The taco is our household’s favorite way of using up leftovers: any little bit of last night’s protein (be it fish, chicken, pork, beef) can be chopped up, seasoned in a vaguely Mexican manner, and then served with fresh chopped cilantro, red onion, salsa, and a squeeze of lime.
The trick is: chop the meat finely, season it well, and then fry it over high heat in copious amounts of olive oil to give it a richness and crispness that allows a little meat to go a long way.
Pictured here is a chicken taco in which I tried to approximate the flavor of el pastor, the deeply flavored barbecued pork that’s my taco truck favorite.
Faux Pastor
2 cups roughly chopped leftover chicken
1/8 cup olive oil
chile powder
pimenton de la vera (smoked paprika)
cumin
salt
pepper
Heat olive oil in large heavy pan until smoking. Add chicken and spices. Cook, stirring occasionally, until chicken crisps up.
Serve on warm corn tortillas with fresh chopped cilantro, onion, salsa and a squeeze of lime.
—Hugh
YUM! Cilantro should be a part of every meal.
Taco night is the bomb. Made carnitas a couple of weeks ago for a dinner party– bunch of foodies including Conde colleague of yours were licking their fingers and raving…