Homemade Chorizo and Tacos

I made chorizo at home- woohoo!

And it was delicious.

If you struggle to find good chorizo near where you live, you must give this a try. This is easy.

Now, mexican and spanish chorizos are different. Spanish chorizo is cured and can be directly sliced and eaten but mexican chorizo is spicy, crumbly, red sausage that I have come to love over the years. The red color in mexican chorizo comes from ancho chili powder. I didn't have ancho chili powder, so substituted it with paprika and red chili powder. Also, the great thing about mexican chorizo is that you don't need casings!

Sometimes 1 lb of chorizo is not enough for me- I mean think about all the possibilities, all the things you can make with it. Chorizo burrito with eggs and potato for breakfast, breakfast in a cup with chorizo, potato and chorizo omelette, chorizo chili, chorizo tacos.

I made chorizo tacos with homemade mango salsa. The spiciness of the chorizo was perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the mango salsa. Or you can serve it up with my very favorite Pico de Gallo.

You need (for 1 lb chorizo)

1 lb ground pork (20% fat)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1½ teaspoon cayenne
1½ teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon cumin powder
¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder
¼ teaspoon cloves powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup apple cider vinegar

For tacos:

6 corn tortillas
Fresh homemade mango salsa with roasted red pepper


How:

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Wrap them in clear wrap like sausage shape (this is not necessary) and refrigerate for at least 4 hrs or overnight.

 


Heat a pan on medium heat and brown the chorizo. Make sure that it is cooked all the way through by cutting into one of the sausages. You can also crumble the chorizo and cook.

Divide the chorizo into six parts.

Warm up the corn tortillas. Add the chorizo, top it with mango salsa. Squeeze a little bit of lemon juice on it and serve with freshly chopped cilantro for a wonderful mexican meal.

Breakfast In a Cup

I don't know about you, but everyday morning is a rush time. And time is almost always cut short from breakfast! No time to sit down and have breakfast. Do you also want breakfast to go? This is the perfect recipe. Have it in your car, at the bus stop, train station anywhere. Also, the best part is: make it ahead, refrigerate or freeze, pop it in the microwave for a min and a satisfying breakfast ready in no time.

It has eggs, sausage and cheese in a tortilla cup. Satisfying and fulfilling breakfast!

Also, I'll let you in a little secret- I like this so much, I don't just eat it for breakfast. I love it as an afternoon snacks. Put some ketchup or hot sauce on it and enjoy :)

Doesn't this look pretty?

You can see all the sausage and egg in there. I used spicy italian sausage. If you are in no mood to eat spicy sausage in the morning, no problem, switch with breakfast sausage or even chicken or ham.

You need (for 12 cups):

9 eggs

1½ cup ground sausage (I used spicy italian sausage. You may use breakfast sausage, ground chicken, turkey or even ham)

6 tortillas (I used uncooked flour tortilla. You may use cooked flour tortilla, corn tortilla- for gluten free options)

⅓ chopped cilantro (You may skip this or use parsley or wilted spinach)

½ cup chopped scallions

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I used a mix of Cheddar and Jack)

Salt and pepper to taste

Cooking oil spray 

How:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Brown the sausage in a skillet on medium heat. Drain the excess fat on a paper towel and let it cool. If using breakfast sausage links, brown them and cut into small pieces.

In the meantime, whisk the eggs with scallions, cilantro with salt and pepper and keep aside.

Cut the flour tortillas into halves.

Start the assembly. Oil spray a 12 muffin pan. Place one half of the tortilla or two quarters or three pieces (whichever works for you) in the muffin cup overlapping such that the bottom of the cup is covered. Press the tortillas gently in to the cups. The edges of the tortilla should stick up higher than the muffin cup sides. Oil spray the inside of the tortilla cup.

Equally distribute the sausage in all the cups. Add the egg mixture over the sausage. Top it with cheese.

Bake for 20 min until the eggs are firm. Check with a toothpick.

If you want to store them for later, cool them and put in a large (gallon) freezer bag and store in your refrigerator for the next few days. Put it in the microwave for a min to warm them up.


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