Vegetarian

Tacos are served at all the Mexican markets for workers and shoppers who want a quick bite, including breakfast, as the markets usually open at sunrise. In the Southwest, small restaurants offer whole menus of breakfast tacos (my favorite, Taco Taco, in San Antonio, Texas, offers fifteen morning choices). And breakfast tacos and burritos have become an increasing familiar option along with bagels and pastries at most major airports in the United States and at the drive-throughs of many national fast-food chains. Not only are these vegetarian tacos a fiery morning wake-up, they’re good anytime as part of a larger meal, particularly alongside grilled or roasted meats or fish.

These potatoes are buttery, golden, and crisp with a wonderful flavor. Yukon golds are waxy and fry well, finishing with a beautiful golden flesh with browned edges. It’s important to pan-fry them in clarified butter and a little vegetable oil, a mix that can withstand the high heat required to get the potatoes crisp and browned without burning.

The green tomatillo has a bright sharp flavor akin to that of green plums or rhubarbs. In the winter months, when it’s sometimes hard to get fresh red tomatoes, I use tomatillos, which are available all year. This sauce makes the ideal cool counterpart to spicy salsas. The unusual addition of ice keeps the cilantro green when pureed with the other ingredients.

Spicy breakfast foods are the norm in Latin America or Asia, but not in the United States. I have always liked a spicy breakfast, finding that bland, starchy choices like bagels, toast, or pastries with sugar tend to make me sort of sleepy in the morning. This taco filling is another simple version of spicy scrambled eggs and would also make a great omelet when you don’t want tacos. Dry-roasting the jalapeños gives the dish a heady, smoky quality and cuts the richness of the eggs. A natural cream cheese would be another tasty accompaniment, with smoked salmon slices for garnish.

If you are in a rush and don’t want to make the Ranchero Sauce, buy a jar of roasted red chile salsa, drain off the liquid, and use what remains. Scramble the eggs over low heat, turning them gently with a wooden spatula or spoon. If the eggs turn white while cooking, the pan is too hot. The chopped cilantro adds bursts of fresh green, herbaceous flavors. For a more robust and traditional finish, squeeze fresh lime juice on the eggs when they are almost finished cooking.

This recipe is really all about the tomatoes. For the best results, make these tacos in summer when tomatoes are at their sweetest and seasonal best. Thicker-fleshed varieties, like Romas, work better for this filling as they give off less juice and cook down to a firmer consistency. After roasting, the tomato slices turn soft and crinkly. Thin shavings of buttery, piquant Spanish Manchego cheese makes a wonderful addition, as do leaves of peppery arugula or sprigs of cilantro. Pumpkin seeds are available toasted, which deepens their flavor, or you can easily toast them yourself in a hot, dry skillet. These tacos can easily be served in place of a salad course for a dinner party. The pesto will hold for one week in the refrigerator and shines with pastas, seafood, or meat dishes. For a quick version, substitute about four ounces purchased roasted tomatoes, stocked at specialty markets. Look for them in bulk where olives are sold, packed with herbs and a bit of oil.

A Southwest twist on the old classic of grilled cheese, this version is spicier and good comfort food. In the Southwest, the Spanish word rajas (slivers) has come to mean slim strips of cooked chile peppers or sweet bell peppers, here lifted with aromatic spices, a buttery cream, and slightly tangy cheese. When spooned into smaller tortillas, this enticingly rich filling makes a great appetizer or hors d’oeuvre taco. For a heartier snack, add chicken or beef. Large or small, with or without meat, they’ll go as fast as you can make them. To reduce the heat level of this dish, leave out the seeds from the jalapeños.

The earthy meatiness of portobello mushrooms pairs wonderfully with the smoky flavors of chipotle chiles. The mushrooms are sautéed in butter, which imparts a delicious nuttiness and helps the mushrooms brown. Toasted pine nuts or pumpkin seeds are a traditional and tasty garnish that increases the nuttiness of the dish. Small, fresh portobellos have tightly closed gills that are easy to slice through. The spongy gills of large portobellos must be scraped off with a spoon before the mushroom caps are sliced—but don’t discard them. The gills can be tossed in the pan and cooked with the rest of the mushroom, adding color and depth of flavor.

Huitlacoche is often referred to as “Mexican truffle” even though it is not related to truffles or mushrooms, but rather a fungus that grows naturally on corn in its wild state (spraying corn prevents the fungus). However, the flavor is pungent, earthy, and robust, all characteristics of true truffles. Highly prized in Mexico, fresh huitlacoche commands top prices when sold in the open markets there. Huitlacoche is almost impossible to find fresh in the United States. The federal government requires a special permit to grow it as a way to control infestation of the corn crop, as the spores are disseminated by air. It is usually available frozen and canned (see Sources, page 167). These tacos are hearty enough to be served by themselves, but also make a great side dish for a main course of beef.

