Taco Meat

Starting off, I had a hard time deciding how to make taco meat without a taco seasonings packet (which usually contained milk, MSG or other allergen ingredients).  Then I discovered Dora Gonzalez' 'Basic Meat' Recipe.  It helped us decide what worked for us.  It works well in burritos or enchiladas too.

Ingredients:

One pound Basic Make-Ahead Ground Beef
1 T Cumin
3 clove garlic, pressed
1 can Stewed-Diced (or crushed) Tomatoes
A pinch of crushed chili pepper if desired
Salt to taste

Simmer ingredients till hot and serve in corn or flour tortillas topped with fresh diced tomatoes, lettuce, guacamole and salsa.

Basic Make-Ahead Ground Beef

I love the convenience of cooking up a large batch of ground beef in advance and freezing it in 1 pound packages (1 quart size freezer bags),  for quick-meal making later.  This basic recipe is similar to a Pampered Chef  recipe my mother give me.  With a few added ingredients, this basic recipe is great for tacos, spaghetti, sloppy joes, and more!

Ingredients:

6 lbs. 90% lean Ground Beef (or Turkey)
6-12 garlic cloves, pressed
3 medium onions, diced

Cook ground beef with onions and drain off fat.  Add garlic and simmer. 
Use needed portion in dinner recipe and freeze the rest for later.

Hawaiian Haystacks or Chinese Sundaes

This recipe is known by two different names in our family to describe the same dish.  Steamy cooked rice topped with warm chicken gravy and your choice of favorite toppings.  A 'create your own favorite' recipe!  I've even tasted it with a curry gravy which is tasty too.  This recipe multiplies easily to feed large groups.  This was one of my favorites as a child and still is.  Our children love it too!

Yield:  At least 8

Some possible toppings:

Tomatoes, diced

Pineapple, crushed

Green onions, diced

Chow Mein Noodles

Celery, diced

Bell pepper, diced

*Carrots, diced

*Peas

Shredded Coconut

Sliced almonds are great for those who can eat them

Same for shredded cheese...

Use whatever tantalizes your taste buds

(* Never tried these toppings, and I imagine I'd like them steamed to tender before using them on this.  Our friend tells me she usually fixes theirs with these two toppings.)

Cooked Rice:  2 cups water to 1 cup rice;  I often cook up 3 cups rice, part of which is a wild rice mixture thrown in for flavor, aroma and texture (which I compensate for with a little more water and a little longer cook time).  If everyone is hungry there's enough rice for left-overs.  If they're not as hungry as usual, I have enough rice left over for Rice and Raisin Cereal at a breakfast soon.

Chicken Gravy:

Cream of Chicken soup thinned with a bit of water or milk works unless you avoid milk like us...we make our own now using the following ratios.

Thin: 1T butter, 1T flour, 1 1/2 c chicken broth, and salt and pepper to taste + shredded cooked chicken.

Medium: 2T butter, 2T flour, 1c chicken broth and salt and pepper to taste + shredded cooked chicken.

Thick: 3T butter, 4T flour, 1c chicken broth and salt and pepper to taste + shredded cooked chicken.

Melt butter in saucepan over low heat.  Blend in flour, salt and pepper to make a roo.  Add chicken broth all at once and whisk quickly, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and bubbles.  Add in cooked shredded chicken.  (If I use canned chicken, I usually figure the broth accompanying the chicken in the can for about 1/2 cup of what I need total and I usually make up 3 to 4 cups of gravy.)

Put it all together now: 

Layer a large scoop of steamy rice topped with creamy chicken gravy and sprinkled with your choice of favorite toppings.  Careful....all the layers pile up fast and looks like more than you had planned to eat....but it is so tasty!

Basic Pinto Beans

Our recipe for beans comes from a combination of several sources, my Mother, Dora Gonzalez, and a bag of Siler's pinto beans.  It's just a basic recipe (3 c. water to 1 part beans) open to some improvisation with other favorite ingredients.  Serve it with cornbread as a complete protien, serve it over tortilla corn chips with lettuce and tomatoes as Taco Stack, serve it in burritos or drain them and make refried beans. 

Yield: Approximately 12-1 cup servings.

4 1/2 cups dry pinto beans sorted, rinsed and soaked overnight

12 c fresh water; don't keep adding during cooking or beans will turn dark

1/4 c crubled bacon

6 clove garlic pressed

1 T dried onion

1T Salt, or to taste, and Pepper to taste  (add at end of cooking)

1 4oz can of green chilies, if desired (add at end of cooking)

1 can of diced tomatoes, if desired (add at end of cooking)

Pour off soak water and cover in 12 cups fresh water.  Cook at least 4 hours or on high all day in a slow cooker.  Cook on high until boiling then cover and cook on low heat until beans are tender.

We like to top with fresh tomatoes, salsa and lettuce and serve with tortilla chips for the first day, maybe mix it with taco meat for burritos another day or even freeze it for later use.

TIPS:

1. Pouring off soak water before cooking and adding fresh water should reduce undesireable gas and beans should retain their nutrients.  Soaking with a capful of lemon juice seems to soften them even more.

2. Salt and Acid ingredients (like tomatoes, lemon, or vinegar) will toughen beans so add them at the end of cooking. 

3.  It's possible to soak large quantities of beans and freeze in recipe sizes to save future time.

4.  To quick soak, place the washed and sorted beans in 6 cups water per pound of dry beans.  Bring to a boil and cook for 2 minutes.  Remove from heat, cover with lid and let stand for 1 hour.  Discard soak watr before cooking.  Cover with fresh water and cook til tender.

