Vegetable Tacos: the Perfect Quick Summer Meal
Anna Bond
Summer is taco season! Whether it’s the hurried late-night bite-on-the-run from your local truck or the rushed and crowded (but worth it) findings at your local "upscale" taco emporium, nothing beats a taco’s combination of intensely-flavored filling, spicy salsa, and cooling garnishes for the perfect quick summer meal.
Café Cyan uses the grill to its full potential with this recipe for grilled vegetable tacos with charred pineapple salsa. She marinates red onions, summer squash, and mushrooms in a chili-lime mixture before grilling, and tops them with a simple salsa of pineapple—its sweetness enhanced by its own time on the grill—Serrano peppers, onion, cilantro, and lime juice.
Kitchen Illiterate eschews the oven method of roasting peppers for a traditional rajas taco, and instead sautés them along with sweet onions in vegetable stock to create a spicy sauce. She garnishes with queso fresco for contrast, as well as the obligatory lime and cilantro.
The “meaty” character of mushrooms make them a natural taco filling candidate; The Militant Carnivore uses heavy cream to enhance their richness, as well as some cooked quinoa for body, in his recipe for classic tacos con hongos.
And while the renowned fried avocado tacos from the legendary Torchy’s in Austin can’t be called “light” by any stretch of the imagination, this sesame, quinoa, and poppy seed-crusted fried avocado taco recipe—created by Too Hot Tamales for the California Avocado Council—incorporates a fresh corn relish for balance.
Shredded zucchini are a natural for taco filling in terms of texture and their tendency to absorb flavors well. The goat cheese and scallions really make the flavors sing.
Zucchini tacos
Filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, cut into thin sauté slice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
3 medium zucchini, shredded
Sea salt
Toppings:
Corn tortillas
Salsa or chili sauce of your choice (I made my own with reconstituted dried ancho chiles + canned tomatoes, pureed then cooked down for about 15 minutes with cumin, cayenne, and salt, then mixed with fresh lime juice just before serving)
Goat cheese
Chopped cilantro or Italian parsley
Minced scallions
Lime wedges
Filling:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, cut into thin sauté slice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon red chili flakes
3 medium zucchini, shredded
Sea salt
Toppings:
Corn tortillas
Salsa or chili sauce of your choice (I made my own with reconstituted dried ancho chiles + canned tomatoes, pureed then cooked down for about 15 minutes with cumin, cayenne, and salt, then mixed with fresh lime juice just before serving)
Goat cheese
Chopped cilantro or Italian parsley
Minced scallions
Lime wedges
Procedure:
Cook onion in a 12” skillet with a sprinkle of salt until softened, about 10 minutes; turn up heat and cook, stirring, until golden.
While onion is softening, pile zucchini into a clean kitchen towel and squeeze until most moisture seems to be released.
Add cumin and chili flakes to onions and cook, stirring, for one minute. Add zucchini, several more sprinkles of salt, and stir to combine. Cook, covered, until zucchini is softened, about five minutes; uncover and cook until excess moisture is absorbed.
Adjust seasonings and service on warmed tortillas with toppings.
Cook onion in a 12” skillet with a sprinkle of salt until softened, about 10 minutes; turn up heat and cook, stirring, until golden.
While onion is softening, pile zucchini into a clean kitchen towel and squeeze until most moisture seems to be released.
Add cumin and chili flakes to onions and cook, stirring, for one minute. Add zucchini, several more sprinkles of salt, and stir to combine. Cook, covered, until zucchini is softened, about five minutes; uncover and cook until excess moisture is absorbed.
Adjust seasonings and service on warmed tortillas with toppings.
