I may be late to the party, but is anyone doing anything special for Cinco

D

dawnnys

Well-known member
de Mayo?

As a side note, I took the leftovers from the Mexican Beer Chicken (posted by Michael in Phoenix the other day) and made it into chicken fried rice last night. VERY good with added soy sauce!

I'm thinking something like Dawn's Creamy Enchiladas this weekend. Must get green ench sauce though.

Anyone else making anything interesting?

 
We had an eary cinqo de Mayo last night since I will be travelling.Menu follows

Had a very trying week so didnt do all I wanted to because I didnt get to shop.
Soup - Zucchine- watercress via Silver Palate I had wanted to make black bean soup but didnt get the beans and this was a last minute quick decision.
Guacomole - Rosa Mexicana
Salsa
then rice, Spinach enchiladas and beef enchiladas which
were great.

The two missing dishes- that I simply did not have time to make
Annie's Fruit Salsa and cinnamon chips- all recipes
Salsa baked goat cheese - epicurious. So the adults had to settle for fresh strawberries and the kids had a white cake that was in my freezer and leftover butter cream frosting - they love to spread the frosting on themselves -
they choose the colors.
Hope you have a good one.

 
Cinco De Mayo Menu Got Vetoed. LOL! Attending DH's family reunion on Sunday, dinner on the grounds,

at a rural South Alabama family chapel. I thought "Oh, it's Cinco De Mayo, I'll bring a Mexican Dish". Showed DH my Tex-Mex plan, he looked at it and said "Marianne, they won't eat that stuff. They want lima beans and cornbread!" So guess what's simmering on the stove right now? smileys/wink.gif) from a Yankee.

 
I just found a good recipe for shredded beef that comes very close to what I get at taco shops...

...here and in San Diego.

Made a batch last night. It's good!

It called for "chili powder". I'm sure they meant the stuff you get from McCormick/Shilling at the supermarket. I don't stock that stuff, so I made a batch of chile powder that contains a similar spice profile. It was really good as well.

Shredded beef tacos and tostadas tomorrow!

Miguel

 
Doing this REC Oven-Fried Cimichangas

Original recipe came from Sunset a long time ago- but I tweaked it to suit my taste. So great to be able to have chimichangas without deep-frying them. These are wonderful. I also will serve Mexican rice and my lower-fat version of re-fried black beans.


OVEN-FRIED CHIMICHANGAS
Serves 4

1 lb lean boneless pork butt or shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1” cubes
2 c water
2 Tbsp white vinegar
8 oz canned diced green chiles
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 T dried Mexican oregano
1 T dried ground cumin
Handful chopped Cilantro
salt to taste
4 large flour tortillas
3 tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1-1/2 c shredded cheese (Jack, cheddar, whatever your choice is)
1 c sour cream (optional)
Salsa Fresca and a green chile sauce

Place meat in a 2-3 qt pan. Cover and cook over medium heat to draw out juices (about 10 min). Uncover and cook over high heat, stirring often, until liquid has evaporated and meat is well browned. Add water to pan, stirring to scrape up browned bits. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat, cover and simmer until meat is very tender when pierced (about an hour). Uncover and boil over high heat until all liquid has evaporated. Reduce heat to low. Add vinegar, chiles, garlic, oregano and cumin. Stir to scraped up browned bits. Remove from heat. Shred meat with 2 forks, add the cilantro and correct seasonings. Add salt if it needs it. At this point you can cover and refrigerate for up to three days. Reheat before using.

To assemble each chimichanga, brush both sides of a tortilla with melted butter. Place some cheese down center. Spoon filling down center and enclose, lapping ends over filling then folding sides to make a packet. Place chimichangas seam sides down in a baking pan or jelly roll pan. Bake at 500 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. When plating I sprinkle cheese over the top after saucing with both green and red salsas (salsas next to each other not on top of each other). Use sour cream if you like.

 
REC: Shredded Beef Tacos

I made these as written, using boneless chuck roast. The only change I made, as I mentioned, is using homemade "chili" powder.

