Authentic (sort of) Tacos

               Today I want to share a recipe that has recently won over my husbands heart. He even liked it better than my spaghetti, which is a Grandma Jan original, so that's saying something.  I admit, this was the first time I made tacos without pre-made taco seasoning, so I was flying by the seat of my pants with this recipe. Basically I just threw in all of the spices and ingredients that sounded good to me and went with it. However, there are two ingredients that make these tacos sort of authentic-- the fried tortilla shells and potatoes. I was introduced to the concept of putting potatoes in a taco a few years ago when I had some of the best tacos I've had in my life at a little restaurant called Morales Tacos in Collinsville,Illinois. If you live close to the area and haven't been, I highly recommend it. Even though it's been years, I can still taste all of that goodness in my mind, and I decided that those very tacos would be the inspiration for my recipe. John and I decided to just add cheese to our tacos since we were out of lettuce (we are plain Janes) but don't forget to add your tomatoes, sour cream, or whatever you put on your tacos to make them extra yummy!

Authentic (sort of) Tacos

Prep Time: 5 mins                      Cooktime: 30 mins              Yeilds 6 hearty tacos

Ingredients

1lb Ground Beef

1/2 sweet vandalia onion, finely chopped

1 potato, sliced and chopped

1 tbs butter

1 tbs oregano

1/4 tsp paprika

salt and peppercorn to taste

Tortillas

1. Peel the onion and cut it in half using a chef's knife. Finely chop one half of the onion and set aside. To save time and get the best results in size, I put the onion in my food processor and pulse it a few times. You can place the other half of the onion in a zip-lock bag and keep in the fridge for later use. 

2. Peel the potato and slice into thin slices. Place the slices into separate stacks and slice in vertical strips, finishing with one horizontal slice through the middle. Do not try to slice to many pieces of potato at once, as this can result in cutting yourself. Refer to the picture above  for desired size. 

3. In a large skillet, brown the ground beef. Do not drain the juice! Add salt and peppercorn to taste.

4. Add the onion, 1/2 tbs of butter, and oregano. Mix the ingredients well in with the meat.

5. Once the onions have become caramelized, reduce the heat to med/low and add the potato. Put a lid on the skillet and let set for about ten minutes, occasionally stirring, or until the potatoes are cooked all the way through. Then set the skillet on the warmer (if you don't have a warmer on your stove, just reduce the heat to the lowest setting) so you can get started on the tortilla shells.

6. Heat a second skillet and melt 1/2 tbs. When the butter begins to form small bubbles, the skillet is hot enough to add the tortilla. Adding the tortilla too soon will result in a soggy instead of crispy taco shell.

7. Let the tortilla cook a few minutes on each side to achieve a crispy, buttery shell. When you see the tortilla start to bubble up, you know it's ready to be flipped using a pair of tongs. Fold the torilla over in the pan and flip a few additional times to create the actual appearance of a shell.

8. Repeat the process as necessary to make the needed amount of shells, only adding butter when the pan becomes close to dry. 

9. Fill your beautiful shells with the taco meat, add desired toppings, and enjoy! 

Cooking confession: While John and I live in San Antonio, we have yet to eat any authentic Mexican food at the restaurants here. I know, it needs to happen soon!