Mexican tacos!
Being a Mexican-American family, we absolutely LOVE tacos (as I mentioned in a previous blog) and I am always on the lookout to take my taco game to the next level. This past summer the hubby and I went to Mexico and attended a Mexican fiesta, where my taste buds danced with joy! Not only did I get to see how they make their tacos in Mexico - Mexican tacos differ from American tacos in that they use corn tortillas and not flour tortillas for the shell - I also had the most amazing side dish, a creamy poblano pepper corn dish. If you have never had a poblano pepper, you're in for a treat! They are not spicy and have a rich flavor. I knew then that I would have to try and replicate these for the whole family to enjoy. I've made the Mexican tacos a few times, but haven't yet attempted the side dish until this past weekend. Both were a huge success, with every bite being eaten! Make these for your next taco night and they will be sure to be the talk of the fiesta!
What's cooking in my kitchen this week:
Queso fresco steak tacos with creamy poblano corn
What you'll need:
2 lbs beef stew steak meat
1 lime, sliced into 8 pieces
10 oz queso fresco, 1/4 cup reserved
1 package corn tortillas
1/4 cup oil
Marinade for steak
1/2 cup oil
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp Mexican oregano
Pico de Gallo
1 red onion
1-2 jalapeño peppers
5 roma tomatoes
bundle of cilantro
juice from 1/2 lime
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Guacamole
2 very ripe avocados
1/2 cup pico de gallo
juice from half a lime
salt
ground black pepper
Creamy Poblano Corn
5-6 poblano peppers
2 cans (15.25 oz) golden corn, drained
1 cup chicken broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup crema Mexicana
1/4 cup queso fresco
How to make it:
To start you will need to dice up the steak meat to smaller pieces, as the beef stew size is just too big for tacos. Place in container to marinate the steak in.
Make the marinate by mixing together the oil, lime juice, salt, ground black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, ground cumin, and Mexican oregano in a small bowl. Pour over steak and make sure all of the steak gets the marinade. Cover and put in fridge until ready to cook.
Next, make the pico de gallo, so it has time for the ingredients to marry. Dice up the red tomato in fine dice. A neat trick to do this easy is to take off top of the onion, leaving the root on, and cut in half from the root. Then with the cut half of onion down, depending on how big you want your dice, make cuts toward the root (your knife is parallel to the cutting board), and then cuts from the top down.
Put diced onions in medium bowl. Next, take jalapeños and remove tops and seeds and finely dice; if your family likes things spicy, use two jalapeños and leave some of the seeds. If not, then only use one jalapeño and make sure to remove all of the seeds. Put diced jalapeño in bowl with onion. Next, finely dice roma tomatoes and put in bowl with onions. Take about three good handfuls of the cilantro and finely chop and put in bowl with onions. Put in the salt, ground black pepper, and lime juice and stir until well mixed. Cover and put in fridge until ready to serve.
Next, make the guacamole. The key to making great guacamole is to use very ripe avocados - if you don't you will not be able to mash them up like you need to. Cut the avocados in half and remove the pit. Take you knife and make slices into the avocado side, with the skin still on the outside.
Take a spoon and run around edge of skin to make pieces cut come out of the skin and put in small bowl. Mash up the avocados with a fork and mix in 1/2 cup of pico de gallo you just made. Salt and pepper to taste. Cover bowl and put in fridge until ready to serve.
Now it is time to make the creamy poblano corn. Cut tops off of poblano peppers and remove seeds. Dice into medium size pieces. Sauté corn in greased pan over medium-high heat on stove for about 5 minutes. Add poblano peppers and continue to sauté for another 8-10 minutes, until peppers start to soften.
Add the chicken broth a 1/2 cup at a time. Cook until broth has incorporated in poblano corn mix. After all the chicken broth has cooked in, add the heavy cream and crema Mexicana. Reduce heat to low. Let simmer in cream mixture 30-40 minutes until cream has thickened and the peppers and corn are completely soft. Add queso fresco and stir until melted in.
When the creamy poblano corn has about 15 minutes left to cook, heat up non-stick pan over medium-high heat and cook steak until done, about 10-12 minutes. Have another pan on medium heat and once ready to serve, take sauce brush dipped in oil and coat bottom of pan with oil. Place corn tortillas in pan and spin to make sure oil coats all of the tortilla, Cook 1-2 minutes until golden brown, flip and repeat on other side. Remove from pan, fold, and put serving of steak meat in tacos. Top with pico de gallo, guacamole, and queso fresco - I like to make a little topping bar before serving, so everyone can top their tacos how they want. Just remember to slice up the lime and crumble the queso fresco before you start cooking the steak.
Serve with a slice of lime to squeeze over the taco just before eating and the creamy poblano corn. Enjoy!
Did you know?
On this day in 1986, Kellogg’s ended tours of its breakfast cereal plant for fear that industrial spies would obtain company secrets.
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