Taco Tuesday

If you love tacos, you might not mind that it's time for another Taco Tuesday. Today's offerings include Shrimp and Mango Tacos and Slow Cooker Birria Beef Tacos. Enjoy!

PORTOBELLO BULGOGI KOREAN TACOS

This is from Rachael Hartley in her blog Avocado A Day Nutrition. (Nice blog, Rachael! I just signed up for it!) Rachael wrote, "Beef bulgogi Korean tacos are one of my favorites. Try this vegan twist using meaty portobello mushrooms, which soak up all the delicious marinade." Serves 6.

You can view this yummy recipe online here.

Ingredients

Mushrooms:

6 medium-large portobello mushroom caps, cleaned and sliced 1/2 inch thick

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup mirin (see note, below)

2 tablespoons dark sesame oil

3 scallions, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons raw sugar or coconut sugar

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon gochugaru (see second note)

Slaw:

1 bag of shredded cabbage

1 large carrot, shredded on the large grates of a cheese grater

2 scallions, thinly sliced

8 corn tortillas

First Note: Mirin is a Japanese cooking wine and is made from rice. It's supposed to be sweeter than sake. Since I don't keep alcohol around, I use water in place of miring.

Second note: Gochugaru is Korean chile flakes. If you can get it locally, and plan to use it in several dishes, great. Since I probably wouldn't use it elsewhere - unless I fell madly in love with it - I might consider something a little cheaper and more generic.

Instructions

Two to four hours before cooking, whisk together all the marinade ingredients for the mushrooms. Add portobellos and toss to combine. Refrigerate and marinade 2-4 hours.

When ready to cook, heat the grill to medium-high. Place the mushrooms evenly on the grill or toss into a grill pan if you have one. Reserve the marinade. Cook about 10 minutes total, flipping halfway.

While the mushrooms cook, pour the reserved marinade into a small pot. Set to medium-high heat and bring to a boil. Boil about 10 minutes total until reduced to a thick syrup. Set aside.

Warm the tortillas. Spoon slaw on the bottom of each tortillas. Top with mushrooms and reserved sauce.

CRUNCHY BLACK BEAN TACOS

This comes from The Kitchn’s e-newsletter. If you haven’t signed up for The Kitchn’s e-newsletter yet, I highly recommend that, as well as its sibling site, Apartment Therapy.

This recipe serves 3 to 4, or makes 8 tacos; Prep Time: 10 minutes; Total Time: 30 minutes and can be found online by clicking here.

2 cups cooked black beans

1/2 cup minced red onion

2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

Pinch of salt

4 to 6 ounces (1 heaping cup) grated Pepper Jack cheese

2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil

8 corn tortillas

Toppings

Avocado

Hot sauce

Salsa

Sour cream

In a medium bowl, add beans along with red onion, cilantro, cumin, and paprika. Add a pinch of salt and lightly mash all the ingredients together. Grate the cheese and have it ready as well.

In a large, nonstick or cast-iron skillet, add the 2 tablespoons oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add one corn tortilla at a time and let each get hot in the oil for a few seconds. Then add about 1/4 cup of the bean filling to one half of the tortilla. Top with a sprinkle of grated cheese. Try not to overfill the tacos, or you might have issues flipping them without losing filling.

Using a spatula, carefully fold the other half of the tortilla over to form a shell. Press down lightly on the tortilla so it holds its shape. If some cheese spills out, don’t worry — it will get crispy and delicious.

As the first taco cooks, move it to the side and begin a second one. Depending on the size of your pan, you can cook two or three tacos at once. A griddle will hold even more.

Cook each taco until they are nicely browned and crispy, about 3 minutes per side. When flipping the taco to cook on the other side, use a spatula and flip the taco toward the fold so the filling doesn’t fall out. If your pan is very dry between batches, add another drizzle of oil.

Place the cooked tacos in a warm oven while you finish the rest. If the tacos are very greasy, blot them with a paper towel before moving them to the oven.

Serve tacos with toppings like hot sauce, salsa, avocados, and sour cream.

Recipe Notes:

Corn tortillas are resilient to heat. Don’t worry about burning them; they are very sturdy. Just be sure to cook tortillas on each side long enough to get them really crispy.

SLOW COOKER BIRRIA BEEF TACOS

This recipe, from Old El Paso, begins, "Check out this tasty taco twist on a traditional Mexican dish. Birria is a meat stew often served at holidays and celebrations. For this easy take on birria, we’ve turned the traditional rustic stew into Slow Cooker Birria Beef Tacos using our Old El Paso™ Barbacoa Beef Street Taco Kit. Slow-cooking the beef makes it melt-in-your-mouth tender as it takes on the delicious flavors of the broth mixture made of chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, garlic, taco kit seasoning and onions. Looking for new taco night inspiration? This Slow Cooker Birria Beef Tacos recipe will make coming home to dinner a delicious treat."

Prep Time: 45 minutes; Total Time: 7 hours 45 minutes; Makes 4 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.oldelpaso.com/recipes/slow-cooker-birria-beef-tacos.

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups diced white onions

2 tablespoons finely chopped canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 package Old El Paso™ Barbacoa Beef Street Taco Kit

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup water

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 3/4 to 2 1/4 lb boneless beef chuck roast

1 cup Old El Paso™ Shredded 4 Cheese Mexican Blend (4 oz)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Lime wedges

Directions

Spray 6-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In slow cooker, mix 2 cups of the onions, the chiles, garlic, seasoning mix (from taco kit) and salt. Stir in water.

