This is almost a weekly meal at our house. Everyone loves it! The left overs are wonderful to take for lunch. And the best part is, it is a very quick meal to fix.
After coming to United States, Chipotle and Qdoba were some places that I enjoyed going as a vegetarian. I could pick and choose whatever I wanted and come up with a fancy meal for myself. It definitely helped that Simha was also very fond of Mexican food. But above all, it is a meal that Om gets excited about each time I make it. We do make burritos, enchiladas, quesadilla, Mexican pizzas as well. But not as often as tacos!
You basically need this:
Seasonings required:
Common for fajita veggies, bean, guacamole.
1 tsp cumin powder
garlic powder
onion powder
oregano
red chilli flakes
salt
black pepper
Fajita veggies:
1 small zucchini
1/2 yellow pepper
1/2 red pepper
1/2 green pepper
1/2 shallot (I usually chop up one and use it for this, pico and guac)
Slice up the veggies. Either saute them in a pan with olive oil and seasonings or you could roast it in the oven after coating with olive oil and seasonings ( 400°F for 20 minutes).
Beans:
1 can of black beans (or pinto beans)
I usually like to buy organic and no salt added beans or any canned item for that matter.
Add the black beans to a microwave safe bowl. Add the seasonings to it. Microwave for 2 minutes. While it is hot roughly mash them.
Of course you could use canned refried beans but I like to have my seasonings to the beans.
You could also cook dry beans (presoaked or not) in your Instant Pot (IP).
But I usually do not have the time on working days to plan ahead of time. And I somehow don't like to batch cook the beans and store in fridge/ freezer. But you could do that too.
Pico de gallo
1/4 shallots chopped
1 small tomatoes chopped ( I save some for guac)
1 cup of frozen thawed corn
cilantro chopped
lemon juice from 1/2 lime
salt
black pepper
Mix all of this in a bowl! And here you go..
You could add jalapeños to this as well. But for the kids, I usually avoid it.
Guacamole
1 avocado mashed
1/4 chopped shallot ( left over from pico and fajita)
left over chopped tomatoes from pico
chopped cilantro
lemon juice from 1/2 lime
seasonings same as fajitas and beans
You could add jalapeños to this as well.
Mix it up in a bowl!
Tip to cut avocado-
Either you could cut it in half, take out the seed and scoop out the flesh.
Or I like to cut it in half, the slice them up, peel them and then cut them up. Easier to slice or cut or mash after that.
Queso:
Om LOVES it. Lately I have been forced to make this additional item on the taco menu. We do not find good vegetarian queso (without rennet) from the store. Or else one gets the vegan options. So I have started making my own at home as and when I need it.
In a pan, heat up 1 tsp of butter.
Add 1 tsp of all purpose flour, saute for a minute
Then add 1/2 cup of milk
Let it boil and it starts becoming thick
Add 1 tbsp of salsa (store bought)
Add 1 tbsp of shredded Mexican cheese
And you have this amazing golden liquid!!!
Time to assemble the tacos!
Heat up the tortillas (whichever size you prefer)- either on a pan or in a toaster oven
Top it off with:
beans
fajita veggies
pico
guacamole
salsa (store bought)
queso
shredded cheese (if you want more on top of queso)
chopped/ shredded lettuce (with my Gardyn, this is the most exciting part for me)
Sometimes when I am heating up the tortillas, I add cheese and let it melt on top. You could skip making queso or adding shredded cheese. This itself would give you a melted cheesy queso flavor.
ENJOY!
