MYO Taco Bar

Tacos are fantastic because you can stuff anything you want inside of them.  Give your guests lots of options, and dress up your table to give it a traditional Mexican feel.

Serve multi-colored corn chips in a Sombrero, and put out corn and flour tortillas in Mexian blankets.

You can buy your table decorations here.

Make a medley of homemade salsas: picante, creamy cilantro, pico de gallo, and Marie Sharps Hot Sauce (my personal favorite hot sauce which you can purchase here).

Meats: Barbacoa (the Mexican Barbequed beef), pulled Yucatan Chicken, and Mexican Chorizo

To make your own Barbacoa you will need:

• 1 ½ to 2 Lbs beef brisket
• 2 cup can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 cup chicken broth
• ¼ cup red wine
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 ½ Teaspoon dried ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon dried ground oregano
• 1 sliced and deseeded jalapeno
• 3 tablespoons cilantro
• 1 large thickly sliced onions
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil

Combine all ingredients in a Ziploc bag. Marinate meat in all ingredients overnight or at least for 4 hours in refrigerator; turn bag over at least once while marinating.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the brisket well on all sides, caramelizing the meat but keeping it raw in the middle.

Place the browned meat in crock-pot. Combine all marinated ingredients from bag in the Crock-pot, cover and cook for 8 hours on LOW or 5 to 6 hours on HIGH, or until the meat is fork-tender and can be easily shred with a fork.

To make your own Yucatan Chicken you will need:

• 6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• 1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon garlic pepper seasoning
• 1 orange, juiced
• 1 lime, juiced
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
• Peach-Avocado Salsa (recipe follows)
• Lime slices

Place chicken in shallow glass dish; rub all sides with garlic pepper seasoning. Pour orange and lime juices over chicken; drizzle with olive oil. Crush oregano with fingers and sprinkle over chicken. Cover and refrigerate 30 minutes, turning once.

Remove chicken from marinade and place in large nonstick fry pan over medium heat. Saute, turning, about 12 minutes or until lightly browned and fork can be inserted in chicken with ease.

Toppings: Guacamole, Sour Cream, Chopped Green Onions, Fresh Jalapeño Peppers, Chopped Cilantro, Limes, Grated Cheese

Some Guacamole tips:

• Adding a bit of lime juice helps preserve the color of the avocado for a short period
• Use pomegranate seeds to add some color and texture to the guacamole.
• Serve your guacamole in a traditional Molcajete, the Mexican mortar and pestle.
• Eat with chips or, more authentically, with home-made grilled tortillas.

Special thanks to Zapatista Restaurant in Chicago for providing the contents of the Taco Bar.