Tacos Al Pastor

Tacos Al Pastor

                Al Pastor Tacos are delicious.  Somewhat difficult to duplicate at home due to the cooking method.  Real deal Al Pastor tacos are cooked on a rotating spit (a la Gyros) with a chunk of pineapple on top.  I wouldn’t rule it out for the future, but for now I do not own a trompo, so I had to improvise. 

I used pork shoulder for the meat.  I cut it into half inch or so slices, then marinated it for about 4 hours.  After that, I stacked it, and cooked it over indirect head on the grill.  After it was cooked most of the way, over the coals it went to crisp up.  I also grilled up some onions and pineapple slices.  I was fresh out of olive oil so I had to brush them with lard, which was quite tasty.  After everything came off the grill it was chopped up and added to a hot cast iron pan with a pinch of salt and squeeze of lime to finish it off.  Severed with some roasted tomato and habanero salsa and chopped cilantro on yellow corn tortillas. 

Tacos turned out to be pretty tasty.  Marinade was good, I have some leftover that I think I’ll use on some fish or something.  Meat was tasty, but wasn’t as tender and juicy as I would have liked due my lack of trompo.  I know it’s not traditional, but a pulled pork type preparation could work really well here too.  Salsa was good with a nice slow burn.  I usually get my corn tortillas from the Mexican grocery.  The come in the refrigerated section and I think they’re way better than the ones from the Mexican isle and the grocery.  I’m already looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow. 

Marinade

1 cup pineapple juice

1 cup water

Juice of 1 lime

3 cloves garlic

2 pasillia chilis

2 guajilio chilis

3 chipotles in adobo

4 small packets of achiote

1 tbls Mexican oregano

¼ cup apple cider vinegar

¼ oil

Dump everything in a blender and turn it on.  Success!  You made a marinade!

Roasted Tomato and Habanero Salsa

5 roma tomatoes

3 cloves garlic

Juice of ½ lime

½ habanero chili (seeds and membrane remove)

1 small handful of cilantro

Salt to taste

Place the tomatoes and garlic under the broiler until blackened.  Throw everything in the blender and turn it on.  Congratulations!  You made salsa!

Jalapeno Cornbread with Honey Lime Butter

Sooo ... I had some left over braising liquid from my Mexican Pot Roast Tacos, and I didn't want to waste any of it. (Andy: You are the self-proclaimed braising king; do you ever use your left over braising liquid for anything?) I reheated it, reduced it, and blended it all together in my stand blender. Next, I tossed the sauce with some rigatoni, corn, and andouillee sausage. Topped it off with some shredded pepper jack cheese, baked it in the oven in a casserole dish, and I was sitting pretty. I decided to serve it with some jalapeno cornbread with honey lime butter. The butter was fantastic! One teaspoon of lime zest, one tablespoon of honey, and a bunch of butter (I only had unsalted butter, so I added some sea salt). I took the easy way out and used a box of T.J.'s cornbread mix, but I wish I would have made my own. (T.J.'s is a little too sweet for my liking.) Anyway, I just added a bunch of chopped jalapeno to the mix and cooked it in my cast-iron pan, which is the only acceptable way to cook cornbread - period.

Mexican Pot Roast Tacos

Mexican Pot Roast Tacos are awesome! This is the second time I've used this recipe for tacos. They come out delicious every time. Used my own spice mix from some random dried chiles I had laying around (toasted in the oven and ground with my spice mixer), and I fried my own taco shells, which is a must for delicious tacos. The meat just fell apart after 3 hours of braising. Served it with shredded cabbage and T.J.'s authentic salsa. The side is a mexican corn and black bean salad. I fried the corn in my cast iron skillet with some of the extra spice mix to blacken it up a little bit. Very tasty stuff.

MEXICAN POT ROAST TACOS

Ingredients:
• 2 pounds beef shoulder
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, smashed
• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, (recommended: San Marzano)
• 1 tablespoon ancho chile powder
• 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 3 bay leaves
• Vegetable oil, for deep frying
• 6 fresh medium corn tortillas
• Kosher salt
• 3 cups finely shredded white cabbage

Season all sides of the beef with a fair amount of salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven, or other heavy pot that has a tight cover, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over moderately high heat. Add the garlic and the beef to the pot, browning the meat on all sides, taking the time to get a nice crust on the outside. Add the onion and allow to lightly brown, about 3 to 4 minutes. Add the crushed tomatoes, plus 1 tomato can of water, spices, season with salt and pepper, to taste, and add enough water to cover the meat. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer with a lid for 3 hours until the meat is fork tender. Let meat cool in the liquid. Shred meat and set aside.

