You Have Got To Start Making Your Hard Shells for Tacos at Home!

It looks like I am going to have to live in this house forever. We are renting it so if the landlords sell it, it looks like we’re going to have to buy it. Why? Maybe you’re thinking it is something reasonable like perhaps the schools in our area are phenomenal and we would never want to leave them. Good guess. Really good guess. Or maybe it’s because we have awesome friends and neighbors in the area and it would be too sad to ever leave them. Also a really great guess. While both of those things are true and probably should be the first reasons……..they’re not. It simply boils down to the fact that I HAVE to have my favorite crispy shredded beef tacos from the world’s best Mexican restaurant that is a quarter mile from my house at least a couple times a week! I don’t know what living is unless I have these tacos in my life at a moment’s notice.

A big, in fact, HUGE part of the reason their food is so good is because of the salsa. It really has got to be one of those recipes that is passed down from somebody’s great, great grandmother or something because it is that good and I don’t even know how I could possibly attempt to replicate it.

Everything on the menu is superb because of their sauces. And their shredded beef is something to dream about! But the most fun thing to order is the crispy tacos. I thought I knew what hard shell tacos were. You know--the crappy taco shells you get from the grocery store that half of them are already broken and they’re usually kind of stale? Yeah, I just can’t do those anymore. Because I have had FRESH hard shell tacos from fresh corn tortillas and I simply cannot go back.

However, until yesterday, I didn’t know it would be easy for me to make them on my own. But at yesterday's playdate, I learned the secrets behind the magic of making these at home. (I’m telling you--my best information I learn is from chatting with moms and dads at play groups. I don’t know what I’m going to do when my kids grow up! That will look too weird to hang out at parks with no small children to wrangle. Perhaps I’ll have to sign up for things like art classes at my community center or join an adult softball league so I can chat with new people and learn amazing secrets such as these!)

My daughter’s friend’s dad, Larry, was telling me my how his grandmother makes the best tacos and that she fries the corn tortillas first. My jaw literally dropped. What?!?! Somebody else knows the secrets behind fresh crunchy taco shells besides my BFF’s at La Tapatia?? (Remember I was said how I couldn’t leave my friends in this area? Of course I was talking about my BFF’s at La Tapatia! Who else?! I’m a total regular there. Becoming good friends with people that work at my favorite restaurants, so much so, that we exchange small Christmas gifts is kind of my thing now :) )

Anywho, Larry gave me the deets and I went home and tried it for myself and I could not be more excited about doing this at home! I just got way cooler as a wife and mother because my Taco Tuesday game just got EVEN better. And you can do it too. It is super duper easy and waaaaayyy better than hard taco shells you find in the grocery store aisles.

Now, let’s not get crazy--I will absolutely still frequent my favorite restaurant, because, hellooooo--salsa! I know I can’t make that it home. But…….should the most unfortunate event happen that I have to vacate this home and area--the blow will be slightly less because I know I can at least pull off the crispy part of the crispy tacos. Next step--becoming good enough friends with my friends at La Tapatia that our small Christmas gift exchange involves them giving me their great, great grandmother’s salsa verde recipe.

A girl can dream, right? :)

Homemade Crunchy Taco Shells

Serving size: 6
Calories per serving: 0

Ingredients:

1 package corn tortillas (you can fry as many or as little as you want)
2 3 cups 2-3 canola oil


Directions:

Method:
1. Heat oil in an 8? stainless skillet over medium-high heat until it reaches 375°.
2. Using a pair of metal tongs, hold the top of a corn tortilla and lower half of the tortilla into the oil. Fold it in half to form the taco shape. Gently press the half under the oil with a fork to keep the tortilla submerged, while holding the second half above the oil with the tongs. Fry the first half for 10 seconds to set the shape. Flip the taco over and fry the second half for 10-20 seconds until golden brown. Return the first half to the oil and fry for about 5 seconds longer if needed so that the taco shell is evenly browned.