taco shells. I tend to fold them when they are fried too stiff."Re read my instructions again. You only wet both sides before folding. You'll get it !!
 
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Caslon, I'm thrilled that you finally found a taco meat recipe that worked! Keep working on those tortillas. I plan to follow Kayelle's instructions to the letter, she knows from whence she speaks. I would love to find a way to recycle those styrofoam containers, wish we could send them to you!
 
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My last batch of leftover taco meat was transformed into chili, which was again transformed into chili dogs for dinner.

My chili dogs consists of a pack of hot dogs cut into chunks and cooked in a pot of simmering chili.
 
My version is more like beanie weenie, with chunks of hot dogs cooked in the chili, but the chili could be used on traditional hot dogs as well.
 
For anyone making this recipe, and cutting the time in half because the roast was half the weight, I found out that 2.5 hour at the 300F wasn't enough time. I put it back in for another hour for a total of 3.5 hours at 300F. Only then did the meat fall apart. Perhaps it's because I used the denser leaner top blade chuck roast.
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I just made a packet of Knorrs Taco Rice (so so tasting) and will have some refried beans heated and ready to go. Then in a little while from now I'll try frying corn tortillas again. The taco meat is in the oven on low heat. I'm so pleased having now made authentic taco meat. About the only thing I'm missing now are those foam serving containers used at drive thrus. :ROFLMAO:

So glad you were able to make what you wanted :) I just wanted to mention that the reason you don't cut down on cooking time for a smaller piece of meat is that it still takes the same amount of time to bring the meat up to the temperature where it shreds easily.

Also, here's a tip for easy Mexican rice: make regular rice on the stove top but replace 1/2 cup of the water with your favorite salsa. And, I think of refried beans like I do pasta - good, but kind of bland on its own. I add lime juice and salsa to it, and sometimes top it with some cheese. Yummy! :yum:
 
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I had a lot of trouble with my frying the taco shells, to the point where it ruined the taco meat dinner I successfully made. First off I wanna say that the regular Mission tortillas are way thicker than mexican drive thru restaurants use. They fry up more like pita bread than authentic taco shells. They also kept coming out too brown. I discovered this site that may explain why. That site no doubt shows why the inside of the folded shell stayed too soft while the outside burned. I was frying them at around 350F which is what some sites say to do. Anyways, I'm SURE that the tortillas mexican joints use aren't as thick as Mission's regular tortillas. Those things fry up like pillows! I had a hard time tasting the taco meat! I took a hint about poking small holes in the tortillas before frying to lessen them billowing up during frying, it only helped a little.

I couldn't find any at my store, but Mission does make extra thin tortillas. I'll buy some and practice with those before I make my next batch of taco meat. I'll definitely lower the cooking oil temp.
 
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Good to know, Caslon. Sorry for your experience. I got the extra thin Mission corn tortillas, and thought I'd made a mistake. Now I'm glad I got them.
 
I had a lot of trouble with my frying the taco shells, to the point where it ruined the taco meat dinner I successfully made. First off I wanna say that the regular Mission tortillas are way thicker than mexican drive thru restaurants use. They fry up more like pita bread than authentic taco shells. They also kept coming out too brown. I discovered this site that may explain why. That site no doubt shows why the inside of the folded shell stayed too soft while the outside burned. I was frying them at around 350F which is what some sites say to do. Anyways, I'm SURE that the tortillas mexican joints use aren't as thick as Mission's regular tortillas. Those things fry up like pillows! I had a hard time tasting the taco meat! I took a hint about poking small holes in the tortillas before frying to lessen them billowing up during frying, it only helped a little.

I couldn't find any at my store, but Mission does make extra thin tortillas. I'll buy some and practice with those before I make my next batch of taco meat. I'll definitely lower the cooking oil temp.

I'm sure sorry you had trouble Caslon!

Your oil was either way too hot or you cooked them too long (probably both) for them to turn out like you described. You shouldn't be looking to brown them, as you don't want them crisp, or the seam will break when filling them. They will be nothing like Taco Bell. When you say they puffed up like pita bread pillows it leads me to the question..are you sure you used the yellow corn Mission tortilla's and not the flour?

If I knew how to make a youtube video for you, I would.
Keep at it... and refer back to page 4, post #33;)
 
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