Beef & Bean Tacos
Ah, the American taco…It’s hard to imagine a time without this beloved staple, but until the 1960s-70s, Mexican food was not widely available in the United States.
In the second season of my favorite show of all time Mad Men, we see Donald Draper, the worldly, street smart protagonist, perplexed and intrigued when he was presented with a “pepper filled with cheese.”
Suffice it to say that there were no food trucks serving carne asada back in the 60s. I had never seen a taco truck myself until after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Even still, American food has been influenced by Mexican flavors for decades.
Back in the day, though, what we had on Taco Night was ground beef, browned in a skillet with a packet of dry taco seasoning, and then stuffed into a hard corn taco shell, topped with diced tomatoes, shredded iceberg lettuce, cheese, maybe some sour cream and taco sauce.
You know, the Taco Bell version of dinner, courtesy of the American family table.
Even though we should probably be a little ashamed of Americanizing one of the best inventions known to man, there is something nostalgic about an American style taco. Sticking with the Mad Men theme here, Don Draper tells us about nostalgia early in the series in a pitch to win over Kodak,
Nostalgia – its delicate, but potent…in Greek nostalgia literally means ‘the pain from an old wound. ‘ It’s a twinge in your heart far more powerful than memory alone.
Maybe this is a little dramatic when referring to a dinner that takes less than 15 minutes to make, but we’ve been making it for generations now, so that should count for something. And these days (and by “these days,” I mean the days of COVID-19), it’s nice to enjoy something that reminds us of comfort and familiarity.
My version of the classic American style taco isn’t exactly what we ate as kids. I add beans to the beef and use my own homemade taco seasoning instead of a store bought packet. Also, I discovered Bon Appetit‘s method for browning meat, which you can find here. It only takes a few extra minutes, but it results in crispy, brown meat, as opposed to the steamy, gray meat of the past.
Still, the flavors of these tacos will remind you of the taco nights of yore when you weren’t concerned about anything but the sh*t just tasting good.
Still, the flavors of these tacos will remind you of the taco nights of yore when you weren’t concerned about anything but the sh*t just tasting good.
Beef and Bean Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 pound 85/15 ground beef
- Taco Seasoning (homemade or store bought packet)
- 15 ounce can chili beans
- Taco shells (hard or soft)
- Optional toppings: shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sour cream, shredded cheese, salsa, taco sauce, avocado
Instructions
- Pat ground beef dry with paper towels and let it come to room temperature.
- Meanwhile, set a 12 inch skillet to medium heat.
- Add meat, breaking it up into hot skillet.
- Press, or smash, meat into pan and let it brown, undisturbed, for 3-5 minutes.
- Flip meat in sections with a large spatula.
- Allow to brown another 3-5 minutes.
- Stir in taco seasoning, breaking up the meat, and then add chili beans with liquid.
- Let the beef and bean mixture heat through.