I’m here to share a love story recipe with you that exemplifies how sometimes food and learned lessons go beyond our kitchen. The ingredients include fresh dough and family. Sirloin steak and a husband who thinks cayenne pepper is always the answer. Mushrooms and a two-year old reaching for every sharp knife on the counter. Avocados and an 11-year old playing A-Ha’s “Take on me” on the piano. Onions, hot peppers and a six-year old bouncing a football off walls. Lime juice and a 13-year-old working on patience with an indefinite sequestration. Salt and pepper, and a mom who is realizing she’s been presented with a gift.
I love the slow process of making savory pho or homemade pizza dough. But I’ve noticed my relationship with cooking was not transferring to my kids. They are quick to choose whatever is easiest and resist anything that takes a little bit more time and thought to prepare. I want them to appreciate the effort it takes to make a favorite meal, to not be afraid of the work involved, and to enjoy and share the fruits of their labor.
The time and energy to prioritize this goal has been lacking. Enter coronavirus 2020 and suddenly – time stopped. I started inviting the boys into the kitchen with me to share my joy of cooking and on this particular evening, we were making street tacos with homemade tortillas.
Four cups of flour, presently a scarce commodity, felt gratuitous. I imagined my dad, planting and harvesting wheat each year, and am suddenly mindful of all the subsequent steps and unknown people along the supply chain that dutifully and consistently delivered this product to us. We combined our sacred flour, baking soda, salt, water, and butter and kneaded until smooth. Kneading allows proteins in the flour to bond to one another and strengthen over time to create a perfectly soft and smooth dough, just right for making tortillas. The more time spent mixing, the stronger the bonds in the dough become, much like our families during this unique time. Siblings serve their families by helping one another with school work, taking care of the younger ones, and making meals for each other. Bonds form between board games, movie making and watching, baseball and football games, and learning new skills.
Next, it was time for the dough to rest so the bonds could relax. Adequate resting time makes it easier to form the new shape of the dough. If enough resting time isn’t provided, the dough will revert back to its original form. Our families and our world are in quarantine, a forced resting state. My family is reforming. Our world is reforming. We do not know how long this period will be, but we can guess it will be long enough that we may not fit back into our original shape and neither will our relationships. Depending on the shape we take – it can be a good thing.
Meanwhile, the steak and mushrooms marinated in a combination of lime juice, oil, garlic, cumin, and chili powder. We chopped up veggies and rolled out the dough into its new shapes to make our tortillas. I brought down the heavy cast iron skillet, an indication of a special meal, to cook first the tortillas and then the steak. A playlist curated by the boys provided background ambiance for the percussion of chopped vegetables and the musical sizzling of onions and peppers in the pan. Food and dishes everywhere, an endless joyful mess as the aroma, laughter, teamwork, and lively conversation saturated the kitchen.
We filled our freshly made tortillas with steak, mushrooms, onions, and peppers. We topped them with avocado and a squeeze of lime. The cool avocado paired perfectly with the hot steak and mushrooms, the six-year old laughed with the thirteen-year old. The spice from the peppers danced with the sweet lime juice. The combination of flavors lingered long after dinner was over.
Something else stayed with me all evening: the way it felt for my whole family to come together in preparation of the meal. A newfound love of cooking and appreciation for our food. The image of the flour being formed into a new and different substance and the vital role rest played in the process. Onions coming to life with oil and heat. Young and old bonding through experience, music, and food. And a deep appreciation of those who make sacrifices every day so my family had the luxury to sit and share in this meal together. Life may never be the same as it was pre-coronavirus. But, with the right focus, maybe our new shape can be even better.
Thank you again to all the essential workers during this time.
Street Tacos & Homemade Tortillas
Ingredients:
- 4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 6 tbsp butter, softened and cut into pieces
- 1 1/3 cup warm water
- 4 tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce
- 4 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 1/2 lbs sirloin steak, cut into 1/2″ pieces
- 16 oz sliced mushrooms
- 1 onion sliced
- 2 jalapenos
- 1 lime, cut into wedges
- Avocado
Tortillas: We used this super simple recipe.
- Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt in a large electric mixer bowl. Add in the water and butter.
- Mix on a low speed until a dough is formed. Add in small amounts of flour at a time so the dough clears the sides of the bowl but still sticks to the bottom. Knead on medium speed for 5 minutes.
- Dump the dough onto a work surface and divide it into 20 equal balls. Cover the balls with clear plastic wrap and let rest for 60 minutes.
- Heat a large cast iron skillet. Roll out the balls of dough into 6″ circles. Cook the tortillas for 20 seconds on each side. Keep warm in microwave or in oven until ready to eat.
Street Tacos: Inspired by this recipe on Damn Delicious.
- Combine the lime juice, soy sauce, olive oil, garlic, cumin, chili powder, and oregano. Pour half of the marinade over the steak and the other half over the mushroom, pepper, and onion combo. Let both sit for at least an hour.
- Saute the veggies in a pan over high heat and keep warm until ready to eat.
- Pour 1 tbsp olive oil into the cast iron skillet after cooking the tortillas. Add the steak, cook on medium high until cooked through, about 5-7 minutes.
- Assemble the tacos with steak, veggies, avocado, and a squeeze of lime.
