Category Archives: tacos

Carne Asada Fries

Appetizers, Beef, Cheese, Events, Game Day, Kids, Mexican, tacos

Sometimes you just have a real craving for junk food, and if you are like me, that doesn’t equate to a bowl of potato chips. See, this past weekend I had this idea in my head that I wanted to make a batch of hand cut french fries, while on the other hand I had the idea of grilling out some carne asada and possibly making some tacos, and that’s when it knocked me in the face with the idea of making carne asada fries. Now if you have never had carne asada fries, well, watch out because these things are freaking amazing. Basically fries loaded with awesome carne asada, cheese, guacamole, and other toppings that you would desire. Almost like a nachos gone wild.

Carne Asada Fries

You are probably never going to see these on a Mexican restaurant’s menu, and typically will see these on menus throughout San Diego, but this is where you can make it all your own. I prefer using hand cut fries, but you can use frozen if you prefer to make the hand cut fries.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients for the Carne Asada:

  • 1 1/4 pound flank steak
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 1/2 tsp Mexican oregano

Ingredients for the Carne Asada Fries:

  • 2 whole russet potatoes, cleaned and cut into match sticks
  • water
  • 3 cups of canola oil
  • 1 roma tomato, diced
  • 2 green onions, diced
  • 1 cup Monterey jack cheese
  • 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • 2 serrano chilies, thinly sliced (optional)
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 2 tbsp sour cream, (optional)
  • 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • limes, (optional)

You can get as creative as you desire on your toppings, however I think this was a great balance, and well, they rocked.

Start by combining your ingredients for the carne asada, and rub all over the meat. Place in a sealable bag, and let this marinate over night if you can, but at least 6 hours.

Soak the sliced potatoes in cold water for about 20 minutes, then drain, and place back in cold water again to remove a bunch of the starch. Drain again, then place on a lined baking sheet, and place in a preheated, 300 degree oven for 20 minutes, just to lightly cook them.

Heat your coals, and get that grill piping hot. During this time, take the meat out of the refrigerator, and let it come to room temperature as you are heating the grill. Once the grill is heated, place the meat on the grill, and cook for about 5 minutes per side, or to your desired doneness. Remove and place on a plate to let rest, about 20 minutes prior to slicing.

Heat the oil to about 350 degrees, then carefully add the potatoes, working in batches, and let them cook for about 4-5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and place into a paper lined bowl. Repeat with the remaining (batches) of fries.

Once the first cooking of the fries is completed, bring the oil up to about 375 degrees. Add the fries, working in batches, back into the oil, and cook until golden brown. The result will be a crisp exterior with a nice and tender interior. Remove with the slotted spoon, and place back into a paper towel lined bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining fries.

How to make carne asada fries

Slice the carne asada across the grain in thin slices, then chop into bite-sized chunks. Add the carne asada to the bowl of fries, along with the serrano chilies, green onions, and cheeses. Give a good toss, then place in a 300 degree oven in a baking dish, and cook until the cheese just begins to melt.

Remove, and top with the tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, and sour cream.

The end result is nothing short of amazing. The fries were perfect and when paired with the carne asada, and dipped into the sour cream or avocados, man, I’m just hungry thinking about them! Give these a shot. They are perfect game day grub, and will feed about 4, or two very hungry people. Enjoy!

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Carne Asada Fries
Author: 
Recipe type: Main Courses
Cuisine: Mexican
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 2-4
 
