Cuisine: Mexican
Coca-Cola Carnitas
Coca-Cola Carnitas is a popular way to make carnitas. The Coke adds a unique sweet and slightly tangy flavor to the pork. The acidity in the soda helps to tenderize the pork, making it incredibly flavorful and easy to shred and the sugar in the coke helps to caramelize it to help make it crispy. You can use it for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, or even salads. Serve in warm corn tortillas with toppings like chopped onions, cilantro, salsa, and lime. This recipe uses a slow cooker, which makes it easy.
By - Prep: 20 mins
- Cook: 8 hrs
- Yields: 12 Servings
Crispy Shell Baked Tacos
Crispy Shell Baked Tacos are a family favorite and convenient to serve. These corn tortillas are filled with a mixture of refried beans and ground beef seasoned with taco spices. As they bake in the oven, they transform into crispy and golden brown tacos. Once they’re out of the oven, you can customize them with your favorite taco toppings, such as shredded cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, and more.
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 10 mins
- Yields: 6 Servings
Pibil-Style Pork Chops
These Pibil-Style Pork Chops are inspired by the Mexican dish cochinita pibil. The recipe comes from Asada: The Art of Mexican-Style Grilling, by Bricia Lopez. The sauce is a blend of spices, citrus juices, and achiote paste, which gives it a rich, reddish color. It's a complex blend of smoky, spicy, citrusy, and earthy flavors. While traditional cochinita pibil is slow-cooked in an underground pit, these pork chops are cooked on the grill.
By - Prep: 25 mins
- Cook: 25 mins
- Yields: 6 - 8 Servings
Mexican Black Beans
These flavor-packed Mexican Black Beans got rave reviews from my family. Since I didn't have time to soak dried beans overnight, I used canned beans, which worked perfectly. I used a jalapeño pepper, if you want it spicier use a serrano. Serrano peppers are generally smaller and skinnier than jalapeños. Despite their small size, they can be up to 10 times hotter than a jalapeño, so beware.
- Prep: 15 mins
- Cook: 35 mins
- Yields: 4 - 6 Servings
Chile Rellenos Soup
Chile Rellenos Soup is a creamy and cheesy soup inspired by the classic Mexican Chile Rellenos. Roasted poblano peppers, cheese, and chicken capture the flavors of the traditional dish in an easier-to-make format. To make it easier, I used rotisserie chicken and topped with with crushed tortilla chips. It's really delicious.
- Prep: 25 mins
- Cook: 25 mins
- Yields: 6 Servings
Tex-Mex Style Lasagna
I made this Tex-Mex Style Lasagna which is a great option if you're short on time and low on energy. It’s so easy to throw this together for a busy weeknight meal. It’s taco style ground beef, with corn, black beans layered with tortillas and cheese. It was a big hit with my family.
- Prep: 15 mins
- Cook: 40 mins
- Yields: 10 - 12 Servings
Chicken Tortilla Soup
This Chicken Tortilla Soup is from The New York Times. This is a nontraditional method. There are many variations of tortilla soup. This one is made in a slow-cooker, but I have also included the stovetop version. The soup gets its depth of flavor from roasting the tomatoes, onions, jalapeños, and garlic until they become charred. It's then put in a slow-cooker with the chicken for about 5 hours. To me the toppings are key. I like adding fried tortilla strips, avocado, cheese, cilantro, etc. I also have another version on this blog here.
- Prep: 20 mins
- Cook: 5 hrs 30 mins
- Yields: 4 - 6 Servings
Jalapeño Popper Chicken Chili
This Jalapeño Popper Chicken Chili is made with ground chicken, jalapeño peppers, corn, black beans, cream cheese, and a variety of spices. The chili can be cooked in either a pressure cooker or a slow cooker; I have given instructions for both.
The chili gets its heat from the jalapeño peppers, but you can adjust the spiciness to your liking by removing the seeds from the peppers or by adding more or fewer peppers. The cream cheese adds a richness and creaminess to the chili, and the spices give it a depth of flavor.
The chili can be served with a variety of toppings, such as shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, chopped bacon, and additional jalapeños. It is also great for meal prep, as it can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge or freezer.
- Prep: 25 mins
- Yields: 7 Servings
Taco-Stuffed Avocado Boats
I was at CVS pharmacy with my husband and he picked up Cleaning Eating Magazine and opened to Taco-stuffed Avocado Boats. So, I decided that is what’s for dinner. It was really good. They are made by halving avocados, removing the pits and a little bit of the avocado, then filling them with a mixture of taco meat (I used ground Turkey), cheese, and your favorite taco toppings. You purée the scooped-out avocado with some sour cream and lime juice. Avocados are a good source of healthy fats, fiber, and vitamins.
- Prep: 15 mins
- Cook: 15 mins
- Yields: 8 Servings
Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles
I am on the east coast at my brother David's house. He made these Mexican Chicken Zucchini Noodles, which is healthy, delicious, low in calories and fat, and high in fiber. This dish is made with zucchini noodles, which are made by spiralizing zucchini into long, thin strips that resemble pasta. The zucchini noodles are then cooked in a skillet with chicken, cumin, and pico de gallo. It's a healthier alternative to traditional pasta dishes. Oh, and it's gluten-free.
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 10 mins
- Yields: 4 Servings
