Not just for Tuesdays: Shrimp, pork tacos with homemade tortillas are good any day of the week

I grew up on tacos made of ground beef seasoned with a packet of store-bought taco seasoning topped with cheddar cheese, iceberg lettuce, sliced black olives, and salsa, all inside of store-bought hard taco shells. As a child, I was always excited to see all the bowls filled with taco toppings on the kitchen table, as I knew this meant I was able to build my own taco and add all the extra cheese I wanted.

While I still like this version, I have also grown to appreciate many of the varieties offered at our local Mexican restaurant. Fillings like Al Pastor, carnitas, chicken tinga, pulled pork, carne asada, chorizo, and several vegetarian choices are all listed on their menu and have served as my inspiration to look for recipes beyond my tried-and-true ground beef taco.

I started experimenting with other recipes, ultimately combining favorite components from several. I am happy to share two of our favorites with you today: Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Lime Slaw and Pork Tenderloin Tacos with Pineapple Salsa and Pickled Red Onion.

The vehicle for my childhood taco was a hard corn shell, but most tacos I eat today are a soft version. Unfortunately, while I love the flavor of a corn tortilla, I don’t have the best luck having them hold together while I’m eating, so I often opt for a flour tortilla instead. That is until I found a recipe for a tortilla that uses a blend of both.

It is the perfect combination — half all-purpose flour and half masa harina, or corn flour (not to be mistaken for cornstarch, as they are two very different things). Masa harina is a type of flour made from dried corn kernels that are cooked and soaked in a calcium hydroxide solution to make hominy, which gives corn tortillas their recognizable flavor. After it has finished soaking, the kernels are rinsed, dried, and ground into a fine powder resembling flour.

The end result of combining equal parts of all-purpose flour and masa harina, along with a little salt, water and fat, was a beautiful, soft dough. Once rested, I divided one recipe into eight golf-ball sized balls and then pressed them individually between plastic with a glass pie plate before rolling each to a 6” or 7” circle. They cooked on top of the stove in a heated dry pan for a few minutes each and were done. It was so easy. I’m sure the recipe and technique is a bit unorthodox for some, but I thought they tasted great.

Taco filling can be almost anything these days. This recipe for shrimp tacos features seasoned seared shrimp topped with a delicious avocado lime coleslaw. As a final touch, it is finished with pieces of creamy avocado and some salty cheese. It is the perfect bite of food.

If you are looking for a taco with the perfect balance of salt, sweet and acid, try the pork tacos. Lean pork tenderloin is marinated and then seared until caramelized before it is nestled inside a warm tortilla and topped with fresh pineapple salsa. The cherry on top is pickled red onions and a drizzle of Sriracha mayonnaise. This little package of food is perfectly balanced and just as good, if not better, than the shrimp tacos.

I know many of us are trying to eat fewer carbs, so if you want to skip the tortilla, try one of these taco recipes as a bowl. I frequently use cauliflower rice as a base and pile on the toppings as if I were building a taco. They are very healthy and, most importantly, delicious. Of course, regular rice is good too.

Today is Wednesday, so if you are a fan of Taco Tuesdays you may have to wait until next week to try these. Trust me, it will be worth the wait. Personally, I can’t wait and will be eating them tonight!

• Penny Kazmier, a wife and mother of four from South Barrington, won the 2011 Daily Herald Cook of the Week Challenge. Contact Penny at DhCulinaryAdventures@gmail.com.

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Shrimp Tacos with Avocado Lime Slaw

For the dressing

½ ripe avocado

¼ cup water

¼ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup sliced green onions

½ cup cilantro leaves and stems

2 cloves of garlic

Juice of two limes, or ¼ cup

1 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt

For the slaw

14-16 ounce package coleslaw mix

¼ cup thinly sliced green onion

¼ cup chopped cilantro

½ jalapeño, seeds and ribs removed, minced

½ thinly sliced red bell pepper

½ cup thinly sliced red onion

For the shrimp

1½ pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined, shells and tails removed

2 teaspoons Old Bay or seafood seasoning (if your seafood seasoning doesn’t contain salt, you will want to also add some salt)

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon smoked paprika (or regular if you don’t have smoked)

1 tablespoon olive oil

8 tortillas

Diced avocado, crumbled Cotija cheese, and extra cilantro leaves to garnish if desired

To make the dressing for the slaw, combine the avocado, water, vegetable oil, ¼ cup of green onions, cilantro, garlic, lime juice, salt and sour cream or yogurt in a blender and process until combined. Taste and adjust seasoning and add a little extra water if necessary.

To make the slaw, combine the coleslaw mix, ¼ cup green onions, ¼ cup chopped cilantro, jalapeño, bell pepper and red onion in a large bowl. Top with dressing, stirring to combine. (You will have extra slaw, but don’t worry, it is good enough to eat by itself.)

Place shrimp on paper towels to dry. Combine the Old Bay, chili powder, paprika and olive oil in a bowl; stir to thoroughly coat shrimp.