Ingredients
  • Ingredients for the Carne Asada:
  • 1¼ pound flank steak
  • 2 limes, juiced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp paprika
  • ½ tsp cracked black pepper
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • ½ tsp Mexican oregano
  • Ingredients for the Carne Asada Fries:
  • 2 whole russet potatoes, cleaned and cut into match sticks
  • water
  • 3 cups of canola oil
  • 1 roma tomato, diced
  • 2 green onions, diced
  • 1 cup Monterey jack cheese
  • ½ cup shredded cheddar cheese
  • 2 serrano chilies, thinly sliced (optional)
  • 1 avocado, diced
  • 2 tbsp sour cream, (optional)
  • ½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • limes, (optional)
Instructions
  1. You can get as creative as you desire on your toppings, however I think this was a great balance, and well, they rocked.
  2. Start by combining your ingredients for the carne asada, and rub all over the meat. Place in a sealable bag, and let this marinate over night if you can, but at least 6 hours.
  3. Soak the sliced potatoes in cold water for about 20 minutes, then drain, and place back in cold water again to remove a bunch of the starch. Drain again, then place on a lined baking sheet, and place in a preheated, 300 degree oven for 20 minutes, just to lightly cook them.
  4. Heat your coals, and get that grill piping hot. During this time, take the meat out of the refrigerator, and let it come to room temperature as you are heating the grill. Once the grill is heated, place the meat on the grill, and cook for about 5 minutes per side, or to your desired doneness. Remove and place on a plate to let rest, about 20 minutes prior to slicing.
  5. Heat the oil to about 350 degrees, then carefully add the potatoes, working in batches, and let them cook for about 4-5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and place into a paper lined bowl. Repeat with the remaining (batches) of fries.
  6. Once the first cooking of the fries is completed, bring the oil up to about 375 degrees. Add the fries, working in batches, back into the oil, and cook until golden brown. The result will be a crisp exterior with a nice and tender interior. Remove with the slotted spoon, and place back into a paper towel lined bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining fries.
  7. Slice the carne asada across the grain in thin slices, then chop into bite-sized chunks. Add the carne asada to the bowl of fries, along with the serrano chilies, green onions, and cheeses. Give a good toss, then place in a 300 degree oven in a baking dish, and cook until the cheese just begins to melt.
  8. Remove, and top with the tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, and sour cream.
  9. The end result is nothing short of amazing. The fries were perfect and when paired with the carne asada, and dipped into the sour cream or avocados, man, I’m just hungry thinking about them! Give these a shot. They are perfect game day grub, and will feed about 4, or two very hungry people. Enjoy!

 

Mexican Chalupa

Cheese, Chicken, Game Day, Kids, Mexican, tacos

When someone mentions chalupa, some of you might immediately direct your attention to what Taco Bell defined as their chalupa. I’ll admit, I have never tried a Taco Bell chalupa, for a variety of reasons, but the chalupa has always intrigued me. Sure, at the end of the day the chalupa eats like a taco, and boy is it ever a freaking amazing one at that. So skip the Taco Bell, and make your own. Trust me, my wife and kids devoured these chalupas.

Chalupa Recipe

Your Spanish/Mexican lesson for the day is that chalupa means a small boat, hence the shape of the tortilla.

You can stuff your chalupa anyway you desire, but my family is hooked on my chipotle chicken, seriously addicted, so we went that route, along with an array of items such as homemade black refried beans, pico de gallo, cheese, and shredded lettuce.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

  • corn tortillas
  • refried beans
  • cooked chicken
  • shredded cheese
  • Cotija cheese
  • pico de gallo
  • Shredded Lettuce
  • 2 cups of cooking oil

Again, this is the route I went with creating my chalupas. However you like your tacos, go that route. The trick here, is to get a formed tortilla boat. That is what I taught my son, and after a couple of him, he got a bit intimidated as a bit of hot oil jumped up and tagged his arm. Let’s just say I finished the rest of them, no big deal.

Start by having all of your ingredients prepared. Next, heat a small skillet, adding in the oil. Heat the oil to about 350 degrees. You can test the oil a few ways. One by testing a small part of a tortilla, an oil thermometer, or sometimes the smell or look of it.

How to make a chalupa

Now frying these tortillas will go quick, about a minute per tortilla, and my trick is to take a couple pieces of silverware, or use a piece of silverware along with a pair of tongs, and when you insert the tortilla into the oil, gently bring up both sides, loosely, to form a wide boat shape. Use the tongs to carefully move the tortilla around in the oil until crisp, again, about one minute. Use the tongs, lifting up the tortilla, and let any excess oil drain, then place onto a paper lined plate until you are ready to serve. Repeat with as many chalupas as you would like.