Heat a large pot of oil over medium heat. When oil reaches 350 degrees F, fry the corn tortillas 1 at a time. Place the tortilla in the oil and wait about 30 seconds. Then use the handle of a wooden spoon to press down into the center of the tortilla and fold it in the middle. Hold down for a few seconds waiting for the tortilla to form into taco shell and then drain on paper towels. Season with salt.

Serve with shredded cabbage, salsa, guacamole, or whatever toppings you like on your tacos.

Chicken Tacos

So, I've realized that most all my posts start with "So...," but I'm ok with that. So anyway, I made some chicken tacos. I simmered some chicken breasts in a poaching liquid that included some dried chili's, onion, garlic, bay leaf, cumin and water. Simmered for about 20 mins then I took out to let cool. I strained the liquid, shredded the chicken, and added it back to the strained liquid and cooked a little longer. I made some corn tortillas and garnished them the traditional way with some chopped white onion, cilantro and a squeeze of lime. I also made some salsa verde which was really good and easy- 4 Tomatillos, 1 whole serano, glove of garlic, half a lime, pinch of salt and a bunch of cilantro. Food processor for a few pulses and voila, Salsa Verde!

GARDEN GAZPACHO

Wondering what to do with all your fresh tomatoes?

I had a gazpacho recently at my parents' favorite restaraunt in Michigan, the River Crab. When my co-worker Rob gave me a bag full of tomatoes, I thought I would give it a shot. It wasn't as good as the River Crabs' but it held its own and is very refreshing in this late summer heat. It's also very healthy as it is primarily composed of all fresh and raw veggies. The only other addition I might make is some sliced avacado. (I have a feeling somebody is going to rip on me for posting 2 tomato soup recipes back to back....)

From The Columbus Dispatch
Makes 8 servings

Because a food processor (or blender) is used to puree the mixture, you need to roughly chop only a portion of the vegetables and dice the other portion for garnish.

2 pounds tomatoes, seeded
1 red bell pepper
1 green or yellow bell pepper
1 jalapeno, seeds and white removed
3 salad cucumbers
1 large shallot
2 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar or sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon hot-red-pepper sauce
1 3/4 cups reduced-sodium or no-salt-added tomato juice or vegetable juice
1 ear fresh corn, uncooked and kernels removed
2 teaspoons sugar
4 to 6 green onions, thinly sliced (white and green parts)
Fresh basil, thinly sliced
Salt and pepper to taste

Roughly chop about three-fourths of the tomatoes. Place in a food processor fitted with the metal blade or a blender. Dice the remaining tomatoes and set aside.

Roughly chop half of each of the bell peppers and add to the food processor. Dice the remaining bell peppers and set aside.

Remove seeds from jalapeno and roughly chop. Add to food processor.

Peel, seed and roughly chop two of the cucumbers and add to the food processor. Leave the peel on the remaining cucumber, slice in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and dice. Set aside.

Add the shallot, garlic cloves, olive oil, vinegar and hot-pepper sauce to the food processor. Process until smooth, about 1 minute.

Transfer to a glass bowl (or leave in the blender jar). Stir in the tomato juice, corn, basil, remaining diced tomatoes, sugar, half of the green onions and salt and pepper to taste. Adjust seasoning as necessary.

Chill for 2 hours. Serve in cups or bowls, garnished with a bit of the diced bell peppers, diced cucumbers, minced garlic and green onion slices. (I also added a splash of lime juice to this mixture to reduce the bite from the raw green onion)

Huevos Rancheros

Inspired by a recent blog post on seriouseats.com, I bought some Maseca (corn flour) and made homemade corn tortillas. By some I mean 24. With all these leftover tortillas sitting around I reminisced of my trip to Mesa Grill in New York and the wonderful Huevos Rancheros I enjoyed there. Here is my feeble attempt to re-create that.