Heat a skillet over medium heat and spray with cooking spray or lightly oil. Add shrimp in a single layer. Cook until lightly browned and turn; cooking only another minute or so. Do not overcook.

To assemble the tacos, place cooked shrimp in a tortilla, top with slaw and garnish with avocado, cilantro and a sprinkle of cheese.

Makes 8 tacos.

— Penny Kazmier

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Pork Tenderloin Tacos with Pineapple Salsa and Pickled Red Onion

2 pork tenderloins, cut into ½-inch cubes

1 minced jalapeño, ribs and seeds removed

4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed

2 tablespoons soy sauce

4 tablespoons sugar

Juice of half a lime

1 teaspoon oregano

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

For the pineapple salsa

3 cups chopped fresh pineapple

1 cup chopped seedless cucumber*

½ cup chopped cilantro

½ cup chopped red onion

½ cup minced red bell pepper

1 minced jalapeño, ribs and seeds removed

Juice of ½ lime

½ teaspoon to 1 teaspoon salt

For the pickled red onion

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup apple cider vinegar

1 cup water

1 thinly sliced red onion**

For the Sriracha mayo

½ cup mayonnaise

¼ cup Sriracha, or your favorite hot sauce

12-18 tortillas

Cilantro and lime wedges for serving

Place pork and jalapeño in a large zip-top bag or bowl. Combine garlic, soy sauce, sugar, lime juice and oregano; stir to combine and to dissolve as much sugar as possible. Add to pork mixture and stir to thoroughly coat. Place in refrigerator and allow to sit at least 15 minutes, but no more than 3 hours.

While the pork is marinating, prepare the pineapple salsa, pickled red onion and Sriracha mayo. (You can also make these ahead of time.)

To make the pineapple salsa, stir the pineapple, cucumber, cilantro, red onion, red pepper, jalapeño and lime juice together in bowl; stir. Allow to sit 30 minutes and then taste and adjust salt. You will have extra salsa, so be sure to have tortilla chips on hand.

To make the pickled red onion, combine salt and sugar in a bowl. Add vinegar and water; stir until sugar and salt dissolve. Add sliced onion and allow to sit at room temperature for 1 hour. Refrigerate if not using immediately.

To make the Sriracha mayo, combine mayonnaise and Sriracha; place in small squirt bottle or small bowl. (A small zip-top bag is great, too. Snip the corner and it makes it easy to drizzle.)

Heat heavy skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil to hot pan. Using a slotted spoon, place half the pork in a pan, spreading evenly to cover the bottom of the pan. Allow to cook, undisturbed, approximately 4-5 minutes. Stir and distribute into a single layer again; cook an additional 3 to 4 minutes, or until pork begins to brown. Remove from pan and cover to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining pork. Discard any remaining liquid.

To assemble the tacos, warm tortillas individually in a dry pan or griddle on top of stove; place on plate and cover with towel to maintain warmth. Top tortillas with pork, salsa and pickled onions. Drizzle with a little Sriracha mayonnaise and garnish with cilantro leaves. Serve with an extra squeeze of lime.

Serves 6-8.

Notes: *Cucumber has a very high water content, so I like to chop the cucumber and then allow it to sit in a single layer on paper towels for 10 minutes prior to combining with the rest of the ingredients. **I frequently reuse this brine by adding more onion.

— Penny Kazmier

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The Perfect Tortilla — Corn and Flour

1 cup Masa Harina (found in the Latin aisle of the grocery store)

1 cup all-purpose flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil or lard

¾ cup warm water

Combine Masa Harina, flour and salt in large bowl. Combine oil and warm water; add to flour mixture and stir with spoon (or in mixer, but don’t over mix) to combine. Pour out onto counter and knead gently to combine the remaining dry ingredients into a soft dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and allow to sit on counter 10 to 15 minutes.

Heat a heavy skillet or griddle over medium heat until hot. (I used a cast iron griddle.) While pan is heating, prepare to roll out tortillas: Slice one side of a gallon size zip-top bag, so you have two open sides. You will also need a heavy flat surface (I used the bottom of a clear pie plate), a rolling pin and a ruler.

Separate dough into equal pieces and roll into golf ball size balls. Place one ball in the center of the inside of the zip-top bag and cover with other side of bag. Press ball down with bottom of pie plate and use rolling pin to roll to even thickness 6- to 7-inch circle. (Mine were not perfect.) Lift top plastic sheet and place tortilla in your hand, carefully removing the plastic.

Place rolled dough into dry hot pan and cook until small brown spots form, approximately 45 to 60 seconds; flip and cook on the second side. Remove to a plate. Continue with other tortillas. I was able to roll out the next tortilla while the prior cooked, so the entire cooking process didn’t take very long. Tortillas can be made ahead of time and reheated quickly in a hot pan.

Once cooled, tortillas should be wrapped tightly and stored in the refrigerator.

Makes eight 6-inch tortillas.

— Penny Kazmier