August 1st, 2022
She's Spicy, She's Flavorful and She's anything but Basic.
"Never underestimate how much assistance, how much satisfaction, how much soul and transcendence there might be in a well-made taco"- Tom Robbins
Sisters make the world's best friends. There is this unbreakable bond that is created from years of making mischief together and memories that go back a lifetime. Like being five years old and splitting a bowl of Kraft mac and cheese noodle by noodle so it would be perfectly even. Like being ten years old and gathering all the neighbors' kids to create a club under the backyard deck and proclaiming yourself as the queen. And like that time, we tried to sled down a snowy hill in our childhood moon bounce. I can imagine being the oldest sister comes with an added sense of responsibility which may be hard for you but was always a blessing for me. Even at my current age of twenty-seven, you still make eyebrows, paint my nails and let me borrow your clothes. I know I've tested your patience too, especially with all the times I fell asleep in the most beautiful places in the world. I slept my way through London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Miami and you waited each time. Maybe the hardest part about being the older sister is the hard lessons you learn and having to pass them along to your younger siblings. As I watched your life unfold and I saw you go through your trials and tribulations with brilliant resilience, you taught me one of the most important lessons in life; to value myself, to love myself, and to be a fierce woman in the face of adversity. I love you and I would make you fresh homemade tacos any day of the week.
Malika's Birria Tacos
Ingredients
2 lbs. bone-in beef shank
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp oregano
3/4th tsp coriander seed
1/2 tsp of whole black peppercorn
1/2 tsp cumin seed
1 ancho dried chili
6 cloves garlic
2 plum tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 jalapeños
2 white onions
neutral cooking oil
cilantro
mexican cheese blend of your choice
tortillas (corn is preferable)
8 to 12 cups of water
Directions
In a pot with water combine ancho chili, jalapeños, three whole garlic cloves, and two chopped tomatoes. Bring to a boil.
Pour the above mixture into a blender and blend until smooth.
In a spice grinder, blend together coriander seed, cumin seed, and whole peppercorns.
Brown off the meat in a pot with some oil and add one chopped onion, tomato paste, salt, oregano and ground spice mix.
Add your blended sauce to the meat and mix well.
Cook the meat in a pressure cooker for 22 minutes.
Remove meat and shred with two forks.
Pour the consume from the pot into a separate container and either quickly dip the whole tortilla into the consume and place directly onto a hot pan or, toast one side of the tortilla and cover the other side with the consume, flip when the first side is toasted and repeat.
Add your cheese and meet and fold over the tortilla, melting the cheese and enclosing the meat inside.
Remove from pan and serve with chopped onion, cilantro and extra consume for dipping. Cheers!
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