Quesabirria Tacos and Pineapple Jalapeno Margaritas

(it's Tacos and Margs all month!)

Hi there, friends! A sunny Southern California welcome to you and to new subscribers! Every Friday, I bring you California Cuisine recipes to enjoy, no matter where you live in the world. I’m so glad you’ve joined me.

It’s Tacos and Margaritas month around here! Delicious recipes for both will arrive in your inbox each week in May. California Cuisine is a mash-up of many cultural flavors, so expect some fun pairings.

Before we get to this week’s recipes, I have some news.

Giveaway Winners

I’m pleased to announce the winners of the April Giveaway! All of you wonderful subscribers were eligible to win prizes just for being here. It’s my way of saying thank you for reading along.

Congratulations to Cari, Jeannine, and Lina! You each won a copy of my digital cookbook, 15 Dinner Recipes for the Rest of Your Life. Check your emails!

And a big congratulations to Shell! You won the California Goodie Bag, plus a copy of my digital cookbook. I’m packing your box and sending it to the UK in a few days!

Podcast

There is a new episode out, and if you are gluten-free or cook for someone who is, this one is for you! I had a great time chatting with Rachel Ciordas of Next Level Gluten Free. She shares so much insightful information about GF recipes, cooking and baking techniques, and even GF travel. I learned so much!

Rachel also provides her tried-and-true recipe for gluten-free garlic herb focaccia!

Photo courtesy of Rachel Ciordas

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or at the button below.

Cinco de Mayo

Cinco de Mayo is coming up and is a fun holiday here in Southern California and other parts of the U.S. to celebrate Mexican heritage. It is a regional holiday in Mexico, observed with parades and the re-enactment of a battle.

The origin? It’s a classic David versus Goliath story.

Although Mexico was a Spanish colony for over 300 years, France wanted to gain influence in the region. They sent troops to Mexico in the hopes of establishing a foothold.

On their way to Mexico City in 1862, the French fought a battle with Mexican troops. While the Mexican army was not as well armed or as numerous as the French, they managed to whoop French butts in the Battle of Puebla. Which happened, you guessed it, on the fifth of May, or cinco de Mayo.

Latinos living in California also celebrated the Mexican victory over the French. And over the past several decades, Cinco de Mayo has gained notoriety as a holiday to celebrate and educate others on Mexican history and heritage.

Plus, I think it’s a great reason to enjoy tacos and margaritas!

Recipes

Quesabirria Tacos

Serves 4 to 6

Time: 3 1/2 to 4 hours (don’t be afraid, it’s mostly hands off!)

Dunk these meaty, cheesy, flavorful tacos into a cup of steaming broth before devouring them! Birria has been around for many years in Mexico and is traditionally made with goat meat. But these Tijuana-style tacos use beef instead and throw in some cheese to transform them into quesabirria, or cheese birria.

I tested a lot of birria recipes over the years and honestly some of them are just meh. Many thanks go to House of Yumm and Carlsbad Cravings for their detailed birria taco recipes that helped me so much!

Notes:

• Don’t let the dried chiles scare you off. Even my middle-aged digestive tract is fine with these because they are mild but full of flavor.

• Divide the work between two days if you can’t do it all in one day. I get it. Cook the beef on day one and place it in the fridge. Make the tacos the following day. Some recipes take time, but they are SO worth it.

• If you can’t do cow’s milk cheese, try Manchego sheep’s milk cheese from Spain. It doesn’t bother the dairy-free peeps in my family! Or sub in a plant or nut-based cheese to keep it completely DF.