You can read a ton of reader comments on his website, but many found the recipe too salty. I used two teaspoons of KOSHER salt, in an attempt to cut back on the saltiness a little, but even that was a bit too salty for us. Next time through, I'll use 1 teaspoon of table salt. That should do it.

Source: davidsfreerecipes.com

David says:

Shredded Beef Tacos – Authentic Mexican Style

Here is a great recipe for shredded beef tacos. If you like tacos this is for you! If you’ve ever been to San Diego you’ll probably remember this flavor. I used to eat these while looking out over the ocean. Ah, that’s the life..

Ingredients: Shredded Beef Tacos

2lbs. chuck roast, 2in. cubes and trim off fat ( you can also use top or bottom round )

2 teas. salt

2 teas. pepper

1 tbsp. cumin

1 1/2 tbsp. chili powder ( light or dark )

1 tbsp. garlic powder

1 tbsp. onion powder

4 bay leaves

1 onion ( small dice )

2/3 head lettuce ( shredded )

2 tomatoes ( small dice )

3 oz. cheddar cheese ( shredded )

16-20 corn tortillas ( 6in. )

2-3 cups oil ( corn or vegetable )

toothpicks

Method: Shredded Beef


Add meat, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, and bay leaves to a 3 to 5qt. pot. Add water to cover, about 1/2in. over the top of the meat and boil covered for 2 hours stirring occasionally.

Add diced onion and boil for 1 more hour covered stirring occasionally. At this point the meat should start to break down. Remove bay leaves and continue to break it down using a wooden spoon or spatula ( I like the spatula ). Continue to boil uncovered until the liquid has evaporated and continue to shred the meat with the wooden spoon or spatula.The meat should be completely shredded after about 4 hours. Set aside and let cool to warm or room temperature.

Method: Tortillas

Heat oil in an 8in. cast iron skillet for more even cooking. You can use any 8in. skillet, I just like the performance of cast iron for frying. Or use a deep fryer. Never fill pan more than 1/2 full of oil, it may bubble over during cooking.Heat to 350 degrees. It is very important to reach 350 degrees or the tortillas will not cook right. With a pair of tongs place 1 tortilla into the oil and fry for about 3-5 seconds, just long enough to make the tortillas pliable and easy to work with. Repeat process until all tortillas are cooked, stack them on a plate, flip the entire stack over and get ready for assembly.

Note: Always be careful when using hot oil it can be very dangerous if not handled properly.

Assembly: Shredded Beef Tacos

Take about 2 to 3oz. of shredded beef and place on upper half of the tortilla.

Fold the tortilla in half and insert 2 toothpicks.

Kind of like sewing. Repeat until all of the tacos are done.

You might want to turn the heat down on the oil while doing this.

It will take a few minutes to assemble your shredded beef tacos.

In that time your oil could overheat causing your tacos to burn. Make sure the temperature of your oil is right.

Frying: Shredded Beef Tacos

Take 2 to 3 tacos at a time and place into 350 degree oil and cook for about 1 to 3 minutes a side, or until crispy. You might notice after a batch or two that the oil will lower in temperature. There is something called “recovery time” when using hot oil. This is caused by putting a cool product into something hot.

Remove tacos and let stand for 1 minute. Remove toothpicks, open and add shredded lettuce, cheese and diced tomatoes. You’re ready to eat!

This is a good time to add your favorite toppings to your shredded beef tacos, such as: hot sauce, sour cream, guacamole, pico de gallo or anything else you like.

Note: It is best to cook your tacos just before you eat for best results. Any uncooked tacos can be refrigerated for a few days. Or you can freeze them for up to 2 months. If you freeze them do not thaw them out before frying, the tortillas will fall apart. Frozen tacos will take about twice as long to fry.

David

http://davidsfreerecipes.com/shredded-beef-tacos

 
REC: Homemade "Chili" Powder

I really liked this recipe. I'm never buying "chili" powder at the store again. Plus, I don't use the blend very often, but I might use it more since this was so successful.

