Soft Taco Shells

[Alix]

1 1/2 cups milk
1 egg
1 cup flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
pinch of salt

Whisk egg in the milk, add the flour and stir til well blended. Add in the cornmeal and stir til evenly distributed. This should be quite runny, don't be afraid to add more milk as needed.

Pour about 1/4 - 1/3 cup batter in very hot, oiled frying pan and rotate pan to coat the bottom with the batter. When the top starts to look dry all over its time to flip. Repeat until you've used all the batter.

This amount usually feeds 4 family members or 2 ravenous adults. Enjoy!

 

[amber]

Thank you Alix! I'll give it a try. Sounds easy enough.

 

[Alix]

Amber, when I made these tonight I realized that my 1 cup of flour is not a level one. So it is likely more like 1 1/4 cups flour.

 

[amber]

Amber, when I made these tonight I realized that my 1 cup of flour is not a level one. So it is likely more like 1 1/4 cups flour.

Thanks, I've just made a note on that

 

[auntdot]

Thanks Alix, sounds almost like a crepe recipe but with fewer eggs and the addition of cornmeal. Have to give it a try.

And wonder what a bit of cornmeal would do for my crepes? Gotta think about that.

 

[goboenomo]

This amount usually feeds 4 family members or 2 ravenous adults. Enjoy!

Or me!

I might try making these sometime and having some chicken tacos

 

[Alix]

It makes 12 six inch shells. Gobo, thats a lot even for YOU.

 

[goboenomo]

Nahhh :P
Not on one of my hungry days.
I can eat non stop on one of those. I've eaten more than my family alone on a hungry day.

 

[urmaniac13]

This could be a very useful recipe! May I ask, what kind of cornmeal did you exactly use? Does it have to be masa harina?

 

[Alix]

Masa harina is corn flour if I am not mistaken. I use cornmeal which is sort of grainy, like yellow sugar almost? Does that help urmaniac?

 

[urmaniac13]

Ah, okay I got the idea!! Maybe I can try with polenta or corn meal that we use for coating crunchy fish or chicken..., that fits into your description... I was wondering because I heard many people say masa harina is a must for corn tortillas, and it is very hard to find here!

 

[Alix]

YES! The stuff you use for polenta is exactly right.

 

[urmaniac13]

Ooh hoo!! Soft corn tortilla will be on our dinner table very very soon!!

 

[shpj4]

Alix it sounds great and I will definitely give it a try. Thanks for sharing.

 

[cjs]

Alix, am I reading this correctly - they will hold up as a taco 'casing'????

this is just off-the-wall enough to be something to try!

 

[Alix]

Yes, cjs, it works very well that way. Its like a thick crepe, so when you are making them keep that particular texture in mind. I make mine in my 6 inch frying pan as I don't have a crepe pan. I have tried them in my 10 inch frying pan and they work well there too. We just prefer them smaller as they can be a touch messy. LOL.

 

[cjs]

Oh my Alix - you have created a monster!!

Made tacos (old family style - lettuce, tomato, olives, cheese & onions) using your soft taco shell recipe. What a treat they were - there were three left after stuffing ourselves and my husband ate those also sprinkled with just a little salt.

I'll just add what I did with the chicken for filliing - it turned out quite nice also -

I tossed together 2 chicken breasts, raw and cut up bite-size with:
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. grd. cumin
1/8 tsp. each - garlic powder and cayenne

Brown the chicken in just a tad of oil; remove from skillet and keep warm.
To the pan, add one (14 1/2oz.) can of diced tomatoes, 1 jalapeno minced up (seeds and membrane included), 1 T. golden Tequila and cook that down a little, about 15 min.

Add the chicken back to the pan along with a cornstarch/water slurry to thicken it up a bit for the taco shells.

What a great dinner this all made. Thank you, Alix - it was fun too!

 

[Alix]

I'm so glad you enjoyed them! They really are an easy thing to do and they are yummy. I am going to try your filling soon I think, it looks really good.

A little anecdotal note about this recipe, it is one of the very first things I ever learned to cook in Home Economics class. Remember that ladies? No boys allowed, required for all girls? LOL! I guess that dates me doesn't it? Still, some of the recipes I made in that class are ones I use still. I also have a raspberry turnover recipe that is to die for.

 

[Lizannd]

A question Alix. Have you ever used these

soft corn taco shells for enchiladas? I'm wondering how they would hold up if they were baked.
Thanks
Liz

 

[Alix]

Hmmm. I don't think I would try it Lizannd. These shells are not as firm as the regular flour tortilla. I think they wouldn't hold well as enchiladas. They also crisp up so they might be too brittle as well.