Makes 1 serving
Ingredients:

2 eggs
1/2 t cayenne pepper
2 homemade corn tortillas (see maseca package for recipe)
1 can jalapeno refried black beans, warmed in microwave (trader joes brand is pretty good)
1/2 cup of shredded cheese
2 T sour cream
3 T fresh salsa
1 T fresh chopped cilantro
half of an avacado
cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven or toaster oven to 400. Spray tortillas with cooking spray and bake until crisp, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile cook eggs over easy and sprinkle with cayenne. When tortillas are crisp, spread first tortilla with black beans to cover, top with cheese, half of salsa, 1 egg, and half of sour cream. Repeat layers with second tortilla, adding cilantro and avacado to garnish. I served mine with hashbrowns and hot sauce (my favorite is pictured).

Adjetivo Lucia (Mexican Juicy Lucy)

I was feeling a little hungry and I've been catching up on my DVRd episodes of Man vs. Food. On a recent episode Adam travels to Minnesota (pit stop on the way to BWCA Jeff?) and eats a burger called the Juicy Lucy. Basically its two burgers with american cheese in the middle. Oooey Gooey Heaven. I put a Mexican twist on my "Lucia".

Ingredients (per burger):

1/2 lb ground beef
1 Slice of Pepper Jack Cheese for topping
Cheese for filling*
1 Roasted Pablano Pepper
sliced tomato
1/4 cup of sour cream
1 tbsp mexican hot sauce
English muffin (nooks and crannies + juices = good)
salt and pepper to taste
beer for drinking

*The original is made with a kraft single for its melting ability, but I chose a Sargento shredded Mexican blend consisting of monterey jack, cheddar, queso quesadilla, and asadero cheese.

Process:

Preheat grill (or infrared burner if you are a big baller like Jeff) Divide meat into two 4oz. thin patties. Place shredded cheese on bottom patty and lay top patty and pinch edges to form somewhat of a beef ravioli. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Throw pablano on the grill with the burger, 4-5 min per side. While burger cooks, mix sour cream and hotsauce. Flip burger and turn the pablano until well charred. With a minute left put pepper jack cheese on the burger to melt and toast the bun. Place pablano in a zip top bag while you assemble the burger, wait on the bun to toast, and open a beer. (steaming the pablano helps the skin be easily peeled). The burger is layerd as follows: bottom of muffin, sour cream sauce, burger, pepper jack, pablano, tomato slice, more sour cream sauce, top bun. Smile and enjoy.



MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!

Chicken Bacon Tacos

Chicken Bacon Tacos

What’s up now Urban, back to back posties! Simple, delicious tacos.

Ingredients

Spice paste rubbed chicken breast, grilled and sliced.

Some bacon.

Corn Tortillas

Jeff’s famous Guacamole (see below)

Chopped tomato

Shredded Mozzarella

Cilantro

Squeeze of lime

Procedure

You can figure it out.

Jeff’s famous Guacamole

2- Avocados

1/2 – Small red onion

1- Jalapeño

1- Clove Garlic

Juice of lime (to taste)

Handful of cilantro

Salt and pepper

A dash of Cumin

Chop, mix to combine, don’t over mix though, or I’ll get ya.

Ps- Urban sucks.

Steak Fajita Salad

Steak Fajita Salad

Whipped up this little ditty a couple weeks ago. It started out as just a basic idea and morphed into something pretty delicious. I’ve also been using spice paste a lot instead of marinating. Here’s what the salad consisted of.

– Strip Steak that was rubbed with spice paste and grilled.

– Grilled red pepper and onion

– Romaine and Iceberg lettuce

– Grated carrot

– Jeff’s famous Habanero Tomatilo salsa (see below)

– Goat Cheese

– Sour Cream

– Homemade chipotle-lime ranch. (see below)

– Some Tortilla chips

– Cilantro

– Fresh squeeze of lime

– I think that’s it.

Habanero Tomatilo Salsa

4- Vine ripe tomatoes

2- Tomatilos

½ Habanero pepper, seeds removed.

½ Small red onion

1- Garlic Clove

Juice of half a lime

Handful of cilantro

Salt and pepper

(Sometimes I add some pineapple or mango too)

Chop, combine, enjoy.

