How to make a Taco – Part 1

Tired of Mexican restaurants, but still need you tacos? You can make them yourself and here's how (in several parts).

In order to make a taco, you need a taco shell, which is nothing more than a fried corn tortilla shaped like a "U". There are three options for taco shells:

• First, you can buy them pre-made in a grocery store, at least in Texas you can. I’m not sure if you can buy taco shells in Minnesota or New Jersey
• If you can’t find tortilla shells, you probably can’t find fresh corn tortillas, which is the second option for taco shells.
• Okay, can’t find fresh tortillas, then you’ll have to make your taco shells from scratch.

Here’s how to make your own tortillas.




Corn tortillas can be simple enough or very difficult. If you can find course ground Masa Harina (corn flour), you can make them the easy way. If Masa is not available, you will have to resort to the more difficult method, which due to it’s complexity will be covered in a later posting.

This is all you need:
2 cups corn flour
1 1/3 cups warm water
A pinch of salt
A teaspoon or so of lard is optional

Mix the flour, water, and salt together, forming a soft dough. Knead it a few minutes and let it rest under a damp towel for about an hour so the water is completely absorbed. Have a Pacifico while you're waiting.

Pinch off a bit dough the size of a pelota or a little larger than a golf ball.


Get your tortilla press….on second thought, if you have your own tortilla press, you wouldn’t be reading this. Get a heavy flat object (bottom of a cast iron pan) and press the ball of dough into a very flat circle. It should be about one-sixteenth of an inch thick and seven to eight inches in diameter.

Heat up a griddle or cast iron skillet, which is also known as a comal. If you call your cast iron skillet a comal, again you wouldn’t be reading this. Carefully place a couple tortillas on the dry hot skillet. Cook for about 30 seconds or until a few bits of corn burn. Flip over an cook the other side the same.

While you’re cooking up the rest, you can keep the cooked tortillas under a warm damp towel.

Next step (Part 2), frying the tortillas!

Mesa Rosa (Original)

Tacos:

Salsa:

Price:

Mesa Rosa (Original)
10700 Anderson Mill Rd.
Austin, Texas 78750

Part of another trio of Mexican restaurants (why are Mexican restaurants coming in threes?), the original Mesa Rosa offers good food and good service. This is probably one of my most dined restaurants. The tacos come buried under a mix of Monterrey Jack and cheddar, with shredded lettuce and tomatoes. You almost can’t find your taco. The ground meat is finely ground and nearly drip free. Mesa Rosa’s salsa is outstanding. It’s not so spicy as to make you sweat, but had a good flavor and just the right amount of cilantro. The onions and tomatoes are chopped large enough to where their flavor isn’t lost in the sauce. Everything on thier menu is good. Another place where I've never had a bad meal or a cold dish that shouldn't be. Being a family run and owned restaurant the service is always prompt and attentive. Even though they are always busy, there’s nearly never a wait. Mesa Rosa is high on my list as a place to go back to.

Taquerias

This is a good time for a comment on taquerias. Small Mexican restaurants (taqueria = taco shop), usually in a small shopping strip or a converted Dairy Queen, that seem to be everywhere. If you Google “taqueria”, you’ll even find them in New York City!!

The menus range from tacos and tortas to cazeulas and fajitas. The décor is always the same, very basic, nothing fancy, maybe plastic flowers on the table, culturally Mexican. Univision is always on and there’s Spanish language newspapers in the rack. The wait staff seems to be the same too, they might have a problem understanding English, but they are always friendly and always accommodating…more chips, more limes, never a problem.

What puzzles me most about taquerias, is how they can serve as much food as they do for such a low price. Your plate might not be overwhelmed, but I’ve seen burritos the size of my forearm with an entire avocado in it. The food will range from Tex-Mex to Mexican street food (no “Southwest Fusion”) and is nearly always outstanding. I’ve only had one bad meal at a taqueria, but didn’t realize it until later. Next time you’re looking for some good Tex-Mex, find a taqueria, there’s likely one near by.

Taqueria Guadalajara

Tacos:

Salsa:

Price:

Taqueria Guadalajara
12226 FM 620
Austin, TX 78750

If you didn’t look out the window, you’d think you’re in Mexico….Univision on the television, Julieta Venegas on the juke box. Taqueria’s are abound in Austin and Taqueria Guadalajara on RR620 is one of three Guadalajaras in the Austin area. Good Tex-Mex and Mexican food, and very low prices. The tacos nearly had it, a good helping of ground beef (they also have chicken fajita tacos), thickly shredded Monterey Jack cheese, a nice slice of fresh tomato, but the beef needed to be drained a little longer as juice dripped onto my plate. The salsa was a little too runny for me and about spicy enough for someone from California. Must had been a bad batch, because on previous visits the salsa was quite tasty and would nearly make you sweat. Regardless the food is good. A nearby table ordered fajitas and they smelled (and sounded) so good I almost scooted my chair over. The service is very good and friendly. The beer selection isn’t huge, but they carry nearly all the Mexican beers you’d want….and with a bowl of limes on the side.

Fajita Warehouse, Austin Texas

Tacos:

Salsa:

Price:

Fajita Warehouse
12233 Hwy 620 N.
Austin, TX 78750

Two Mexican restaurants in one week…I’ve been eating out a lot lately. Fajita Warehouse is tucked away in a shopping center on RR620, where a Serranos used to be. An odd thing to notice first about a restaurant and I don’t know if the artwork was purchased for the restaurant or if they inherited from Serrano’s, but it is really good. The tacos were a bit of a surprise, they were huge! Fajita Warehouse uses 8 inch taco shells, instead of the usual six inchers. They even had to serve them on two plates. Something I’ve never seen before was each came with a small scoop of sweet corn bread, almost like a fritter, but not fried. Unfortunately, as I quickly learned, I should have ordered one taco at a time, but I do always order two....the meat wasn’t drained. Aside from meat juice dripping on my fingers while eating the first one, my second taco soaked up all the juice it was bathing in and turned into a pretty soggy mess by the time got around to it. Had they properly drained the meat, they would have been great tacos! My family went with the signature dish….fajitas; hot sizzling, lots of sour cream, pico, and guaq. They chose chicken and salmon. Salmon sounded odd for fajitas, but was out of this world and worth trying. The server was okay, young and not much experience, but the drink glasses stayed full. Check out the painting on the men’s room door.

Trudy's Tex-Mex Restaurant & Bar

Tacos:

Salsa:

Price:

Trudys
8820 Burnet Road
Austin, TX 78758

Trudy’s in north Austin (one of three Trudys) is a bit on the trendy side for someone who like linoleum floors and Formica table tops, but if you like good Tex-Mex and don’t mind the trendy, Trudy’s is the place. Their tacos were hot and fresh. They came in a smothered with shredded lettuce and cheese, and the shells were crispy. Tasty but not spicy. I tried to spice them up with the salsa, but no-go. My dining companions selected from the appetizer menu. Their food looked good and they all seemed to enjoy it. Interesting thing about Trudy’s bar; the Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission won’t let you have more than two drinks at a time….Trudy’s will only let you have one! For a Tex-Mex restaurant, they do have a decent selection of beer,,,20 on draught. Trudy’s food is good and the service is decent. Expect long waits (especially Tuesday night), but you can always go to the bar and have one of their Mexican Martinis, but I think they’ll only let you have one.