During the summer monsoons in Santa Fe, we forage for wild mushrooms—mostly porcini-like varieties—in the high-altitude forests of the nearby Sangre de Cristo Mountains. We’re always looking for new ways to use our earthy, robust bounty, and this woodsy taco is one of our favorites. Buy wild mushrooms in at least three colors or textures. They’ll add interest to the filling and give you the option of mixing less costly types with the more pricey ones. Avoid shiitakes and enokis, which don’t pair well with wild mushrooms (the enoki are too acrid, and the shiitake too powerful) or lobster mushrooms as they don’t cook at the same rate and remain hard. Aim for a mix that is woodsy, rich, delicate, and very flavorful. Good substitutions for fresh wild mushrooms are a mix of dried wild mushrooms and fresh criminis, or dried porcini and thinly sliced portobellos.

By cooking the nopales—the flat paddles of the prickly pear cactus—at a controlled temperature in a sturdy self-sealing plastic bag (en bolso), we are able to infuse flavors slowly into the nopales and preserve a firmer texture and bright green color. The process is something like the restaurant technique sous vide (French for “under vacuum”), where food is vacuum packed, then cooked in a water bath to ensure even heat. You can’t squeeze out all the air from a self-sealing plastic bag as with true sous vide, but this home adaptation still works well. You can find fresh nopales with spines removed at Hispanic markets, chain supermarkets located in Hispanic communities, or some specialty produce stores. The briny tartness of the vegetable escabeche (pickled vegetables) is balanced by the creaminess of the queso fresco, a slightly salty Mexican cheese that is similar in taste and texture to feta.

These tacos are a great way to enjoy the harvest from your late summer garden. The delicate orange-and-yellow flowers of squash plants are a prized treat through out Mexico and the southwestern United States. Squash blossoms are an ideal partner to the green chiles grown in Hatch, New Mexico, widely available in the Southwest during late summer and early fall (see Sources, page 167). If you can’t find New Mexico green chiles, you can use Anaheims, their slightly less robust California counterpart, found in produce markets throughout the country. I like to serve these tacos with a cold, citrusy beverage—margaritas for the adults and limeade for the kids. The tartness of the limes beautifully complements the warm, buttery cheese that oozes out of the taco with each bite.

Flour tortillas are a mainstay of Tex-Mex cooking. You can see them rolling hot off the tortilla machines into baskets at many of the Tex-Mex restaurant chains (a show that kids love to watch), perfect for fajitas and juicy meats. One of my favorite ways to enjoy a flour tortilla is possible in Santa Fe only in August and September during the chile harvest. I’ll peel and seed a fire-roasted fresh green chile, roll it, still steaming, in a warm fresh flour tortilla, and eat it up. Such a simple treat, yet so memorable. These tortillas are very easy to make and so much fresher and lighter than any you can buy at the store. I’ve used bleached all-purpose flour for this recipe rather than bread flour. All-purpose flour has less gluten, so the dough is easier to roll out into thin tortillas that stay flat without shrinking back. As an alternative to making the dough from scratch, you can try Quaker Harina Preparada para Tortillas, a mix that contains all the ingredients in dry form that you need to make flour tortillas, including the fat. Just add water to prepare the dough. Some Hispanic markets stock it, or look for an online source.

To make tortillas with masa harina, use packaged masa harina. Two of the most widely available brands are Maseca (be sure to buy the type for tortillas) and Quaker Oats. One of my favorites is an all-natural, stone-ground masa harina made by Bob’s Red Mill, a small Oregon company that specializes in whole grain products. You can find it at Whole Foods markets, natural food stores, well-stocked specialty markets, supermarkets, and online. Purchase masa harina from a supermarket with a high turnover, as it will go rancid over time. Always taste masa harina before you use it to be sure it is still fresh. It does not store well and goes off much faster than flour. It’s best to store masa harina in the refrigerator or freezer, where it holds for 2 to 3 months. It will also keep in your pantry if sealed airtight for about 2 months. Making the dough is easiest in a heavy-duty mixer, but you can also mix it by hand in a bowl with a wooden spatula.

This garlicky paste, made with dark-brown sugar and spicy chile powder, imparts much flavor as well as color to grilled meat, including the ribs on page 176.

When making Pan-Fried Chicken Cutlets (page 269), increase the coriander seeds to 2 tablespoons and the fennel seeds to 2 teaspoons.

This marinade is especially good with chicken and lamb, imparting bright flavor and helping to keep the meat moist.

The addition of buttermilk to a basic vinaigrette imparts creaminess and reduces the amount of oil needed for thickening. This dressing has a lighter body than the others, perfect for tender lettuces.

Buttermilk and low-fat yogurt replace some of the mayonnaise and the usual sour cream for a lighter, more refreshing dressing. This is a favorite for spooning over chilled wedges of iceberg lettuce, and it also goes well with hearty Belgian endive spears. The dressing can be made with any crumbly blue cheese, ranging from mild Danish blue to the more pungent Roquefort, Stilton, or Gorgonzola.

The addition of cucumber to the traditional recipe results in a dressing with a decidedly lighter, fresher flavor.