Want to enjoy the best that Dallas restaurants have to offer without ever leaving your home? Our new recurring feature, Dish Pirate, will help you bring the city’s robust dining scene to your kitchen.
We really don’t have a “taco season” in Texas. We enjoy tacos of all varieties year round. But if there were one, I would have to say spring is the season. It’s right when the weather starts warming up, patio seating is at its all time best, and Taco Libre heads to town. (Taco Libre is a taco and music festival held annually at Dallas’ Main Street Garden.)
If you can’t make it out to the festival or just want to give some authentic Mexico City tacos a whirl in your own kitchen, this recipe has you covered. Luis Villalva, chef and owner of El Come Taco on Fitzhugh, is known for his south-of-the-border delicacies including ingredients such as grasshoppers and cactus. Now, I’m not going to encourage you to fry up some grasshoppers but I can help you with cooking cactus. Nopalitos, the prepared pads of prickly pear cactus, are available in the produce section of all local Fiesta Marts. They come skinned, sliced, and ready to cook. This is a great shortcut to making amazing taqueria style tacos at home.
Dish Pirate: El Come Taco’s Steak and Cactus Tacos
Inspired by chef and owner Luis Villalva
Recipe (Serves 4)
Ingredients:
1 lb beef skirt steak
2 small potatoes
1 cup fresh nopalitos (cactus)
1/2 onion
8 corn tortillas
lime
cilantro
salt & pepper
vegetable oil
Preparation:
1. Peel and dice potatoes. Place in pot with water. Boil 10-15 minutes until soft. Drain and set aside. While potatoes boil begin the other steps.
2. Cut onion into strips and set aside.
3. Cut nopalitos into smaller pieces and set aside.
4. Cut steak into strips.
5. Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a pan on med/high heat and add steak, salt and pepper. Cook until you don’t see any pink.
6. In a separate pan heat 1 Tbsp oil in pan on med/high heat and add onion, salt and pepper. Cook until onions begin to soften.
7. Add nopalitos and potatoes to pan with onions. Cook until nopalitos soften.
8. Warm tortillas and layer with steak and potato nopalitos mix.
9. Garnish with cilantro and lime.
Serving size: 2 tacos
