Give the taco meat a rub

One of my favorites in college was the steak taco from Taco Bell. Actually Taco Bell was my first Tex Mex experience in the US and it was a lot different from when I got it served for the first time. I think it was 1986 or was it 87 and some friends of my parents served a meat sauce made with salsa in taco shells with lettuce, grated cheese and sour cream, it was not a hit.

30 years later there has been a lot of taco experiences since the taco Bolognese and Taco Bell is but a fond memory from the past. This recipe is my adaptation of the steak taco from Taco Bell.

Nice rib eye steaks rubbed with Fajita spice mix, use a ready made spice mix or make your own

Fajita spice mix

1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp sugar
3⁄4 tsp crushed chicken bouillon cube
1⁄2 tsp onion powder
1⁄4 tsp garlic powder
1⁄4 tsp cayenne pepper
1⁄4 tsp cumin

Mix the spices, rub them on your steaks and grill them to your liking.

I served this with tortillas, lettuce, red onion, sour cream, avocado and pebre a chilean version of salsa.

 

Vegetarian taco

As a student I found myself out of funds quite often and Taco Bell helped fill my tummy while I was waiting for my account to fill up again. If I remember correctly the cheapest on the menu was the refried bean burito til $ 0.59 elle 0.69. This was a simple meal consisting of a tortilla, refried beans and salsa.

Sometimes I get nostalgic and I get a hankering for something from my student days tortillas, refried beans and salsa, these days I add a little extra but not much.

I called these vegetarian, but i think these are vegan, since no animal products were used in the making of them.

 

For these simple tacos you will need

Tortillas

Refried beans, for recipe look HERE 

Pico de gallo, for recipe look HERE

Guacamole, for recipe look HERE

Sliced red onions

Corn

Sour cream

Simple and clean flavors

If you want you can probably buy everything ready made to make it easier and less time consuming, but if you make it you know what is in  it and fresh tasting.

There is no right or wrong to what you put in tortillas, eat them with what you want and enjoy.

Guacamole

Healthy yummy guacamole is also one of the must haves when we eat tacos in my household and it is so easy to make. You can make this avocado dish smooth or chunky depending on how you like it.

1 clove crushed garlic
Chopped chili as desired
2 ripe avocado
A half a handful of fresh coriander/cilantro
1/2 lime
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix garlic and chili in a bowl, add the avocado and mash it with a fork.
Add the cilantro, lime juice and salt and mix everything well.
Easy peasy to make, server together with tacos, nachos or tortilla chips

Refried beans

This is absolutely a must when eating Tex-Mex for dinner
Refried beans are Mexico’s equivalent to mashed potatoes and it is made of pinto beans.
The actual name is frijoles refritos meaning well fried beans. The Anglo name suggests that these beans are fried, but that’s not the case.
There are many different ways to make refried beans and you can use most kinds of beans, but in traditional Tex-Mex pinto beans are used.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2  large finely chopped onion
1 clove crushed garlic
800 g of cooked pinto beans or the kind you want to use.
1 teaspoon chili powder, may be omitted
1 dl vegetable stock / 1 cup water plus 1/2 vegetable bouillon cube
Salt and pepper as desired.

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Saute the onions in oil on medium heat until it is tender and add the garlic and chili powder.
crush this in a blender with the liquid.

Pour this back into the saucepan and add the beans and boil until the beans are warmed through. about 5 minutes.

Mash beans with a spoon, salt and pepper as desired.

You can also add chopped fresh coriander if you desire.

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Serve this bean puree with your favorite Tex-Mex, taco, burito, Chimmichanga, tostada, quesedilla etc.

Pico de Gallo

Pico de Gallo also known as salsa fresco and is a typical Mexican side dish great together with most Tex Mex dishes.
I was not so excited about this salsa when I first tried it, it was not so common to use fresh coriander in cooking in Norway during the late 1980’s. But now I love the fresh clean taste of this vegetable mix.

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For a small bowl you will need

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3 medium sweet tomatoes

1/2 onion

Fresh coriander/cilantro

1/2 lime, juice

1/2 tsp finely chopped/minced garlic

1/2-1 tsp salt

1-2 jalapeno

Cut the tomatoes in half, remove the pulp and seeds and finely chop them.

Finely chop the remaining ingredients and mix together in a bow and let it sit for a bit.

Serve this with tortilla chips or together with Tex Mex dishes.