Three Tacos

From left to right: squash carnitas with tomatillo chile-arbol salsa, ensalada verde, and black bean puree with salsa fresca

Three Tacos

Serves 4

I’ve grown deeply curious about Mexican cuisine as of late. Until recently, I never cooked Mexican food at home; though I certainly churned out my fair share (hundreds to be exact) of veggie quesadillas, burritos and vegan buffalo cauliflower tacos while working in The Laughing Seed kitchen. “What is Mexican food?” is something I’ve been asking myself for a while. My first glimpse came a couple of years back when my friend Jjesbaan taught my wife and me how to make chile rellenos, a dish of poblanos stuffed with rice and topped with macadamia nut cream and pomegranate seeds. I was humbled by this version, taught to him by his mother, for beautifully presenting the colors of the Mexican flag (green poblano, white cream, red seeds).

A couple of years passed and I was still mostly clueless. Then came Joe Yonan’s Cool Beans book (a book I am proud to preach of). Yonan has a glowing appreciation for Mexican cuisine and culture. Mexico is ruled by three kings, he says: beans, corn, and chiles. I don’t know about you, but reading that caused the lightbulb above my head to glow and make me exclaim, “Eureka!”

Things have only gotten better. I spend an hour a day learning Spanish (check out Duolingo if you haven’t already) so that one day I can learn more about Central and South American cuisines from Central and South American people. I’ve played around with a handful of Yonan’s bean recipes (to be more precise, recipes which Central and Southern American chefs have taught him). Now more than ever, I’m starting to get a taste for the Mexican palate; thanks to which, I feel more comfortable taking culinary risks…

Salt, fat, acid, heat; this taco has it all. 

Which leads us to our first taco: squash carnitas with tomatillo chile-arbol salsa. It looks like meat; tastes like meat; and will fool vegetarians and vegetable-skeptics alike. Substituting squash for pork shoulder was, at the time, a total improvisatory shot in the dark. I could not be more happy with how it turned out. 

The carnitas recipe comes out of a fresh-off-the-press bread baking book (of all things) called Bread On The Table by David Norman, the head baker and co-owner of Easy Tiger in Austin, Texas. I substituted the pork shoulder out for acorn squash, figuring (read: praying) it would cook down in a similar way. My prayers were answered.

The tomatillo chile-arbol salsa hails from José Andrés by way of his Vegetables Unleashed cookbook. This salsa is stupid good and I love putting it on everything. However, something incredible happens when you put this salsa on the squash carnitas: The savory tang of the tomatillos and the arbol chile heat from the salsa meld with the heady clove spice and the sweetness in the squash carnitas, sending wave after wave of pleasure signals up to your brain. Honestly, skip everything else in this recipe if you must; but don’t miss out on this taco at all costs!

The ensalada verde taco came together at the last minute, just like all of my favorite salad recipes. I had already quick-pickled some onions in a bowl on the counter. Remembering the shishito peppers in the fridge, I figured it would be delicious to blister them and enjoy them alongside the onions, and why not chop up a bit of romaine and toss everything together, using the pickling brine as the dressing?

As for the black bean puree taco with salsa fresca, said puree is based off of a recipe found in Yonan’s book. The seasonings are the same; the only difference is that I opted to skip the stage where Yonan brines the freshly cooked beans in salt water for an hour; I was too hungry to wait. You should have lots of black beans left over. Enjoy them over the course of a week or simply freeze with its cooking liquid.

Light and fresh; a palate cleanser.

For the squash carnitas:

• 1 whole acorn squash, cut into large 2-inch chunks, with peel intact
• 2.5 ounces butter
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground clove
• Water, to partially cover

For the tomatillo chile-arbol salsa:

• 1 can tomatillos, rinsed and drained
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 3 dried arbor chiles
• A pinch of salt
• A pinch of brown sugar (optional)

For the ensalada verde:

• 1/2 large white onion, peeled and thinly sliced (reserve the other half for the beans)
• The juice of 1 1/2 limes, or 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon water
• 2 pinches dried oregano or thyme
• 1 1/2 tablespoon neutral oil (peanut, canola, grapeseed, etc.)
• 10 shishito peppers,
• A generous pinch of sea salt
• 1 cup finely chopped romaine lettuce
• Queso fresco, for garnish

For the black bean puree:

• 1 pound dried black beans, picked and rinsed
• 12 cups (3 quarts) water
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 dried avocado leaves (hoja aguacate), or anise or fennel seeds
• 1/2 large white onion, with peels and roots intact
• 1/2 head garlic, with peels and roots intact
• Salt, to taste
• Queso fresco, for garnish
• Salsa fresca, for garnish

Corn tortillas for serving (homemade or store-bought)

Make the black beans: In a large stockpot, combine the dried beans with 3 quarts of water. Add the half onion (the other half will be quick-pickled for ensalada verde), garlic, avocado leaves, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook, uncovered, until the beans are very tender, 1 1/2 to 3 hours. After 1 1/2 hours they should be soft enough to eat, which is how Iong I waited. You can always refry them another day. If you have the time to let them go longer, however, I recommend that you do so; that way, you’ll achieve maximum bean creaminess.

