I’m going to preface this recipe by saying that I’m from Texas; I know a thing or two about tacos. We’ve been doing Taco Tuesday since we were tots—way before it was cool. I’ve eaten quite literally thousands of tacos in my life. And while I grew up on a healthy mix of crispy ground beef tacos, soft chicken tacos, tiny taquitos, and puffy tacos, I have to admit that crispy beef tacos are my favorite. Puffy tacos are something I don’t dare to make at home, even though I love frying. Have you ever read my manifesto on frying food on my Pork Schnitzel recipe? I don’t mind the splatter or smell of frying in my house—I don’t bring fear with me into the kitchen. But there’s just something about holding a taco shell in the perfect place to make it fold over that keeps me from making puffy tacos at home. I do eat them out around town in Dallas and Austin quite a bite—ask me for a puffy taco restaurant recommendation, I dare you.
The best Taco Meat Recipe
Crispy beef tacos taste like home to me. The shells must be super thin and crispy, and the toppings must be ice cold. Thinly shredded lettuce, thick-grated cheddar cheese, and big scoop of pico de gallo or finely diced tomatoes are my choices. Sour cream is optional on top, but I’ve never loved the way it cools down my whole taco. This brings us to the spicy beef at the bottom. It’s the first thing we put into a taco, and the first thing we taste. Ground beef for tacos should be moist, subtly spicy and have a strong enough flavor to carry itself. Great ground beef for tacos is welcome to be rolled into a corn tortilla, drenched in sauce and baked into enchiladas. In short, don’t trust people not from Texas to make you ground beef for tacos. However, if your life is lacking a texan, please, let me be the Texan to share my recipe with you.
Taco Meat Ingredients
Olive Oil. You need a small amount of oil to sear the ground beef. I use regular (not extra-virgin) olive oil, but anything you like to sear meat in is fine here (even butter!). Ground Beef. Ground beef that is 80% lean with 20% fat makes the best ground beef tacos. You can use 90% or even 97%, the choice is yours, but the lower the fat percentage, the less delicious, in my opinion. Tomato Paste. One tablespoon of tomato paste brings some acidity to the dish and a bit of moisture in the pan. Be sure to cook the tomato paste on its own with the beef in the pan for a few minutes before adding the spices so that the flavor caramelizes. Chili Powder. Chili powder is NOT the same as chilE powder. Chili powder is a spice blend; chilE powder is a single type of chile pepper dried and ground up. Grab a jar of chili powder–Gebhardt’s is my favorite, but anything will work. You need 2 teaspoons for this recipe, because we’re adding additional spices. Ground Cumin. Instead of adding ground cumin, garlic powder and oregano, you could just add an extra tablespoon of chili powder. But, my preference is one teaspoon of ground cumin seed for extra smokiness. Garlic Powder. One teaspoon of garlic powder, or 1 clove of garlic, finely minced. Onion Powder. One teaspoon of onion powder or ¼ of a small onion, finely diced. Dried Oregano. My first choice is Mexican dried oregano, but whatever you have is fine. Salt. Pepper. This recipe needs freshly ground black pepper, and you can also add red pepper flakes if you want spicy taco meat.
Instructions
How to upgrade your taco (free tips from a Texan):
smear refried beans in the taco shell before adding the fillings smear refried beans on the outside of the taco shell, and then wrap it in a soft flour tortilla preheat your taco shells in the oven (never the microwave) before adding the fillings find the smallest, thinnest taco shells you can find (this is the brand I like) keep the taco shell and ground beef hot and the rest of the fillings cold
One final taco tip: if you have leftovers, the best way to reheat is to scrape out the cold fillings, re-heat the shell and meat, and then pile the cold fillings back inside. *To reheat frozen taco meat, place it in a hot skillet with a few tablespoons of water and heat through.
10" Staub Skillet La Tiara Taco Shells, 12-count Box (Two Boxes), 2.5 oz
