Taco Tuesday

It's time for another Taco Tuesday. Today's offerings include Slow Cooker Birria Beef Tacos and Pork Tacos with Mango Salsa. Enjoy!

VEGETARIAN BUFFALO CHICKPEA QUESADILLAS

This is from Old El Paso, and begins, "Enjoy this vegetarian take on fan-favorite, Buffalo chicken wings! This chickpea quesadilla recipe layers chickpeas, hot sauce, cheese, green onions and tomatoes into a folded tortilla to create Vegetarian Buffalo Chickpea Quesadillas. Don't forget to serve with Old El Paso™ Zesty Ranch Sauce on the side!"

Prep Time: 40 minutes; Total Time: 40 minutes; Makes 4 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.oldelpaso.com/recipes/vegetarian-buffalo-chickpeas-quesadillas.

Ingredients

1/4 cup butter

1 cup chopped onions

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 can (15 to 15.5 oz) chickpeas, drained, rinsed

1/4 cup original cayenne pepper sauce

4 Old El Paso™ Flour Tortillas For Burritos (8 inch)

1 cup Old El Paso™ Shredded Mexican Style 4 Cheese Blend (from 8-oz package)

1/2 cup chopped green onions (8 medium)

1/2 cup chopped tomatoes

2 teaspoons vegetable oil

1/2 cup Old El Paso™ Zesty Ranch Sauce (from 9-oz bottle)

Preparation

In 10-inch nonstick skillet, melt butter over medium-high heat. Stir in onions and garlic; cook 2 to 3 minutes or until vegetables begin to soften. Add chickpeas; continue to cook 4 to 6 minutes or until vegetables and chickpeas begin to brown. Remove from heat. Add hot sauce; roughly mash chickpeas with fork, leaving some whole.

On half of each tortilla, layer about 1/4 cup of the chickpea mixture, 1/4 cup cheese, 2 tablespoons green onions and 2 tablespoons tomatoes. Fold tortillas in half. Brush top of each quesadilla with about 1/4 teaspoon of the oil.

Heat 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Place 2 quesadillas in skillet, oil side down; brush top side with about 1/4 teaspoon of the oil. Cook 1 to 2 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully turn quesadillas; cook 1 to 2 minutes longer or until golden brown. Repeat with remaining quesadillas.

Cut each quesadilla in half; serve with zesty ranch sauce on the side.

Expert Tips

Cooking Vegetarian? Always read labels to make sure each recipe ingredient is vegetarian. Products and ingredient sources can change.

Dial up the heat by adding sliced jalapeños to the chickpea quesadilla filling, along with the green onions and tomatoes.

This Buffalo chickpea quesadilla is hearty enough to serve on its own, but for a bit of added crunch, try serving with a side of tortilla chips.

This recipe uses Frank's™ RedHot™ original sauce, but you're welcome to use another variety of hot sauce.

Exchanges: 1/2 Starch, 1 1/2 Other Carbohydrate, 1/2 Vegetable, 1/2 Very Lean Meat, 1/2 High-Fat Meat, 3 1/2 Fat

Carbohydrate Choices: 2

PORK TACOS WITH MANGO SALSA

This is from Amber Massey, from Argyle, Texas, on Taste of Home. She wrote, "I've made quite a few tacos in my day, but you can't beat the tender filling made in a slow cooker. These are by far the best pork tacos we've had—and we've tried plenty. Make the mango salsa from scratch if you have time! Yum."

Prep Time: 25 minutes; Cook Time: 6 hours; Total Time: 6 hours 25 minutes; Makes 12 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/pork-tacos-with-mango-salsa/.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoons white vinegar

3 tablespoons chili powder

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1-1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

3 cups cubed fresh pineapple

1 small red onion, coarsely chopped

2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

1 bottle (12 ounces) dark Mexican beer

3 pounds pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch cubes

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1 jar (16 ounces) mango salsa

24 corn tortillas (6 inches), warmed

Optional: cubed fresh pineapple, chopped avocado and queso fresco

Directions

Puree first 9 ingredients in a blender; stir in beer. In a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker, combine pork and pineapple mixture. Cook, covered, on low until pork is very tender, 6-8 hours. Stir to break up pork.

Stir cilantro into salsa. Using a slotted spoon, serve pork mixture in tortillas; add salsa and toppings as desired.

Freeze option: Freeze cooled meat mixture and cooking juices in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally.

Nutrition Facts: 2 tacos: 282 calories, 6g fat (2g saturated fat), 64mg cholesterol, 678mg sodium, 30g carbohydrate (5g sugars, 5g fiber), 26g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 3 lean meat, 2 starch.

GRILLED PORTOBELLOW TACOS WITH SALSA VERDE

This is from Vegetarian Times. The description states, "Juicy, earthy portobello mushrooms make these tacos a mouthwatering treat." The recipe then begins, "Don’t worry if the mushroom caps seem slightly undercooked when you pull them from the grill; leave them out on a plate, and they will continue to cook (this is called carryover cooking)."

Makes 6 servings

To view this online, go to https://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipes/grilled-portobello-tacos-with-salsa-verde-recipe/.

Ingredients

Marinade

1/3 cup canola oil

3 Tbs. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. black pepper

Tacos

6 large portobello mushroom caps

6 6-inch soft corn tortillas

2 avocados, sliced

2 cups chopped tomatoes

3 cups shredded cabbage

Salsa verde

4 tomatillos, chopped (or 1 cup canned)

1 large green bell pepper or poblano chile, roughly chopped

1 large bunch fresh cilantro, leaves only

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic

3 tsp. organic sugar or agave nectar

1 1/4 tsp. canola oil

1 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. salt

Preparation

Preheat grill or grill pan to high heat. To make Marinade: combine all ingredients in small bowl.

To make Tacos:

Brush mushroom caps with marinade. Grill mushrooms 3 to 5 minutes per side. Cool until easy to handle, then slice into strips.

To make Salsa Verde:

Purée all ingredients in food processor 1 minute, or until smooth. Pour salsa over mushroom strips, and let stand 5 to 10 minutes.

Lightly warm tortillas 15 seconds per side in skillet or on griddle. Fill tortillas with sliced mushrooms, avocado slices, tomatoes, and cabbage. Top each taco with sour cream, if using.

TACO STUFFED PEPPERS

This comes from Lauren Miyahira on Delish, and begins, “Taco 'bout a healthy dinner!”

Total Time: 35 minutes; Prep Time: 15 minutes; Level: Easy; Yield: 6

To view this online, click here.

Ingredients

extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 Onion, chopped (about 1 cup)

1 clove garlic, minced

1 lb. ground beef

kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp. Chopped cilantro

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

3 bell peppers, halved (seeds removed)

1 c. shredded Cheddar

1 c. Shredded Monterey Jack

1 c. Shredded lettuce

Pico de gallo, for serving

Hot sauce, for serving

Lime wedges, for serving

Directions

Preheat oven to 375° and spray a large baking dish with cooking spray.

In a large skillet over medium heat, heat about 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Add onion and cook until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute more. Add ground beef and cook until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain fat.

Add chili powder, ground cumin, and paprika to beef mixture, then season with salt and pepper.

Drizzle bell peppers with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place the peppers, cut side up, in the baking dish and spoon meat mixture into each pepper. Top with cheese and bake until the cheese is melted and the peppers are crisp-tender, about 20 minutes.

Top each pepper with lettuce and serve with pico de gallo, hot sauce, and lime wedges.

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.

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