The secret to delicious homemade tacos does not, number one, lie within:

Old El Paso isn’t being particularly singled out here; it’s just one example among many. People seem to think that you need “taco seasoning,” purchased in a packet such as this one, in order to make great tacos.

This is a lie.

The way to great tacos, my friends, lies in combining just five important seasonings you probably already own. They are:

• chili powder
• cayenne pepper
• cumin
• oregano
• salt

You can also toss in some ground coriander seed, to bump up the corianderliciousness of your cilantro leaves (sprinkled over the top of the finished dish), but it’s purely optional. If you’ve got chili powder, cayenne, cumin, oregano and salt, you’ve got it made in the shade. Enough with the pre-packaged “taco seasoning”! Free your kitchen of this sodium-laden packet of injustice, and marinate your meat in deliciousness.

DIRECTIONS:

1. Brown about a pound of ground beef (or pork, or chicken, or whatever) in a buttered skillet.
2. Chuck in your minced garlic (2 or 3 good sized cloves) and chopped red onion or shallot.
3. Add your spices, as mentioned above, plus about a cup of water to create the “sauce.” My spice ratio is about a teaspoon to a tablespoon each of the coriander seed, oregano and cayenne pepper, plus about 1/8 of a cup of both cumin and chili powder; adjust these as you please for heat and general taste, adding more if you like it more savory. Simmer down your sauce, stirring occasionally, until most of the water has evaporated—about 10 minutes or so.
4. Spread on your favorite tortilla, garnish as desired, and enjoy. Suggested garnishes include: lettuce, tomato, white cheddar cheese, cilantro, guacamole, salsa (I enjoy both red Salsa Casera and green Salsa Verde from Herdez), pickled banana pepper rings (I’ve been using some from Mt. Olive), and Celebrity Intern’s favorite, La Vaquita’s Crema Salvadoreña, a kind of El Salvadorean crème fraiche.

That’s it, that’s all. No fuss, no muss. Just great tacos. You’re welcome.

Also, if you’re looking for a great recipe for breakfast tacos, my fellow blogger Shim’s got you covered, over at Diet-of-Insects. (And no edible insects, I promise.)

Related Posts

• October 20, 2010 -- Fish never looked so good: Mock Ceviche
• June 23, 2010 -- Summertime is chili time: Cook’s Illustrated Beef Chili with Bacon and Black Beans
• June 20, 2011 -- Low-carb summer pasta

Tags: breakfast tacos, cayenne pepper, chili powder, cilantro, Crema Salvadoreña, cumin, Diet-of-Insects, El Salvadorean creme fraiche, garlic, great homemade tacos, ground beef, ground coriander seed, guacamole, Herdez salsa, homemade tacos, I hate pre-packaged taco seasoning, La Vaquita, lettuce, Mexican cooking, Mt. Olive mild banana pepper rings, Old El Paso, onion, oregano, pepper, recipes, salsa, Salsa Casera, Salsa Verde, salt, shallot, Shim, spices, spicy tacos, taco seasoning, Tex-Mex, the secret to making great tacos, the world's best tacos, tomato, white cheddar cheese

This entry was posted on Monday, May 31st, 2010 at 12:09 PM and is filed under Recipes. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.