Slow Cooked Tacos

Slow Cooker Tacos

with appreciation and thanks to The D. Cajun, with paraphrasing thrown in,

Ingredients:

1. chuck roast  [ OR chicken, pork or lamb leg] to suit number of people
2. onion/s, 
3. tomatoe/s, 
4. enchiladas [fresh or jar
5. Two teaspoons minced garlic [ or half a clove per person ]
6. taco shells, 
7. taco seasoning [Old El Paso taco kit which contains both the shells and taco seasoning] or a jar of Hot Salsa Sauce.
8. half teaspoons of ground hot spices like Cumin/ Coriander/ Hot Cayenne Pepper/  hot paprika, and plenty of pepper
9. good shake of Lowery's seasoning (if you can get it....)-
10. 1/2 cup water or beef stock- adds a nice flavor. 
11. quarter cup vinegar
12. two teaspoon dark sugar
13. pinto beans previously soaked for at least a day or can of refried beans
14. a slow cooker.

Procedures

1. dice up the onion/ tomato/ garlic and put it in the bottom of your slow cooker.
2. place roast on top of the onions, 
3. pour in half a cup stock or water over it all.
4. cover meat with the spices, vinegar, sugar, enchilada and minced garlic and a packet of taco seasoning blend. 
5. Add soaked beans 
6. put the lid on, turn it to low, and go about your day. 
7. try to mix it up periodically, and try to mash up towards the end
8. These taco meats needs at least 8 hours on low in the slow cooker.  I usually start before bedtime, waking up to a strange smell in the kitchen that makes the mouth water.
9. To finish off.  It will literally be falling apart.  Use 2 forks to shred the meat, and mash ingredients up.

About 20 minutes before you are ready to eat, prepare your taco fillings, taco shells or tortillas, sour cream, cheeses like Parmesan.

And that was crissy

Crissy- done and dusted

Pre Christmas

This time with my Mum and Dad- at the beach- windy and chilly- not summery at all. The folks appear to be coping on the outside, but not 100% well: Mum in the electric wheel chair and Dad and his 'oh-ow' shoulder... but he was planning an around the bay voyage with my brother  Mum says he lights up when Irene is involved

Christmas 

Dee's Pete gave her a new car to go with the hoose...

Quiet enough Chrissy Day with my wife's family sans her dad- ill. Turned out a late long night, nice company. The gels loved their pool. Of course. [Poppy is still not well either.]

There was my family's big do other side of the Big Smoke- sort of missed that atmosphere- twenty odd family- or more- wait- 5 sibs, plus pardners, plus ankle biters and YA- yeah- more than that. Anyway- we missed filling up over there- but definitely not missing out back here with Dee.

Thursday night out too, with Steve and Fran, the gels disappeared down the other end of the house.

New Year

Funny old night out at the nu hoose wif a pool- gels again disappeared down other end of hoose, but so not really invisible- "do not enter hoose wif wet feet" again and again! Anyway- another nice nite with taco mix and soft tortia and their friends. And nice Rockfords Black Shiraz '04 that no one else wanted to try- to early? It was sweetish too, very nice, lasted the whole evening- no guzzling on my part! There was some loud bangs at - oh- about midnight? And a swim for me too. next day not bad at all- read a book.

Rest of the Year?

Hopefully more work through Skye or as a consultant geo on a rig, as the government is pulling out of family support for single dads, the utility company bills and local shire taxes going up are gunna drown me... I think the four kids are going to survive with or without me, they can sort of cook and clean and get to school themselves...

Yeah, better be  better year all round, looking for that sunshine is getting harder.

My Dad has a trick

Does your dad do this?

Since I was a kid, he would shock kids, like a cousin or nephew, or his grandkids. How?
By doing an....

 Alien impression...

And another one gone again

Yesterday was Tarn's birthday

A slow day really. 

No grave visit this year- cold and windy, but maybe when it's nice again. Just getting too sad really. I think I am over it, but then the kids get a little upset.

Her twin gels cooked up one of her favourite dishes for dinner, Tuna Mornay, and I got a chocolate mud cake for desert.

Just the four of us this year, but tomorrow, a small get together with her dad and his bride.

That'll be okay.

Family Cooking (IV) Tuna Mornay

Tuna Mornay
A Main Meal

With full acknowledgments to Tarn, Bev and Dee

As a kid, I liked fish two ways, tuna from the can, and battered deep fried flake (gummy shark). Adelaide, the Eighties, Tarnia tried to get me to eat her favourite fish dinner- salmon patties. "Yeah but Nah, thanks Tarn.", then got me with the Tuna Mornay instead, oh yummy! Of course, tuna was not her fave...

Family Cooking (III) Quiche

Quiche and Baked Potato
Tarnia's way


For four people.

This is the first of two ways I get the kids to eat cheese and eggs...

Mothers

Happy Mothers Day to my Mum.
And to Bev's memory too. My Granma and Nanny.

I wish I could say it all to Tarn. All eighteen times. Those missing ten times...

Family Cooking (II) Chow Mien

Tarn's Chow Mien


With one so favourable comment- let me do another Tarn recipe, one that she says she got off her mum. I think after ten years I may have changed the basics, but the kids and their cousins and their aunts like it.

Family Cooking (I) Mexican style

Recipes Mexican style


I want to start a family favourite recipes collection. My marriage to Tarn was a delight as far as food goes. And this is way to honour her memory and recipes! Our cholesterol count was great. One time her's was higher which was hilarious, because Oil Rig food is not supposed to be that healthy! I welcome a contribution, as the first post will be recipes that have stirred me the last fortnight and share, inspired by three people.

In the mid 80's, Tarn and I were living next door to King's Park on Park Ave in Crawley, Western Australia. For a birthday, we went to a local Mexican restaurant and she persuaded me to try an avocado dip. I was not that into hot stuff or avocado, but the dip blew me away. Tarn said she had the recipe back at the flat. Great!