[videojs mp4="http://www.simplecomfortfood.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/tortillas.mp4"]

To serve, take a chalupa shell, smother with the black refried beans, top with cotija cheese, the chicken, lettuce, pico de gallo, and shredded cheese. Dig in. I’m not listing how much of what to put it because everyone loads their taco differently. You know what you like, so go in that direction.

These were, in my opinion, way better than any hard shell taco you would by from the store. There was a freshness about everything that had us coming back for more. Let’s just say my oldest took down like four of them, they were that good. I hope you enjoy.

Print
Mexican Chalupa
Author: 
Recipe type: Tacos
Cuisine: Mexican
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 5
 
Ingredients
  • corn tortillas
  • refried beans
  • cooked chicken
  • shredded cheese
  • Cotija cheese
  • pico de gallo
  • Shredded Lettuce
  • 2 cups of cooking oil
Instructions
  1. Again, this is the route I went with creating my chalupas. However you like your tacos, go that route. The trick here, is to get a formed tortilla boat. That is what I taught my son, and after a couple of him, he got a bit intimidated as a bit of hot oil jumped up and tagged his arm. Let’s just say I finished the rest of them, no big deal.
  2. Start by having all of your ingredients prepared. Next, heat a small skillet, adding in the oil. Heat the oil to about 350 degrees. You can test the oil a few ways. One by testing a small part of a tortilla, an oil thermometer, or sometimes the smell or look of it.
  3. Now frying these tortillas will go quick, about a minute per tortilla, and my trick is to take a couple pieces of silverware, or use a piece of silverware along with a pair of tongs, and when you insert the tortilla into the oil, gently bring up both sides, loosely, to form a wide boat shape. Use the tongs to carefully move the tortilla around in the oil until crisp, again, about one minute. Use the tongs, lifting up the tortilla, and let any excess oil drain, then place onto a paper lined plate until you are ready to serve. Repeat with as many chalupas as you would like.
  4. To serve, take a chalupa shell, smother with the black refried beans, top with cotija cheese, the chicken, lettuce, pico de gallo, and shredded cheese. Dig in. I'm not listing how much of what to put it because everyone loads their taco differently. You know what you like, so go in that direction.
  5. These were, in my opinion, way better than any hard shell taco you would by from the store. There was a freshness about everything that had us coming back for more. Let’s just say my oldest took down like four of them, they were that good.

 

Cilantro Sauce

Salsa, Sauce, tacos

Sometimes you have to try and kick yourself when something so easy is so flippin’ good. Last week during the Green Bay Packers game, we had nacho night. We thought we would celebrate game day, as we hoped for a victory, which was not the case, with a nice plate of ‘build your own nachos’. I know how my family rolls when it comes to nachos. The kids are typically a bit of meat and cheese, while my daughter might be just cheese and chips. My wife will load hers with cheese, chips, a bit of meat, avocado, maybe some lettuce and tomato. Me on the other hand? Well, I like to jazz mine up, and load them up with things like beans, onions, cilantro, and some chilies. As I normally just use chopped up sprigs of cilantro, I decided to go another route, and make a cilantro sauce to heavily drizzle throughout the nachos, and whoa, was this stuff ever amazing!

Cilantro Sauce Recipe

Super simple ingredients yields a sauce so awesome that you will be blown away.

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

  • 1 bunch of fresh cilantro, cleaned
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic (add more or less for garlic intensity)
  • 1/2 tsp salt, to taste
  • 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
  • 3/4 cup of olive oil
  • 1/4 cup of water

Add everything to a food process and blend until you have a smooth sauce. Pour into a glass container, and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to use. When you are ready to use, give a gentle shake, and spoon onto whatever you desire.

How to make cilantro sauce

I’ve been using this sauce on everything from eggs at breakfast, to salads, and even drizzling on sandwiches.

