posted
My mother is away so Tony and I have the kids. I was thinking Mexican, probably make your own tortilla thingies.
So that means mince, lettuce, tomato etc etc - but I was also thinking something else a little nicer (and perhaps less Old El Paso-ish) as another filling.
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I like grilled steak or chicken (marinated with various chilies and spices - or even just a packet of taco seasoning - and a dash of lemon), thinly sliced, with sauteed peppers and onions - not necessarily terribly authentic, but terribly good. Black beans, refried beans, spanish rice, chedder cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and fresh salsa (tomatoes, onions, and peppers) also are good additions.
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Rivka - thanks. I know about the shrimp thingy, but I figure any recommendations would be good.
Basically the aim is still something the kids will eat, but not just mince and guacamole. Shredded chicken, huh?
Mmm, I like the idea of the grilled steak with peppers and onions. Marinated in... ?
A while back I cooked really lovely chilli dipped tortillas with steak and orange filling - from a Mexican cookbook and all from scratch. It was great but incredibly time consuming. I guess I want the taste without the hours spent getting flour and spices everywhere.
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You can make a rub or seasoning mix to just sprinkle on the cooking meat, or else mix the seasonings with some oil and lemon juice for a marinade. I'd use (in order of amount, from most to least) chili powder, garlic powder, onion powder, red chili powder (or red chili flakes) - only a little goes a long way for spiceyness, and maybe a tiny bit of salt.
That said, it should be fairly easy to cook a Mexican dinner. Call for a gardener or something then, when he's least expecting it, tell the police he looks suspicious. They'll beat him senseless and you'll have a minimum of difficulty getting him into your kitchen.
Ah, the sweet taste of American justice!
Posts: 3293 | Registered: Jul 2002
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Lalo - well, I would. The only drawback is that not living in America and not having a gardener it makes it kind of hard.
Actually, Mexican cuisine is at a stage in Australia where Vietnamese/Thai was about 30 year ago. Most people's idea of authenticity is an Old El Paso (insert other brand here) Family Jumbo Taco Kit. With maybe chilli if they're being really adventurous.
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You know Taco Bell's drive through is open till 1'am. They sell authentic mexican food for less! And you can get a choco taco too! Posts: 2756 | Registered: Jul 2002
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I think mastering the rice and refried beans is the best place to start (something I have not managed to accomplish... yet). With that crumbly mexican cheese.
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Well I just went and did the lunchtime shop. I now have steak, prawns, coriander (cilantro), avocado, tortillas and limes.
We have some nice chipotle sauce at home which will do for dipping the tortillas in before frying them briefly. Should be nice, I hope.
I also got a bag of mixed lollies. Not cheap mixed lollies - these are the $2/100g variety. My bag cost $5. But they are GREAT! Cherry cola fizzy bottles. Mint leaves. Sugared almonds. Gummy bears. Chocolate peanuts and sultanas done in real dark chocolate.
Mmmmmm. The only challenge now will be not to eat them all before I get home.
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I find that cilantro is a pretty strong herb. It tends to overpower anything it's in. I'd recommend sauteing up some onions in a buttered (mmm... butter) pan, and when they're almost good and cooked, toss in the cilantro. After it wilts, it really mellows out and adds a lot to the onions.
Just a suggestion. Posts: 4753 | Registered: May 2002
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PC - really? I never find that. But then, I really like the taste, so maybe I just don't notice it. One of my favourite things is coriander/cilantro pesto. Mmm-mm.
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I don't hate it, but it can sometimes be unpleasant. I love hot food, and I love a good bowl of hot Salsa with chips every once and again, but if I'm hankerin' for flavour, I always get some Pico de Gallo. I love it, and I love the cilantro in it. It's just that it can be so overused and unpleasant sometimes. The only reason I recommended sauteing the onions and cilantro was that I tried it a couple of days ago and it was amazing. Really yummy all around.
Posts: 4753 | Registered: May 2002
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(Edit: I feel I should point out, I'm actually quite a good cook. And know my way around a spice rack - actually, in our case it's more a spice box. I tend to buy things like whole cumin seeds in bulk. But Mexican is definately a weak point in my repatoire. )
(Another edit, why not: Off topic slightly.. Tony's mother has just suceeded in growing her own arugula. I think the climate and sandy soil here makes it hard. Anyway the home grown stuff is amazingly good - much better then even the best store stuff I've found. Mmm, home grown vegetables.)
It was just my paranoid side surfacing. "Oh my, she doesn't even know how to cook Mexican!"
Of course, my little sister will probably refuse to eat it and ask why we couldn't have just had tacos, mince and cheddar cheese.
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Last night we had Indian. Balti beef and Chicken jalfreezi. Parathas, raita, home-made lime pickle and two store-bought but nice pickles (brinjal and mango).
Kate had plain paratha, raw green beans and grilled steak.
And even that was an effort.
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Jesus, dude, what's with the domestic talent? <i>Just</i> tacos? A big luxury for most people our age is, what, buttered toast.
Or am I the only one who thinks PB&J is the poor man's gourmet?
Anyway, yeah, Glynn's actually right. My dad (an immigrant from Mexico City) loves nothing more than getting a really lean steak, putting it in the microwave for three minutes, then slathering it with his homemade salsa -- essentially a grab-and-blend formula. You put in tomatoes, onions, cilantro, peppers, chili peppers/jalepenos, whatever feels right. It's actually damn tasty, but you'll need to eat it quickly -- it spoils within a day or two.
I don't know if that's authentic to the culture of Mexico, but we love it.
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posted
lalo <- not a baby, nor a prawn, neither an off-shooting starizoid nor gipper's-spawn. might be a muscle, though.
Posts: 3061 | Registered: Mar 2004
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Very nice, thank you. And the coriander wilted down into the onions worked a treat.
Of course, as predicted the kids just ate the mince and cheddar. But Tony and I enjoyed all the rest.
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posted
Cool, I'm glad my suggestion panned out. Some part of me was freaking out that you'd probably hate something that I found tasty. Of course, my fiance loved them too, and she's a picky eater.
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Black beans, refried beans, spanish rice, chedder cheese, sour cream, guacamole, and fresh salsa (tomatoes, onions, and peppers) also are good additions.![[Razz]](tongue.gif)
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But they are GREAT! Cherry cola fizzy bottles. Mint leaves. Sugared almonds. Gummy bears. Chocolate peanuts and sultanas done in real dark chocolate.![[Confused]](confused.gif)
Coriander is not the same as cilantro. Coriander is the seeds; cilantro is the leaves. They season quite differently. (I have both.)