Make the carnitas: Meanwhile, preheat a dutch oven or a large pan with a lid over medium-high heat. Trim the ends and chop the squash into thick 2-inch chunks, leaving the skin on. Reserve the seeds for another use. Peel your garlic and measure out your spices while you wait for the dutch oven to heat up. Add the butter, squash, and a pinch of sea salt, and cook, stirring every minute or two, until the squash reveals golden edges. This should take about 8-10 minutes. Stir in the garlic, bay leaves and clove spice. Pour just enough water to cover the squash about half way, then give one final stir. Cover the pan with a lid, reduce to a simmer, and allow the carnitas to cook on low for an hour and a half, or as long as you cook the beans.

Prepare the ensalada verde: Start by quick-pickling the onions.Thinly slice the reserved onion half and rinse it under cold running water. In a small bowl, combine the lime juice, 1 tablespoon of water, and the oregano or thyme. Drain the onion of excess water and add them to the bowl, stirring to coat in the lime juice. Set aside, tossing occasionally, until the carnitas and beans are nearly finished. 

Next, blister the shishito pepper. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of neutral vegetable oil in a pan over high heat. When the oil is visibly smoking, carefully add the peppers to the pan. Allow the peppers to blister and pop for 30 seconds. Take caution and stand at back a bit; the oil can sputter. Stir the pan and allow the uncooked sides of the peppers to blister and develop color. After a few minutes have passed, remove the pan from the heat and sprinkle generously with sea salt to coat. Set aside and allow to cool until the carnitas and beans are nearly finished.

Tomatillo chile-arbol salsa and salsa fresca (recipe not shown). Salsas can be made in advance and stored for a week or so. 

Make the tomatillo chile-arbol salsa: Dry roast the chiles on a pan over medium high heat until they darken and smell fragrant. Remove and set aside. Preheat an oven or grill (grill works faster) to 400. In a mixing bowl, mix the tomatillos and garlic cloves with olive oil and a pinch of salt and toss to coat. Roast until the tomatillos and garlic boast some nice color and smell fragrant, 20-30 minutes in an oven or 10 minutes on a grill. Your tomatillos might burst a bit so try not to agitate them too much. Blend the peppers, half of the tomatillos, garlic and a pinch of salt and brown sugar (optional) in a blender. Add the remaining tomatillos and pulse once or twice; this salsa is nice with a little chunky texture. Store and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

Finish everything: After an hour and a half, taste your beans; they should be softened and cooked through. If not, cook longer until they are. Strain the cooking liquid out of the beans and reserve. Transfer the onion, garlic, bay leaves and avocado leaves to a blender along with 2 cups of beans and some bean cooking liquid and blend to a fine puree. Return the puree to the remaining cook beans and stir in additional cooking liquid. Season to taste with salt.

Check your carnitas; the water should be boiled off completely. If not, Cook uncovered until no more liquid remains. Remove the carnitas from the heat.

Finely chop 1 cup of romaine lettuce (or more if you’d like) and place it in the bowl with the pickled onions. Think of the pickle brine as your salad dressing. Toss in the blistered shishito peppers and stir everything to coat.

Assemble the tacos: This should be common sense but I’ll include it anyway. Below are instructions for assembling the tacos as I have; that being said, you’d have to be crazy not to mix and match things up for yourself. Let me know what combinations you come up with.

For the carnitas taco, simply dollop a healthy tablespoonful of carnitas onto your tortilla. Top with an even smaller dollop of the tomatillo salsa and enjoy. 

For the ensalada verde taco, pinch a handful of the ensalada from your bowl and place it onto your tortilla. Garnish with queso fresco and enjoy. 

Finally, for the black bean puree taco, spoon a layer of black beans directly onto your tortilla. Top with your favorite salsa fresca (mine is a blend of tomato, poblano, red onion, pineapple, salt, cumin and lime) and finish with the queso fresco. Enjoy. 

Look for avocado leaves (hoja aguacate) at your local Latinx grocery store. They add a unique cooling menthol-like flavor to the beans.