Chipotle-Lime Ranch

Get ready for this groundbreaking recipe…

Some Ranch dressing

½ teaspoon of adobo sauce

Squeeze of lime

Salt

Boom- Chipotle-Lime Ranch

POZOLE ROJO WITH HOMEMADE FLOUR TORILLAS

This pulled pork and hominy stew from Mexico is one of my favorites. I order a turkey version from a local joint here in Indy called "Yats." No need to worry for you out of towners because this version is better than any pozole I've ordered out. Pulled this recipe from my go to cook book: "The Best New Recipe" by Cook's Illustrated. It turned out excellent! I recommend a nice margarita to wash it all down. This was also my first attempt at making homemade flour tortillas. I watch a lot of PBS these days, and Rick Bayless has a superb mexican cooking show. He made his with pork lard, but much to my dismay I couldn't find any at the store, so I had to substitute crisco. Once I find some lard I will cook them again and post the recipe. (fyi: they were still very tasty using crisco, but I'm predicting they will be out of this world with pork lard)

POZOLE ROJO

STEW:

1 Bone-in Picnic Shoulder Roast (about 5 lbs.)
Salt / Pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium-large onions, chopped coarse
5 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 oz. dried ancho chiles (about 3 large)
1 ½ cups boiling water
3 (15-oz) cans white or yellow hominy, drained and rinsed

GARNISHES:

Lime
Romaine Lettuce, sliced into thin strips
Radishes, sliced thin
Onion, minced
Cilantro
Hot Sauce

Serve with flour or corn torillas, warmed

INSTRUCTIONS:

1) Move oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 300 degrees. Trim the thick skin and excess fat from the meat and cut along the muscles to divide the roast into large pieces of various sizes; reserve the bones. Season the meat generously with salt and pepper.
2) Heat oil in large ovenproof Dutch oven over medium heat; add the onions and some salt. Cook until onions have softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3) Add the meat and bones and stir often until it is no longer pink on the outside, about 8 minutes. Add the tomatoes, oregano, broth, and some salt. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. With a large spoon, skim off any scum. Cover the pot and place it in the oven. Cook until the meat is very tender, about 2 hours.
4) Meanwhile, remove the stems and seeds from the ancho chiles; soak the chiles in a medium bowl with the boiling water until soft, about 20 minutes. Puree the chiles and soaking liquied in a blender until smooth. Pour the puree through into a bowl.
5) Remove the pot from the oven and remove the meat and bones to a cutting board. Stir in the hominy and the ancho chile puree. Cover and bring the stew to a simmer on top of the stove over medium-low heat. Cook until the hominy is hot and the flavors meld, about 30 minutes.
6) When the meat is cool, shred it using your fingers or the tines of 2 forks; discard the bones. Stir the shredded meat and simmer until the meat is hot. Adjust the seasoning. Ladle the stew into individual bowls and serve immediately with the garnishes.

Spotlight: Corn Tortillas

I propose that we start, what I like to refer to as, a Spotlight post. These so called "Spotlight Posts" should be an opportunity to highlight certain items that you're diggin on. Without further ado, I give you- Corn Tortillas.

Corn Tortillas

So if you haven't used fresh corn tortillas for anything you are missing out. They have great flavor and add a little something extra to your tacos, enchiladas, and what have you. Biggs by me carries them, make sure to get the fresh ones, re-hydrating the dry ones is a waste of money. I've made simple chicken tacos with just grilled chicken, quac, and pico di gallo. I've also made steak tacos with carmelized onions, goat cheese, and habanero salsa. If you use them for tacos just stick them in a saute pan over medium-high heat for about 20-30 secs on each side and keep them warm in foil. Last night I made some chicken enchiladas. I used this Tyler Florence recipe for the enchiladas, except I used roasted pablanos instead of the canned chilis http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-enchiladas-recipe/index.html. I used this Emeril recipe for the sauce using Ancho and New Mexican chili powders http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/easy-enchilada-sauce-recipe/index.html. So get out there and get yourself some Corn Tortillas!

Margarita - Good Eats Version

Saw this on Good Eats this week and I think I'm going to have to give it a whirl. I usually use Simpkins' recipe that I'm pretty sure he stole from a mexican bartender from Don Pablo's, but this one seems pretty delish!


Ingredients
2 ounces 100 percent agave silver/blanco tequila, divided
1 tablespoon kosher salt
4 limes, divided
1/2 small Hamlin or Valencia orange
2 tablespoons light agave nectar
3/4 cup ice cubes, about 3 to 4
Directions
Pour 1/2-ounce of the tequila into a small saucer. Spread the kosher salt in a separate small saucer. Dip the rim of a martini or other wide rimmed glass into the tequila. Lift out of the tequila and hold upside down for 10 seconds to allow for slight evaporation. Next, dip the glass into the salt to coat the rim. Set aside.