Birria Ingredients:

• 4 lbs chuck roast

• 2 tsp olive oil

• 1 onion, cut in half and peeled

• 2 carrots, quartered

• 1 garlic bulb, cut off the top to expose cloves

• 2 dried guajillo chiles

• 2 dried ancho chiles

• 5 bay leaves

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 1 tsp chili powder

• 1 tsp dried oregano

• 1 tsp kosher salt

• 1 beef bouillon cube

• 4 cups chicken broth

• 2 cups water

• 2 Tbsp tomato paste

Taco Ingredients:

• 12 corn tortillas

• 16 oz shredded melty cheese (Oaxaca, Monterey Jack, or Mozzarella)

• ½ cup chopped onion

• ½ cup chopped cilantro

• 2 limes, cut into wedges

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300F/148C.

2. Pat the roast dry and cut it into 4 or 5 large chunks. Heat the oil over medium-high heat in a Dutch oven or large stockpot with an oven-proof lid. Add the beef cubes and sear all over.

3. Throw the onion, carrots, garlic, and dried chiles into the pot. Next, add the bay leaves, cinnamon stick, chili powder, oregano, salt, and bouillon cube.

4. Pour in the broth and water. It should just cover all the ingredients in the pot. If not, add a little more water. Bring the pot to a boil over high heat, lower, and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until the chiles are soft.

5. Using tongs, remove the chiles from the pot and cut off the stems. Dump out any seeds. Place the chiles in a blender along with 1 cup of liquid from the pot and blitz until it is a dark red paste. It’s okay if it’s not perfectly smooth.

6. Add the blitzed chili paste back to the pot, along with the tomato paste, and stir. Cover with an oven-proof lid and place the pot in the oven. Cook for 3 hours or until the beef is falling apart tender. Alternatively, you can let this simmer covered on the stovetop for the same amount of time.

7. Remove the beef from the pot and place it on a cutting board or large platter. Shred the beef with two forks into bite-sized pieces. Season with additional salt, if needed.

8. Whew. At this point, you can refrigerate the beef and the broth overnight and make the tacos the next day. Or, if you are eating the same day, continue to the next step.

9. Assembles the tacos by heating a skillet over medium heat. Quickly dip a corn tortilla into the broth, then place it into the hot skillet. Cook for a couple of minutes, then flip over. Sprinkle the tortilla with the cheese and meat, then fold it in half. Cook until the bottom is slightly charred, then flip over and cook on the other side until the cheese is melty. Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

10. Carefully open the tacos and add garnishes such as onion and cilantro. Serve tacos with a small bowl of broth from the pot. Dip the tacos into the broth and devour.

Pineapple Jalapeno Margaritas

Makes 1 drink

Time: 5 minutes

Does the perfect spicy margarita exist? Why yes, it does, and it is slightly sweet, slightly hot, and over-the-top yummy! Add jalapeno slices for some extra heat, but I love this fun garnish idea: freeze a whole jalapeno in advance and use a microplane zester to grate “jalapeno dust” over the cocktail.

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp each coarse salt and Tajin seasoning

• 2 slices jalapeno pepper

• 1 slice (or two 1” cubes) fresh pineapple

• 2 oz tequila

• 1 oz pineapple juice

• 1 oz fresh lime juice

• 1/2 oz Cointreau or Triple Sec

• 1/2 oz agave or simple syrup

• Garnish: 1 frozen jalapeno for jalapeno dust or fresh jalapeno slices

Directions:

1. Run a cut lime or water around the rim of a cocktail glass, then dip in the salt and Tajin mixture. Set glass aside to dry.

2. Dump the jalapeno slices and pineapple into a cocktail shaker and muddle them, meaning, lightly smash them to extract the flavor.

3. Tip in the tequila, pineapple juice, lime juice, Cointreau, and agave. Add 3 or 4 ice cubes, cover, and shake for 20 seconds until cold.

4. Add 3 or 4 ice cubes to the prepared glass. Use a fine mesh strainer to strain the drink into the glass. Grate some jalapeno dust on top or add fresh jalapeno slices and enjoy.

Tell Me

What kind of tacos do you enjoy? I’d love to hear about them.

Next week: it’s Poke Tacos and Yuzu Margaritas! See you next Friday!