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Let's see a show of hands from those who loves Mexican food. Yeah, me too.
Don't worry though, I'm not calling this Mexican food. I know better. Many years ago, I used to head to a small town named Colonia Vicente Guerrero in Baja California, Mexico. The roads aren't paved in Vicente Guerrero. The majority of the buildings are made from regular concrete block and fiberglass sheeting.
In that small, poor town is an orphanage that is alive and thriving. In addition to housing and caring for close to 100 needy and abandoned children, the wonderful people there provide schooling for the younger kids, trade education for the older and outreach to the community.
Way back when, a team of us would head down a couple of times a year to work at the orphanage. It's there that I learned to lay a straight course of concrete block. I was taught how to graft macadamia nut saplings. I played with children, changed diapers, painted walls and did a host of other miscellaneous jobs.
In the evening, no matter how sore and tired we were (and we were always sore and tired), the group would head down the road to where the food carts were parked alongside the main highway. It's there that I learned what a real taco tastes like. And it's from there that I learned not to call the majority of what we eat here in the U.S. 'Mexican food.'
Especially when someone gives it the name Toastachos.
The Process
Four components to this meal, three different containers to clean. Not too shabby, really.
The meat is a combination of beef, home made taco seasoning, jalapenos and onions. I cooked mine in the same skillet in which I fried the tortillas since I used very little oil. The only suggsetion I would make is to drain grease from the beef after browning and before adding the onion and jalapeno. It's not in the directions, but is an important step.
The salsa (a version otherwise known as pico de gallo) is a simple mixture of more jalalpeno and onion with tomato and cilantro thrown in for good measure. It's good for providing a fresh, bright contrast to the meat.
Melted cheese rounds out the last component and it's simple to make with butter, flour, milk and Cheddar, though I had white Cheddar in the fridge so used it instead of the yellow, which is what Rachael calls for. Same taste, just a different color.
The Verdict
Combine the tostada base of a crispy corn tortilla with the ingredients for nachos and you get Rachael's toastachos. Silly name, really tasty dish. No, you don't see any pickled jalapenos there. My touchy little taste buds can't handle them. In fact, they continued to tingle long after I'd eaten the chopped jalapenos in the meat and salsa. If you don't like heat, you might want to consider dialing back the jalapenos to just one.
I really like Rachael's taco-type seasoning and would make the meat combination for regular tacos in a heartbeat. It just very good Tex-Mex fare, even with a name like Toastacho.
What I'd Do Different Next Time
Not a thing.
Toastachos - print this recipe
from Every Day With Rachael Ray Magazine, March 2012
Corn or vegetable oil, for frying
4 corn tortillas (6 inches)
Salt and pepper
3/4 cup ground beef chuck
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 jalapeño chile peppers, seeded and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chili powder (about a scant palmful)
1 teaspoon ground cumin (about ⅓ palmful)
1 teaspoon ground coriander (about ⅓ palmful)
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1/4 cup beef stock
2 plum tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
A small handful cilantro, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon flour
About 2/3 to 3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 cups shredded yellow cheddar
1/4 cup pickled jalapeño slices, drained
Sour cream, for garnishing
Heat a thin layer of oil in a small skillet and fry the tortillas 1 at a time over medium-high heat until golden and crisp. Season with salt.
In a medium nonstick skillet, heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat. Add the beef and brown for about 5 minutes. Add half each of the onion and jalapeño, the garlic, chili powder, cumin and coriander; season with salt and pepper. Cook until the onion is softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute. Add the beef stock and lower the heat to a simmer.
In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes with the remaining onion and jalapeño and the cilantro. Season the salsa with salt.
Heat the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour for 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and cook to thicken, about 2 minutes. Stir in the cheese to melt.
Place a tortilla on each dinner plate. Cover with the meat mixture and cheese sauce, then top with the tomato salsa, pickled jalapeños and sour cream.
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