Howdy, everyone and happy Taco Tuesday! Today I'm coming atcha with my first ever recipe post, eeeeeep!!! If you had told me, even just 6 months ago, that I'd be happily cooking my own meals 3 times a day, let alone making my own recipes and sharing them for other people to use, I definitely wouldn't have believed you. I used to live off of pre-cut veggies, uber eats, frozen meals, and ready-made snacks. Not that there's anything wrong with that if that's your style, but learning to cook for myself has been a lifechanging hobby for every aspect of my health (and even my wallet!) and I'm so glad I've grown in this area of my life.
Just the idea that I've gotten so comfortable cooking for myself that I can share my own recipes with others is bonkers to me! Tacos are pretty foolproof no matter how you make them so I thought it would be a great place to start for my first ever recipe creation. In fact, this isn't even really a recipe, it's more of a guide. I share the ingredients I used to make the tacos pictured here, but you can swap any of them out to customize them yourself!
So without further ado, let's get into it! My dad is from Southern California and we visit the area once a year, so tacos have always been a staple in my house. Like twice, maybe three times a week kinda staple. And while I've always been able to pull together a fairly decent homemade taco, I'm finally comfortable sharing a loose template of the steps I follow whenever I make tacos, no matter what ingredients I have in my fridge.
So here's what I think is the ultimate orgasmic taco template to help you make the DANKEST of tacos every. damn. time.
Here's what you'll need for ~2 loaded tacos:
- approx. 1 tbsp. olive oil
-1 serving of protein, whatever that means to you/whatever you have on hand (I used a leftover grilled salmon fillet but I've also used about a serving of beyond meat crumbles and had the same result so you do you!)
-approx. 1 cup your choice of veggies/however much your heart desires (for the tacos pictured above, I had half an ear of grilled corn leftover so I used that, plus half a bell pepper, and one-eighth of a red onion)
-your favorite taco spices! you could use a pre-made taco seasoning but those tend to have a bunch of added sugars and other preservatives your body doesn't necessarily need (I'm not kidding, go check your premade seasoning right now, I'll bet cane sugar is listed as one of the ingredients!!) so I like to season my tacos myself! (I use a mixture of paprika, cumin, garlic salt, oregano, cayenne pepper, cilantro, and a lil ground pepper, primarily focusing on the first three)
-1 avocado (I only used half of an avocado for the tacos pictured above but you could totally use the whole thing)
-juice from half a lime
-salsa of choice
-last but CERTAINLY not least, Siete Foods taco shells!!! These are a new addition to my life and seriously, I could go through one package, maybe even two per week if you let me. They're PHENOMENAL and grain-free!!
Here's how you'll make them:
step one: toss your veggies and olive oil in a pan and sauté on medium-low heat for a few minutes
step two: once your veggies are nice and warm, add your protein! if you're using any leftover protein or a meat-alternative that doesn't need to be cooked on its own like I did for the tacos pictured above, you can just toss your protein into the pan at this step. if you're cooking taco meat on its own you might want to do that first and then combine the meat and veggies once both are done to make sure it's cooked all the way through. you could also skip this step entirely; sometimes a veggie taco totally hits the spot!
step three: using the spices listed above, season to your liking, and don't be shy!! I tend to add a bunch of cumin and paprika to get things going and then use the garlic salt, pepper, cilantro, oregano, and cayenne pepper to compliment the first two, but I encourage you to do what feels right. don't like cumin? don't add it! that's part of the beauty of skipping the pre-made taco seasoning; you can totally customize the flavoring of the whole dish which, for me, makes a world of difference
step four: while your protein and veggies are cooking on the stove, take your avocado and lime and make a lil' batch of guac! like I said, I tend to only use half an avocado when I cook meals for myself but you could totally use a full avo if you're feeling it. I like to keep my guac fairly simple and just add some garlic salt and a bit of lime juice
step five: CHAR THE TACO SHELLS. this is an absolute gamechanger when it comes to making homemade tacos but unfortunately can only be done if you have a gas stove. if you do, all you need to do is set a burner on high and place your taco shell right on top. let it sit for about 10-15 seconds or until it starts to smoke, then use a pair of tongs to flip it, and do the same on the other side! it's stupidly simple and you can trust me when I say your tacos will never be the same again
step six: assemble! smear your guac on the center of a charred taco shell and then add your seasoned protein/veggie combo. top with your choice of salsa, add a spritz of lime juice and voila! your tacos are ready to be devoured!!
That's it; I hope you give this recipe a try and fall in love like I did! If you do and end up posting your beautiful tacos on the gram, be sure to tag me @thelifewithlindz so I can see!!
xx, lindz
Post a Comment