This recipe makes enough to share, so bless a friend or neighbor. They'll love you more than they do now.

Adapted from: texascooking.com

Chile Powder

4 Ancho chiles (dried poblanos)
3 Dried New Mexico chiles

For heat:
3 to 5 Dried Chiles de Arbol or Cayenne
2 tablespoons cumin seeds, toasted
2 tablespoons garlic powder
2 teaspoons ground oregano (Mexican oregano, if you can get it)

Remove the stems from the dried chiles and cut each chile up one side. You should be able to open them like a book. Remove the seeds and flatten the opened chile.

Preheat a dry skillet (can use non-stick) over medium heat.

Place the opened chiles on the hot pan and warm them. Watch them closely so they don't scorch, but they will begin to turn color and darken after less than a minute on each side. Flip them over and get a little color on the other side. Remove them and put them into a blender. Allow them to cool for a minute or so, then pulse briefly until you have powder.

Toast the cumin seeds by placing them in a dry skillet over medium heat. Stir the seeds constantly being very careful not to let them scorch. When they are a few shades darker than the untoasted seeds, they are ready. Grind the toasted seeds with a mortar and pestle or with a dedicated spice grinder.

Add the ground cumin, garlic powder and oregano to the ground chiles in the blender. Pulse a few more times to thoroughly mix the powder.

Makes about 1 cup of chile powder.

Enjoy!

 
I made the baked goat cheese salsa also. Elaine thanks for tip on the rec.

I used the epi rec as a base rec; added minced garlic and roasted, chopped pistachios to the cheese mixture. I used wegmans salsa. It was a huge hit. So much so, that when it was time for us to leave (allergies acted up, so left a bit earlier than the rest), and I was bringing home my platter, a friend cam up and brought over a paper plate to put the remaining, 2 Tbsns full on so they could finish it! It was quite funny!

Very easy recipe with a great combination of flavors!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Salsa-Baked-Goat-Cheese-105446

 
Thanks for both recipes, Michael. A revelation for me

Huh. So you put some of the shredded meat into the tortilla THEN fry it?! New step for me. Is that a common way to do it? I am only familiar with the store-bought taco shells and have wondered how people make crunchy taco shells at home without a commercial deep fryer and a taco shell "form". This makes perfect sense. I will try it.

I'm glad to have your chili powder recipe too- I will try making it. I do not like the commercial chili powders- they taste "stale" or "old" or something. I'm sort of a babe in the woods about this and need to learn!

 
I rarely fry anything in more than a couple of tablespoons of fat, however, I went the 'full Monty'

...with these, just to make sure it tasted right.

All of my favorite taco shops put the cooked meat in the corn tortilla and THEN fry in oil. What you get is usually dripping with oil (ugh!), but oh-so-delicious, especially if you grew up eating that way. I know it's not everyones cup of corn oil.

This meat recipe is close enough to the taco shop experience that I did fry them and then add the lettuce, cheese and tomato. The family gave it an enthusiastic thumbs-up.

We're paying nearly $4 for a good shredded beef taco (1) at our favorite taco shop these days. I paid a little over $8 for a boneless chuck roast that was a fabulous cut of meat. It was over 3 pounds!

In the future, I will probably serve these with soft corn tortillas, warmed over the burner and filled with the meat and toppings. So much less sinful that way, but, hey, sometimes you just gotta have it.

Michael

 
We just had chicken stuffed poblanos, refried beans, sauteed corn and guacamole. The chicken

was leftover from a roast chicken and the corn leftover from ears of corn grilled last night. All was very good. Link is the stuffed poblanos. A really good recipe I've made many times. Along the way I've learned to remove the seed core with scissors and then the seeds with a spoon instead of trying to turn inside out or rinsing. Also, a very hot broiler to not over cook the peppers while charring them.

http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/poblanos-stuffed-cheddar-chicken.aspx

 
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