Prime grilling season has arrived again and around my kitchen that means “street” tacos cooked over charcoal. The fire is the easy part particularly once you have all the ‘extras’ sorted out. In my case those include a vat of garden-fresh salsa, some well seasoned beans, a little lime and coriander enhanced crema, and a tiny measure of salty crumbled feta cheese. The latter is the closest thing to traditional cotija cheese I can source in my northern locale. Heavy melting cheese isn’t my first choice for an otherwise balanced handful of taco goodness.
Once you have flames, quick grill some pork loin, giant mushrooms, marinated chicken, local fish, or fat chiles while you heat up tortillas on the side. I prefer corn over flour personally but follow your own path as supply lines allow. These aren’t meant to be massive overstuffed burritos. Since corn versions freeze very well, I stock up on tortillas for street taco cravings several dozen at a go. Four inch diameter seems about right but again your local tortilleria might tinker with dimensions a bit. Whether I set up my own kitchen DIY tortilla factory or find them on sale after years of begging local markets to carry them, smaller just feels better to my taco sensibilities. I’m careful not to overload when filling since there’s always another taco waiting in the wings. That’s a hard lesson to learn but after a few taco blowouts and you’ll soon realize the merits of restraint with the salsa spoon.
Build hand-sized tacos to order on portable foil squares one or two at a go to meet your appetite so they stay hot off the fire. I spice my chosen fillings on any given day with a dash of ‘Mexican’ seasoning right over the flames and watch carefully to achieve some charred edges without crossing over to dry and tasteless. Another dash of spice with a squeeze of lime while resting on the cutting board never seems to hurt either. Put any guests to work and make them stack their own as they please. Mushroom, beans, and grilled pineapple for the vegetarian? Perfectly charred pork with extra salsa? Double feta and chicken? Cod with lime crema? You get the idea.
These are particularly satisfying when cooked in the middle of nowhere over a simple improvised grill. Char over a spare grate, wrapped in foil, on a pointy stick, draped over a hot rock – work with whatever gear you already have. For me out at the farm that just means a ring of rocks with some lump charcoal piled in the middle. Cook it like a caveman and you’ll taste the flame-broiled difference. Cheating with propane is a waste of ingredients in my opinion.
Speaking of ingredients, I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t do a little food costing math. Here the whole taco package with tortillas, salsa, crema, beans and most choices for fillings worked out to around CDN$0.75 per taco even including the cost of charcoal. For less than a hundred bucks and a little effort, that’s a 100-taco party not to be missed with a bit left over for the sangria budget.
Details of how I construct the various parts follow but adapt, alter, and upgrade depending on how you like to taco. This summer’s new target for me you ask? The perfect lobster taco. Stay tuned.
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For an appropriate spice blend, use whatever dried chiles are available in your area knowing more varieties sum up to more interesting results. Even a few of the most basic (widely available) sorts will still work well. I mix without salt so I can adjust in the moment to taste. Make it your own with tweaks to each successive batch but remember to take notes so you can duplicate your successes. Edit: you can find a detailed recipe by weight in this post if your freehand, by volume confidence is low.
Mr. Spork’s All-In-One “Mexican” Spice Blend
5 parts sweet paprika (optionally substitute one part with smoked paprika)
2 parts sweet dried chile flakes/pieces, e.g. Ancho, guajillo, New Mexican red
1 part hot dried chile flakes/pieces, e.g. arbol or Indian/Chinese red
1 part whole cumin seed
1 part whole black peppercorn
1 part Mexican oregano
1/2 part garlic granules
1/4 part whole mustard seed, yellow or brown
1/4 part super hot dried chile flakes/pieces. e.g. habanero, Thai (optional)
scant part ground cinnamon (very very optional)
Mix by volume and grind in a small coffee mill just before use. A large air-tight storage jar is convenient for shake-mixing prior to measuring needed amounts.
– msh v1.6
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This is literally the salsa that started my taco obsessions. A little taco joint much closer to the Mexican border than I am now used to feed me tacos al carbón made only of a soft corn tortilla, charcoal grilled pork, and spoon after spoon of this stuff. They were a buck each and I remember ordering them by the dozen with friends so we could get the complimentary ‘bucket’ of salsa on the side.
