“The hard-shell taco has been an American staple for more than half a century.” So opens “Introducing Tacos Dorados” in the July/August issue of Cook’s Illustrated. The crispy shell tacos have long existed in Mexico under the name tacos dorados or golden tacos. We certainly enjoy a perfectly fried corn tortilla filled with savory meat and our favorite garnishes. Upon reading the article, I was intrigued by their promise of “the ultimate hard-shell tacos.” The Cook’s Illustrated recipe was a bit too elaborate for me so I decided to create my own version. Voila, these are now our favorite tacos!
The meat filling is delicious. Once cooked, it is spooned on to one side of the prepared tortilla. The tortillas are then folded over and ready to be fried.
The cool thing about these crispy tacos is that the folded edge of the tortilla stays pliable. Once they are fried crisp, you are able to pry them open and fill with your favorite taco garnishes. And because the meat filling and garnishes are on one side of the tortilla and not stacked from the bottom up, each bite includes savory meat and whatever other fillings you prefer (ours are cheese, pickled jalapeños, onions, diced tomatoes, and crispy iceberg lettuce). I serve these with my favorite sopa de arroz and Cuban style black beans.
- 1 pound ground sirloin or 90 percent lean ground beef
- vegetable oil
- 1 cup finely chopped onion
- 1½ tablespoons mild chile powder
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1½ teaspoons kosher salt
- 1½ tablespoons tomato paste
- 1½ teaspoons finely minced chipotle chile in adobo
- 2 ounces finely shredded cheddar cheese (1/2 cup)
- 12 (6-inch) corn tortillas
- Taco Garnishes:
- shredded iceberg lettuce
- diced onion
- diced tomato
- pickled jalapeños
- shredded cheddar cheese
- sour cream
- Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees.
- Combine chile powder, paprika, cumin, garlic powder, oregano and kosher salt in a small bowl.
- Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally until softened, about 5 minutes. Add spice mix to the onions, stirring constantly for 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and chipotle chile and cook for another minute. Add ground sirloin and cook, using a wooden spoon to break meat into pieces no larger than ¼-inch, until beef is cooked through and no longer pink, 5-7 minutes. Transfer beef to a bowl; stir in cheddar until cheese has melted and mixture is homogenous. Wipe skillet clean with paper towels.
- Thoroughly brush both sides of the tortillas with canola oil (or spray lightly with cooking spray). Arrange tortillas, overlapping slightly, on a foil-lined baking sheet (2 rows of 6 tortillas). Bake until tortillas are warm and pliable, about 5 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 200 degrees.
- Place 2 tablespoons of filling on 1 side of each tortilla. Fold and press to close tortilla. The filled tortillas can be covered and refrigerated for up to 8 hours.
- Set a small wire rack in a rimmed backing sheet (for first batch of cooked tacos). Heat ¼ cup oil in the skillet over medium to medium-high heat until shimmering. Arrange 6 tacos in the skillet with open sides facing away from you. Cook, adjusting heat so oil actively sizzles and bubbles appear around the edges of the tacos, until tacos are crispy and deeply browned on 1 side, about 2-3 minutes. Using a spatula, carefully flip tacos. Cook until browned on second side, about 2 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary.
- Remove skillet from heat and transfer tacos to a paper towel lined plate and blot tops with paper towels. Transfer tacos to prepared rack and place in oven to keep warm. Return skillet to medium to medium-high heat and cook remaining tacos.
- Serve tacos with your favorite garnishes, rice and beans.