This cilantro sauce is bright, and intense in flavor. You get that awesome punch of garlic cilantro flavor in every bite. I hope you enjoy!

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Cilantro Sauce
Author: 
Recipe type: Sauce
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 12
 
Ingredients
  • 1 bunch of fresh cilantro, cleaned
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic (add more or less for garlic intensity)
  • ½ tsp salt, to taste
  • 1 pinch of cayenne pepper
  • ¾ cup of olive oil
  • ¼ cup of water
Instructions
  1. Add everything to a food process and blend until you have a smooth sauce. Pour into a glass container, and place in the refrigerator until you are ready to use. When you are ready to use, give a gentle shake, and spoon onto whatever you desire.
  2. I've been using this sauce on everything from eggs at breakfast, to salads, and even drizzling on sandwiches.
  3. This cilantro sauce is bright, and intense in flavor. You get that awesome punch of garlic cilantro flavor in every bite. I hope you enjoy!

 

Chipotle Chicken Tacos

Chicken, Game Day, tacos

My wife recently said this was probably the best chicken recipe I have ever made. Now, for me, I would disagree on that matter as I have made some pretty delicious chicken recipes including that of some chicken pad Thai sliders, but she was correct that this chipotle chicken recipe was really, really good.

Now when you think of chipotle peppers, yes, the ones I truly love, you might instantly think of extreme heat, but that is simply not the case with this recipe. The chipotle peppers actually give it a slight kick, but really, really amazing flavor. Let’s just say all of my kids ate this chicken up with no complaints, and they would be the ones to let me know, trust me.

The great thing about this chicken is that you can use it in salads, sandwiches, stir frys, or in my case, tacos, because I love tacos.

Chipotle Chicken Tacos

Let’s get started.

Ingredients:

  • 4 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 whole chipotle peppers, chopped
  • 1/2 tsp cumin powder
  • 1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 whole lime, juiced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 1/4 cup of light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • 1/4 cup of water

Add everything but the chicken and water to a mixing bowl. Add the chicken to a gallon sized sealable bag, then add in the marinade. Let this marinade for four hours or preferably overnight.

Another good thing about this is that you can grill, bake, or pan sear, which is the route I took on this as it was pretty darn cold outside.

How to make chipotle chicken

Heat a large, nonstick skillet on medium, to medium high heat. Flip, cook another few minutes, then add in the water, reduce the heat, cover, and continue to cook for about 10 more minutes before removing it and cutting it into bite sized pieces.

Remove the chicken onto a cutting board, or plate, and cut into bite sized pieces. Return back to the skillet to keep the chicken warm, and bath in the sauce.

When you are ready to serve, add to your tacos, sandwiches, or salad. These chipotle chicken tacos were perfectly balanced with sweet, heat, and tang. I hope you enjoy!

Print
Chipotle Chicken Tacos
Author: 
Recipe type: Tacos
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 5
 
Ingredients
  • 4 whole boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 whole chipotle peppers, chopped
  • ½ tsp cumin powder
  • 1½ tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 whole lime, juiced
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp cracked black pepper
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • ¼ cup of light brown sugar
  • 1 tbsp oil
  • ¼ cup of water
Instructions
  1. Add everything but the chicken and water to a mixing bowl. Add the chicken to a gallon sized sealable bag, then add in the marinade. Let this marinade for four hours or preferably overnight.
  2. Another good thing about this is that you can grill, bake, or pan sear, which is the route I took on this as it was pretty darn cold outside.
  3. Heat a large, nonstick skillet on medium, to medium high heat. Add the chicken, and cook for about 5 minutes, leaving untouched to get a nice sear on it. Flip, cook another few minutes, then add in the water, reduce the heat, cover, and continue to cook for about 10 more minutes before removing it and cutting it into bite sized pieces.
  4. Remove the chicken onto a cutting board, or plate, and cut into bite sized pieces. Return back to the skillet to keep the chicken warm, and bath in the sauce.
  5. When you are ready to serve, add to your tacos, sandwiches, or salad. Enjoy!