Monday, January 10, 2011

Taco Salad

It seems like everyone now days has quick meal recipes.  Pretty much every chef is putting out 30 minute meal cook books and The Food Network has a hand full of shows devoted to this half truth way of cooking.  Thousands of products have flooded the market promising to save time in the kitchen.  Don't fall victim to all the crap on TV claiming to be the best thing since sliced bread.  I call 30 minute and quick easy meals half truths because not anyone can make that dish in 30 minutes or less. The only reason the chefs on TV can do this is because they have most of their prep work finished.  Also, the more skilled you are in the kitchen the faster and more efficient you become.  I'm not the biggest fan of the super fast supper movement, but I do have a few recipes up my sleeve that are extremely easy and can be made quickly.  One of my favorite meals to make when I would rather be spending my time with my amazing wife and adorable daughter is the American classic taco salad (a little contradictory, I know).  Taco salad is a very versatile dish. It can be eaten as an entrée or a side dish.  It's the perfect summer barbecue salad and it's a great winter meal.  It is both a refreshing salad and a warming Mexican inspired dish.  Taco salad is one of my comfort dishes and usually takes me about 20 minutes (45 for a less experienced cook) to make.  This recipe is my contribution to the quick fix food movement although I don't sacrifice taste for time.  Every recipe you look up for taco salad is basically the same, however I always try to add my own flare to any dish I prepare.  Taco salad gives you the opportunity to experiment with spices and other ingredients, so it's a very good dish to expand your culinary skill sets.  The big difference with my recipe is I add avocado, lime juice and I make my own taco seasoning.  This might not seem like a huge departure from the rest of the world's taco salad, but I assure you that it's enough to make a huge difference.  Taco seasoning is one of those things that everyone buys and never thinks to make their own, which is completely ludicrous!  I will never in my life buy another packet of taco seasoning now that I know how incredible easy it is. You can mix a bunch to keep in the spice drawer for all those times that you will need it.
Taco/burrito seasoning:
1 tbs hot chili powder 
1 tbs Spanish paprika 
1/2 tbs cayenne powder
1/2 tbs garlic
1/2 tbs cumin 
1/2 tbs oregano
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
This recipe is enough for about 2 lbs of meat and is great for pretty much everything. 
Taco Salad: 
1lbs 80/20 ground sirloin
1/3 c water
2 tbs taco seasoning
2 Roma tomatoes diced
2 avocados pitted peeled and cubed
1 tbs lime juice 
2 heads of roman lettuce
2 c shredded cheese (Sargento authentic Mexican blend)
1/4 c Thousand Islands dressing
1/4 cup French dressing
1 bag nacho cheese Doritos

Brown meat over medium high heat.  While meat is browning start dicing up tomatoes, avocado and lettuce.  Toss tomatoes and avocado in a large salad bowl with lime juice.  Fold in lettuce, cheese and dressings.  Do not mix in Doritos!  When meat is browned drain off fat, and place meat back over heat and stir in the water and taco seasoning.  Cook  hamburger for about 5 minutes over medium high heat to cook down water, when water has reduced by at least half remove from heat to cool.  Taste the hamburger before adding it to the salad mixture if the seasoning is to spicy you can add more water to the mix, let it cook for a couple minutes, then drain off the water.  This will remove some of the spices but won't take away all the flavor.  Add cooled meat to salad mix and serve.  Crush the Doritos and add them to each serving.  If you add the Doritos to salad mix before it will get really soggy and the left overs aren't so great.  
This salad is great! The Doritos give a nice crunch and cheesiness, the avocado gives a smooth creamy texture and the lime juice really gives the salad a little tartness that opens up all the other flavors like the acid of the tomatoes and the bite of the chili powder.  This dish is very balanced and full of flavor, if you don't try it, you're crazy!   

2 comments:

  1. Love taco salad! Never thought to try it with a flavored tortilla chip...thanks for that new idea. Love to make my own taco season mix because I'm crazy for cumin and I like a little extra. I most often see it dressed with thousand island dressing, but a friend years ago told me to mix salsa with sour cream...low fat for those watching the calories...and that's the dressing I prefer. Lovin' the blog Mike.

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  2. Thank you Amy! I will for sure try the salsa/sour cream combo.

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