In 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook beef roast in oil 8 to 10 minutes, turning once, until browned on both sides. Transfer to mixture in slow cooker; turn to coat. Cook on Low heat setting 7 to 8 hours, until beef is tender.

Transfer beef to cutting board; cool slightly. Shred beef, discarding any pieces of fat. Toss beef with 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid. Place remaining cooking liquid in small bowl, for dipping.

Fill tortillas (from taco kit) with beef, cheese, remaining 1/4 cup onions and the cilantro. Serve with salsa verde (from taco kit), reserved cooking liquid and lime wedges.

Expert Tips

The flavorful cooking liquid from the birria, or “consommé,” is often served as a dipping sauce.The shredded slow cooker birria beef is also delicious tucked into a cheesy quesadilla or served over rice with some cooking liquid.

If desired, strain cooking liquid before transferring to bowl for dipping.

SOFT BLACK BEAN TACOS WITH SALSA AND CABBAGE

This comes from Martha Rose Shulman, also in The New York Times cooking e-newsletter. Martha wrote, “Canned black beans and lots of cabbage combine in a quick, utterly satisfying one-dish taco dinner. They can be served open-faced or folded over.” Yield: 4 servings; Time: about 20 minutes.

This was featured in “Quick One-Dish Meals, Some Cooking Required” and can be viewed online here.

Ingredients

1 tablespoon canola or grape seed oil

1 teaspoon medium-hot chili powder (more to taste)

1 teaspoon ground lightly toasted cumin seeds (more to taste)

2 cans black beans, with liquid

Salt to taste

8 corn tortillas

1 cup fresh or bottled salsa

3 ounces either queso fresco, feta, or sharp cheddar, grated or crumbled

2 cups shredded cabbage

Preparation

Heat the oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat and add the chili powder and ground cumin. Allow the spices to sizzle for about half a minute, until very fragrant, and stir in the black beans and 1/2 cup water. Cook, stirring and mashing the beans with the back of your spoon, for 5 to 10 minutes, until thick and fragrant. Be careful that you don’t let the beans dry out too much. If they do, add a little more water. Remove from the heat.

Heat the tortillas, two or three at a time, in a dry skillet over medium-high heat, or in a microwave. Top with the black beans, salsa, cheese and cabbage. Fold the filled tortillas over if desired and serve. Alternatively, one at a time, place a tortilla on a plate, top with the beans and cheese and heat through for 30 seconds to a minute in a microwave. Then top with salsa and a generous handful of cabbage, and serve.

Tip

Make fresh salsa with 2 or 3 chopped roma tomatoes, 1 or 2 jalapeños or serrano chiles, a little chopped onion or shallot if desired, salt, a squeeze of lime juice, and chopped fresh cilantro.

SHRIMP AND MANGO TACOS

This is from Martha Rose Shulman on The New York Times cooking site. Martha wrote, "This sweet and pungent combination of mango, shrimp, chilies and cumin is as quick to put together as a stir-fry. Indeed, if you don’t have corn tortillas on hand, serve the shrimp with rice."

Uield: 4 servings; Time: 30 minutes, less if using microwave to heat tortillas

This was featured in "The ‘King of Fruits’ Commands Respect", and can be viewed online at https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013581-shrimp-and-mango-tacos.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons canola oil

1 pound medium or small shrimp, peeled and deveined

2 garlic cloves, sliced

2 teaspoons cumin seeds, lightly toasted and ground

2 Serrano or bird chilies, or 1 large jalapeño, minced

1 large mango, peeled, seeded and finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

4 to 5 tablespoons lime juice

8 corn or flour tortillas

Preparation

Heat a large, heavy skillet or wok over medium-high heat, and add the canola oil. When the oil is hot, add the shrimp, salt to taste and the garlic. Sauté, stirring or shaking the pan, until the shrimp begins to color, about two minutes. Add the cumin, and continue to cook until the shrimp is pink and opaque, about three minutes. Add the chilies, mango and cilantro, and stir together for one minute. Stir in the lime juice, and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust seasonings.

Wrap the tortillas in a heavy kitchen towel, and place in a steamer basket over 1 inch of boiling water. Cover the pot, and steam for one minute. Turn off the heat, and allow to sit for 15 minutes without uncovering. Alternatively, wrap the tortillas in a towel, and heat in the microwave for one minute. Warm the shrimp briefly in the pan. Place 2 tortillas on each plate, top with the shrimp, fold over the tortillas and serve with rice.

Tip

Advance preparation: This is best served right after you cook the shrimp and mango.

TACO LETTUCE WRAPS

This is from Kristina72913 on Allrecipes. Kristina wrote, "Easy taco lettuce wraps."

Prep Time: 5 minutes; Cook Time: 20 minutes; Total Time: 25 minutes; Yield: 6 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/274968/taco-lettuce-wraps/.

Ingredients

1 pound ground turkey

1 (16 ounce) package frozen corn

1 (15 ounce) can black beans

1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 (1 ounce) package taco seasoning mix

romaine leaves, rinsed and dried

Directions

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook and stir ground turkey in the hot skillet until browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in corn, black beans, diced tomatoes, and taco seasoning. Bring to a simmer and cook until heated through, 10 to 12 minutes.

Lay lettuce leaves on a flat surface and fill with turkey and bean mixture.

Cook's Note:

I make my own taco seasoning mix, but store-bought works