Street Tacos at Home

Street Tacos at Home

All of my life my grandma has made homemade tortillas, both flour and corn. I FaceTimed her this evening as I was making my own homemade tortillas. It brought me back to something special, homemade family recipes being passed down, and how it will continue to.

These came together quickly and turned into one of those dinners I will keep making. I didn’t have a recipe planned or in mind, but these came out to be delicious. The tortillas are homemade, and so is the red chile sauce — a deep New Mexico red that I grew up with and am not quite ready to share the recipe for, wink wink. Those two things carry the whole dish. Everything else is simple.

The carnitas are completely vegetarian, which I was not sure about until I tasted them. Black beans, jalapeño, onion, egg, and gluten-free breadcrumbs, seasoned with garlic, salt, and pepper and finished in that red chile sauce until the edges get a little crispy and the whole thing smells incredible. The elote is fresh corn off the cob with Graza mayo and Trader Joe's Elote seasoning — five minutes, no cooking required, and somehow one of the best things on the plate. Cotija crumbled over everything at the end, cold and salty against all that warmth underneath.

This is the kind of dinner that looks like you tried very hard and mostly just requires good ingredients and a little patience.

The Vegetarian Carnitas

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed 1 jalapeño, finely diced ½ yellow onion, finely diced 1 egg ¼ cup gluten-free breadcrumbs 2 cloves garlic, minced Salt and pepper to taste Homemade red chile sauce, to finish

The Street Corn

2 ears fresh corn, kernels cut off the cob 2–3 tbsp Graza mayonnaise Trader Joe's Elote seasoning, to taste

To Serve

Homemade corn tortillas Iceberg lettuce, roughly chopped Cotija cheese, crumbled generously Sliced radishes, sliced white onion, or any toppings you love — street tacos are meant to be built your way

Method

In a bowl, combine the black beans, jalapeño, onion, egg, breadcrumbs, garlic, salt, and pepper. Mix until everything holds together.

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the carnitas mixture for 3–4 minutes per side until golden and crispy on the edges. Spoon the red chile sauce over the top and let everything cook together for another minute.

For the corn, toss the kernels with Graza mayo and elote seasoning until evenly coated. No cooking needed — just toss and taste.

Warm your tortillas. Layer on the carnitas, a spoonful of corn, a handful of iceberg, and as much Cotija as you like. Add any extra toppings and eat immediately, while everything is still warm.

If you eat meat, shredded chicken, beef, or pork all work beautifully in place of the black bean mixture — same seasonings, same red chile finish.