Taco shells: Soft, Fried Crisp, or Store Bought?

[Cheryl J]

Oh yeah! Shrimp too. I really like seafood tacos. It's funny, I usually prefer flour tortillas (like I'm having tonight) but with seafood tacos (or egg & chorizo tacos) I too prefer corn tortillas .

When I use shrimp I saute them.

I too like to add avocado (diced) to tacos. And cilantro. I'm trying cilantro sprouts (from WFM) tonight.

I could enjoy some jalapenos or seranos or even Thai chilis but all I have tonight is canned Hatch chilis (good, but not very spicy).

Tacos are Latino hamburgers. There is an endless list of options and add-ins. All you need is a bun (for hamburgers) or a tortilla (for tacos). (I do not subscribe to the lettuce wrap hamburger or lettuce wrap taco theories.)

I think lettuce, onion and tomatoes are required for both.

I sometimes make a different sauce (particularly for fish/seafood tacos). I mix mayonnaise and some kind of hot sauce (perhaps Cholula or Sriracha sauce) and in fact I think I'll try that tonight.

Salsa anything is good. I wish I had some sour cream tonight but I don't use enough to justify purchase. (I'm single. Sour cream usually spoils out before I can use it all. Regular cream too.)

This could have been written by me. Sometimes I feel out of the loop, because as much as I love cheese, I prefer a cheeseless taco, and more of the lettuce, tomato, onion, and usually even more salsa. Shredded meat is also a must for my tastes, unless it's a fish taco.

 

[Cheryl J]

CWS, you're very innovative with your tortillas! Would love to hear how they turn out, if you try making them this weekend!

By the way, thanks for the video. That's exactly how I "soft" fry my corn tortillas!

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

This could have been written by me. Sometimes I feel out of the loop, because as much as I love cheese, I prefer a cheeseless taco, and more of the lettuce, tomato, onion, and usually even more salsa. Shredded meat is also a must for my tastes, unless it's a fish taco.

One reason I often skip the cheese on my tacos is because I'm a real cheese lover and I often snack on cheese before dinner (with a glass of wine) so by dinner time I've already had enough cheese.

I think most of us agree that all the meat (shredded or chunk) alternatives are better than ground meat.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

One reason I often skip the cheese on my tacos is because I'm a real cheese lover and I often snack on cheese before dinner (with a glass of wine) so by dinner time I've already had enough cheese.

I think most of us agree that all the meat (shredded or chunk) alternatives are better than ground meat.

For an authentic taco, you are absolutely correct. However, my MIL made this strange taco for her family, that I was introduced to when I married my DW. Before you turn up your nose at it, as it is severly americanized, Play the flavors around in your head. You might even give it a try. IMHO, they are delicious. Here's how you make them.

Ingredients:
Fresh corn tortillas
1 lb. ground beef, browned and seasoned (we simply salt ours)
2 fresh tomatoes, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cups shredded iceberg lettuce
Velveeta Cheese product
2 fresh avocados
1 tsp. minced cilantro
1 tsp. lime juice
Your favorite hot sauce
1 bottle ketchup
1/4 cup cooking oil

Set up your taco station by placing the tomatoes, onion, lettuce, and ground beef into separate bowls and placing on the table
Cut a 1/4 inch of Velveeta cheese, and then cut the slice into 4 equal strips. Remove the avocado flesh into a bowl and mash with 1 tbs diced onion, 1 tbs. dice tomato, a splash of hot sauce, the cilantro, and lime juice, to make guacamole.

Heat the oil in a ten inch pan over medium heat until fragrant. Place a tbs. or so of the ground beef onto the middle of a tortilla, along with a strip of cheese. Place in the hot oil for about five seconds, and then fold in half with tongs or a spatula. Fry for another five seconds, and turn to the other side just long enough to slide your spatula underneath. Remove from hot oil and place on paper towels to drain. Place the tacos into a large pan, vertically, until you have enough tacos made for everyone. Let everyone add the other ingredients as they choose.

I use Sriracha and Tabasco sauce on my tacos, when I make them this way, along with ketchup. I know that these are not normal tacos, but again, I have to say, they are sure tasty.

Oh, and my DW likes sour cream on hers as well. Just ask Sprout, and P.A.G. how they taste. They'll agree with my assessment. I still love my carne asada tacos, but these will do when I get the craving.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

 

[Greg Who Cooks]

- Well Longwind, I'm not going to debate you because there's just no correct answer for "what is tacos?" There might even be more recipes than the number of people who cook tacos. I make them dozens of different ways and I usually improvise. In fact I think if I've ever made the exact same way it must have been an accident!

I've recently varied my hot sauce ingredient. It is Sriracha sauce mixed with mayonnaise. Originally it was part of a fish taco recipe from a friend. Later I encountered the same combination when making spicy tuna rolls. (You chop up your tuna and mix the Sriracha/mayonnaise, then mix the sauce into the chopped tuna until it's right.) My favorite store sauces are La Victoria red taco sauce (medium) and Tapatio sauce. But it's fun to experiment with different hot sauces, and you can even serve several and let guests choose.

My mother had her own taco recipe. I don't know where it came from but it was good. Saute some onions then mix in hamburger and brown it, then mix in Xlnt brand chili con carne (available only in California and a few adjacent areas). Then she put a serving size of meat in a corn tortilla and fried it in about 1/2 inch of oil. They were greasy but good! This is one of my favorite greasy taco recipes, but I usually opt for my burner heated flour tortilla to make a more healthful taco.

Another good taco idea: make your favorite chili recipe, then use that for the taco meat, perhaps the next day after the original chili dinner. On the other hand when I make chili I usually serve it with tortillas (and guacamole), and in the end your stomach won't know if you ate the mixture in a taco or separately as chili and tortillas.

So to sum it all up there's a zillion taco recipes and any one you like is a good one!
To me a taco is a form of sandwich. Can somebody give me the recipe for an American style sandwich? Obviously a rhetorical question, there is no single recipe, and the same for tacos. In the end if you like them then you made the right recipe!

I totally agree that guacamole is a good condiment for tacos, and lots of other Mexican dishes including enchiladas, chile, chiles rellenos... And there's no single recipe for guacamole either, although I have some favorite ingredientns, particularly the avocado!