Halve 2 of the limes, cut a thin slice for garnish from 1, and set aside. Juice the halved limes into the bottom of a Boston-style cocktail shaker. Cut the remaining 2 limes and the orange into quarters and add them to the juice in the shaker. Add the agave nectar to and muddle for 2 minutes until the juices are release. Strain the juice mixture through a cocktail strainer into the top of the shaker and discard the solids.

Return the juice to the bottom of the shaker, add the remaining 1 1/2 ounces of tequila and any remaining on the saucer. Add the ice to the shaker, cover and shake for 30 seconds. Strain the mixture through a cocktail strainer into the prepared glass, garnish with reserved lime slice, and serve immediately.

UPDATE: Made one of these bad boys last night and I think I will have another tonight. It takes a little more work than a regular margarita because of the muddling, but the fresh lime and orange made all the difference in the world. Normally I can only have 1 or 2 ritas because they are so sweet, but this one is light and refreshing and I could drink them until the chips and salsa runs out.

Chili Con Carne, aka Best Chili Ever

Chili Con Carne:

Seriously, best chili I have ever had. I made it a couple weekends ago, so I don’t have any pictures. But no joke, I now truly believe it is impossible to cook a better chili than this recipe produces. Toasting the whole chili pods in the oven and grinding them in your coffee grinder (spice grinder if you have a separate one) is a must. As a side note of caution, don't try and substitute chicken stock for the water. You will only mask the fresh chili flavor and be bombarded by me with angry emails reminding you of this warning. Also, with all the chili pods and fresh jalepenos, I thought it was going to be crazy spicy. Much to my surprise, the chili could have used more heat. Next time I make it I’m going to use all the seeds from the jalepeno (versus seeding half of them) or mix in some serranos, other hotter peppers, pinch of cayenne, or hot pepper sauce. I served it with sour cream and diced onions with cornbread as a side.

3 ancho chili pods (about ½ ounce), toasted and ground (see note)
3 New Mexico chili pods (about 3.4 ounce), toasted and ground (see note)
2 tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted and ground
2 teaspoons dried oregano
7 ½ cups water
4 pounds beef chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt to taste
8 ounces bacon (about 8 slices), cut into ¼-inch pieces
1 medium onion, minced
5 medium garlic cloves, minced
4 to 5 jalepeno chiles, stemmed, seeded and minced
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
2 tablespoons juice from 1 lime
3 tablespoons cornstarch
Ground Black Pepper

Note: Toasting/Grinding Chilis – place chilis on a baking sheet in a 350-degree oven until fragrant and puffed (about 6 mins). Cool, stem and seed, tearing the pods into pieces. Place the pieces in a spice grinder and process until powdery, 30 to 45 seconds.

1. Mix the chili powders that you ground with the cumin, and oregano in a small bowl and stir in ½ cup of the water to form a thick paste; set aside. Toss beef cubes with 2 teaspoons salt; set aside.
2. Fry the bacon in a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat to render fat and get bacon crispy. Remove bacon w/ slotted spoon to paper towel-lined plate. Pour out all but 2 teaspoons of the fat from the pot into a bowl and set it aside. Increase heat to med-high and start sautéing the meat in batches until well browned on all sides, and add reserve bacon fat as needed. (remember, no one likes it when you overcrowd the pan) Set browned meat aside.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add 3 tablespoons of bacon fat. Saute onion until softened (5 to 6 mins). Add garlic and jalepeno chiles and sauté until fragrant (1 min). Add the chili paste mixture and sauté until fragrant (2 to 3 mins). Add the reserved bacon and browned beef, the crushed tomatoes, lime juice, and remaining 7 cups of water. Bring to a simmer. Continue to cook at a steady simmer until the meat is tender and the juices are dark, rich, and starting to thicken, about 2 hours.
4. Mix the cornstarch with 3 tablespoons water in a small bowl to form a smooth paste. Increase the heat to medium, stir in the paste, and simmer until thickened (5 to 10 mins). Adjust the seasoning generously with salt and pepper to taste. Serve!