12.18.2005

Taco Bowls


This is less of a recipe and more of an assembly line list. I make these Taco Bowls as a pre-lunch or evening snack for the film crew I work with but it is a great idea for a group dinner or anytime you have to feed picky eaters. I have said it before but letting people assemble their own food empowers them and makes your life so much easier. Here is all you do so that you can hear the same magic words I do, "Taco Bowls? They are my favorite!"

1 stack bowls (depends how many people you are having)
1 large bowl shredded lettuce (you can buy a bag of "Shreds" in the grocery store, or just shred your own I like iceburg but romaine is great too)
1 medium bowl crushed tortilla chips (slightly open the bag then hit it with something hard to break up the chips, this is super fun)
1 medium bowl Seasoned Ground Turkey or Beef (use extra lean for less calories and fat, brown it, add a good amount of salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and what ever else you like, drain the fat if necessary, NOT DOWN YOUR DRAIN, you'll ruin your pipes, put the fat in a can or bowl and let it congeal and then throw it away)
1 medium bowl BEANS!!! or refried beans (I just posted this recipe)
1 small bowl salsa (from the jar or I make my sidewalk salsa)
1 small bowl sour cream
1 medium bowl shredded cheese
1 small bowl pickled jalepenos
1 small bowl chopped fresh cilantro
1 small bowl chopped white onion
1 small bowl lime wedges
1 small bowl sliced black olives

Arrange all the bowls on a big table, make sure and put the messy stuff near the front, like salsa and shredded cheese or else all of your ingredient bowls will become littered with the spills.

BEANS!!!


This may be one of the most popular and most requested dishes I have ever served. Thankfully it is super easy. These beans are an important if not crucial element to good Taco Bowls (that recipe is also listed). I think they are kind of like baked beans mixed with refried beans. I came up with them when I ran out of refried beans and I had a lot of vegetarians to feed. Most vegetarians are low maintenance but some, well let’s just say they are not. My friend Ledell might be the biggest fan of these beans and is the first person I gave this recipe to. He is a great guy who I work with, he maintains and cleans the facility at MKFilms and he is very specific about what he likes and doesn’t likes, he sometimes thinks I’m trying to kill him with healthy food. He was pissed at me for months for making him try a California Roll with wasabi and soy sauce. The fact that he loves these beans makes me sure that everyone will.

2 cans (15oz) Pinto, Great Northern or Red Beans
1 cube Vegetable or Chicken Bouillon or 1 can broth
½ teaspoon Cumin
½ teaspoon Mexican Oregano (if you don’t have Mexican omit this)
¼ teaspoon dried Chipotle Pepper (or if you have a little chopped up chipotle or adodo sauce use that)
Dash Salt
Dash Pepper
2 teaspoons Olive Oil

In a saucepan heat the oil over medium low heat. Drain and rinse the beans, then add them to the oil. Stir regularly until the beans get sticky and start to have an opaque sauce. Add the dry spices and then 1 ½ cups water (if you use broth don’t add water). The water should just cover the beans but not make them super soupy. Continue to cook uncovered on low until the water/broth has thickened. Check to see if you need more salt or pepper. Serve as a side dish or a filling for tacos, taco bowls or burritos.

12.08.2005

Mexican Slaw

This idea is based on a cabbage slaw from a catered Mexican lunch I once had. I asked the catering company over and over for them to bring it back but now they just serve sliced tomatoes and cucumbers, I don’t mean to complain but that is BORING! And it doesn’t go with Mexican food. This cabbage slaw is pretty close that I have come up with and it is amazingly low fat and compliments any Mexican style dinner you like. If you are like me and you can eat truckloads of chips and anything, this slaw helps fill you up so you don’t go back for your fifth taco or third plate of nachos. It also is a great salad base instead of lettuce. Just today I made some and topped a big pile of slaw with some ground turkey I had left over from tacos, diced jalapenos and a little salsa verde (green salsa).

½ small green cabbage (shredded)
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
1 fresh red or green jalepeno pepper (seeded and diced very small)
juice of one lime
1 tablespoon vinegar (white, rice wine, balsamic, anything)
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt (I like kosher or sea salt for this, taste it you may need more)
Dash garlic or onion powder
Dash pepper

Anyway here’s what you do, wash and dry the cabbage (save the other half for a stir-fry). Shred it on the largest cutting edge of a box grater or just chop it into thin strips (not longer than two inches). Juice the lime and add all the other ingredients to the cabbage. Toss and let it all hang out for a bit either on the counter or in the fridge. Taste it and see if it needs more vinegar or sugar. I like a diced jalapeno for heat but you can leave it out. I have also used ½ packet of Splenda instead of sugar and left out the oil if I'm really trying to be good. This goes really well with Asian food too, you can sub 1 teaspoon sesame oil in and chopped peanuts or sesame seeds.