5.  To pressure cook them, cover presoaked beans with one inch more fresh water than beans.  Follow pressure cooker manufacturer's instructions and cook for 12-15 minutes.

Chimichangas

The basis of this recipe comes from Brent Done as listed in our Scott Family Cookbook, with a few of our modifications utilizing Savory Shredded Pork leftovers.  This works well to make up a double batch, 1/2 for dinner; another pan to freeze for later.  (Preheat to 500 degrees) Yield, 8-10 servings. 

One Batch Recipe

2 c.  reserved Savory Shredded Pork leftovers (or, 1 lb. boneless pork butt or shoulder)

2 T  vinegar or lemon or lime juice

1 clove garlic, minced (we usually add much more)

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

1 can green enchilada sauce or 1 c. broth (or 2 c. water if starting with the uncooked pork roast).

3T  canned diced green chilies

1/4-1/2 tsp. ground oregano

Salt to taste

Smart Balance or water to brush on tortillas

8-10 Flour tortillas

If starting with the 1 lb. uncooked roast, Cut meat into 1 1/2 inch pieces.  Put in a 2 to 3 quart pan.  Cover and cook over medium heat to draw out the juices, about 10 minutes.  Uncover and cook on high heat until liquid evaporates and meat browns well in drippings; stir often.  Add water; stir to free browned particles from pan.  Cover and simmer until meat is very tender when pierced, 1 to 1 1/4 hours.  Uncover; over high heat, boil away liquid.  Turn heat to low.

From here the directions should be the same for either meat being used. 

Add vinegar or lemon/lime juice, green chilies, garlic, ground oregano and ground cumin.  Stir up browned bits from pan; remove from heat (when hot throughout if reheating Savory Shredded Pork).  (If using roast, shred at this point by pulling 2 forks through meat in opposite directions).  Add salt to taste. 

Melt Smart Balance (if using).  Brush both sides of each tortilla with melted "butter".   (I learned from Rachel that brushing water on both sides of the tortilla works just as well to seal in the filling...just brush Smart Balnce on top of a finished pan of rolled chimichangas if browning is desired).  Spoon meat filling equally onto center of tortillas and roll burrito style.  Place seam down in a 9x13 pan.  Bake at 500 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  Serve hot with your choice of sides and toppings (like Fresh Salsa or Guacamole).

If you need to stretch the filling a bit, toss in a few halved and sliced fresh tomatoes or a can of diced stewed tomatoes (boil off most the liquid during the heating phase).  Yummy!

Shredded Pork Tacos

A second meal from the left-over meat from the Savory Shredded Pork. Quoting from The New Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook, "This recipe is truer to Mexican tacos than the ones often eaten in the United States, which are made with ground meat."  Yield: 8 tacos. 

2 c     Savory Shredded Pork
8        Taco shells or four 6-8-inch flour tortillas
3/4 c  Salsa
2 c     Shredded lettuce
3/4 c  Diced tomatoes
Add homemade taco seasoning (we like to add in a little more garlic and cumin)
Top with guacamole if desired.

1. Prepare Shredded Savory Pork as in the recipe linked above.  Place taco shells on baking sheet and heat in a 350 degree oven about 10 mintues or until heated through (to simply warm tortillas for soft tacos, sprinkle with water and wrap in foil to warm).

2. Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan combine Savory Shredded Pork and salsa; heat through (add additional salsa if necessary to moisten).   A pinch of cumin also adds great flavor.

3. Assemble tacos with a spoonful of pork mixture in warm taco shells.  Top with lettuce (cheese if you eat it) and tomatoes.  Serve with avacado or guacamole if desired.

Savory Shredded Pork

Originally from "The New Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook", this is one of those great recipes that gets great mileage with little effort.  Cook the Pork Roast ahead of time, use as a main dish for one meal served with sides of veggies and with a few additions, or use it for tacos or hearty sandwiches, then, use the rest to quickly make up chimichangas.  (This picture actually shows the meat with some chimichanga seasoning additions.) Again, we usually double the recipe (using at least a 6 lb. roast), to make extra to use at lunches or to extend the use for another quick meal preparation as described above.  The cooked meat will freeze well for later use.  Yield: 12 servings.

Ingredients:

1       3-pound boneless pork shoulder blade roast
8       garlic cloves, minced
2 t.    ground coriander
2 t.    ground cumin
2 t.    dried crushed oregano
1 t.    onion powder (or dried onions)
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1/2 t. ground red pepper
1 c.   beef broth

Trim fat from meat.  In small bowl combine seasonings, rub into meat.  Place meat in a roasting pan with cover; add beef broth.  Cover and roast in 325 degree oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until very tender.

Remove meat from liquid with slotted spoon; discard excess fat from cooking liquid, reserving liquid.  When meat is cool enough to handle, shred using 2 forks to pull through it in opposite directions.  Stir in 1/4 cup of reserved liquid to use as taco filling.  Or, stir in enough liquid to moisten; reheat in saucepan over medium heat, stir frequently, and serve on toasted buns.

Crock Pot directions:
Prepare as listed above.  Place meat in a 3 1/2 to 5 quart crock pot; add beef broth.  Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8-10 hours or on high heat setting for 4-5 hours.  Proceed as described above.