Fresh Pico de Gallo Salsa
yield: roughly one and a half litres
3-4 green Jalapeno chiles – relatively mild
1-2 hot chiles e.g. small red Thai or Habanero
1-2 cloves garlic
1 large or 2 small limes, zest & juice
1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar if your limes need a little help
1-2 tablespoons sugar if your tomatoes need a little help
1 bunch coriander leaf (cilantro), optional if you have haters
1-2 onions, peeled – any variety, a mix of colours if you like
6-7 large fresh well-ripened tomatoes, stem cores removed
good sea salt to taste
Optional variations – all to taste:
Grilled pineapple
Fresh Mango
Roast some of the tomatoes until charred and delicious
Roast some bell peppers to add flavour without heat
Prepared horseradish
Field tomatoes are better than hothouse since they have less water but don’t worry if you can’t find them off season. Both will work. Seeds and ribs of the chiles can be removed for milder salsa or left intact for hotter interpretations.
Finely chop and mix everything except the onions and tomatoes – a food processor makes this quick work. Coarsely chop the onions (or pulse a few times in the processor) and add. Hand cut the tomatoes into 1/4-inch dice (no processor for them) and fold in gently. Taste and adjust salt remembering that tortilla chips are already salty.
Place the mixing bowl over ice but avoid the refrigerator to stop the tomatoes going ‘mealy’ in texture. Allow to marinate in the accumulated juice for at least an hour and up to four hours before transferring the salsa to strainers over bowls to drain and catch most of those juices while serving. For buffet parties it’s convenient to nestle bowl/strainer pairs into an ice-filled cooler or large roasting pan.
– msh v5.0
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When I make a batch of fresh salsa (above) I always save the juice that naturally exudes from the perfect mix of chiles, onions, and tomatoes to make a batch of beans. You can use them whole on tacos or go all the way to blended bean dip.
Easy Beans with Salsa “Juice”
yield: roughly one litre if blended completely, slightly more if used whole
450g dry pinto or black beans, rinsed clean
2 tablespoons sea salt for simmering
2 cups of salsa liquid, recipe above
For blended bean dip:
1/4 cup corn or neutral vegetable oil (avoid olive here)
1 jalepeno chile (optional)
2-4 tablespoons mixed “Mexican” spice, recipe above
lemon or lime juice to taste for finishing
fine sea salt to taste for finishing
The night before cooking, cover the rinsed beans in three times their volume of cold water. Allow to soak at least eight and up to twenty-four hours.
Drain and recover the beans by two inches with fresh cold water in a large dutch oven or stock pot. Add the salt, bring to a boil then reduce to medium heat to simmer thirty minutes.
Add the salsa liquid and continue to simmer until tender, usually around twenty minutes longer. Waiting to add the acidic liquid until midway through cooking helps avoid tougher beans.
Use the cooked beans whole, slightly mashed, or blended completely until smooth. For the latter move the beans into a food processor fitted with regular blade using a slotted spoon or similar but reserve the cooking liquid. Add the oil, chile, and spice and blend until smooth adding small amounts of the cooking liquid until the desired consistency is reached. Remember it will thicken considerably as it cools. Taste and adjust with teaspoons of lemon/lime juice and pinches of salt incrementally. Save some of the cooking liquid to aid in reheating over the next two days as needed.
– msh v.4.3
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Planning ahead for a homemade batch of genuinely cultured crema is always better but if your menu schedule is unpredictable, this cheats version made the night before will bolster your taco bar in a pinch.
“Cheats” Lime Crema
yield: roughly 550ml
250 ml sour cream
250 ml cream, 18% or higher butterfat
1 lime, zest & juice
4 tablespoons finely minced fresh coriander leaf
fine sea salt & freshly ground black pepper to taste
Stir all together thoroughly. Taste and adjust seasoning in small increments. Refrigerate overnight to allow lime to fully permeate and for the crema to thicken further. Keeps up to four days which should be plenty of time to make enough tacos.
– msh v.2.1
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Some of my chile-based taco sauce might come in handy too.
