Crispy Ground Beef Tacos Recipe

Tacos have been one of the few things I do well and that's probably because I've been making them since I was a teenager. In this recipe I'll also show you how easy it is to make crispy taco shells. Nobody should ever have to suffer through store bought crispy shells. You can also replace the beef with diced up chicken breast.

Here's what you'll need. This makes about 10 tacos. Cook and prep time is about 45 minutes.

1lb ground beef
1 med. onion
1 container of fresh salsa (mild/med/hot your choice)
1 teaspoon cumin powder
1-2 tomatoes
1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.
1 head of lettuce
1 package of corn tortillas (12 count)
1 cup of vegetable oil (enough to fill your fry pan about 1/2 inch)
1 can refried beans (if you want to stretch your beef to make more tacos)

I'm hungry already, it must be lunch time.

Chop of the onions as small as you like.

Add onions and ground beef to largish fry pan.

Put them on medium heat and mix them up.

Once the beef is browned.

Add 1 teaspon of cumin.

Add all of the fresh salsa.

Mix and cook for about 15-20 minutes. Do not cover. You don't want it too wet at the end, but it will be juicy.

Grate your cheese.

Sharpen your knife. Cut up the tomatoes.

Wash and dry your lettuce.

Pour your vegetable oil in an 8" fry pan.

Put it on med/low heat. You can test if it's ready by putting a small dash of water from your finger and if it starts popping, you're ready.

Each tortilla will only take a couple of minutes to cook.

Place a tortilla in the oil, after a minute or so, flip it, then take it out. You'll have to experiment to see how crispy you like your shells, the longer you cook them, the crispier they will get. If you make them way ahead of time, don't make them too crispy, then you can warm them in the oven just before you're ready to eat without them getting too hard.

Place your shells on a paper grocery bag or a bunch of paper towels to soak up the excess oil.

Now put your tacos together with quantities that fit your appetite.

Put in the beef.

Then the cheese.

Then the tomatoes.

Then the lettuce.

My favorite step, beer and tacos. It's usually my second as I can't resist having one while I'm cooking.

If you were thinking ahead, you would already have a beer glass in the freezer.