Spicy Chicken Tacos

I made tacos for the first time. I have always liked tacos, but since most places serve it with beef, which I don't eat,  I would always ask that they leave out the beef, just veggies, taco sauce and cheese.  I have gotten a lot of "what???" reaction with my request.  I've been meaning to make tacos myself for quite some time but have not really gotten around to doing it.  A couple of weeks ago I was glancing over some old issues of Yummy and found this recipe for chicken tacos so I had to make it.  The taco feast that I prepared had gotten such excellent feedback from the whole family, I think from now on we will be having tacos often at our house. 

Prepping and cooking this dish took quite a while but when I took that first bite two things popped in my head. The first was this is so delicious, why did I not make this before, and the second was when can I make this again, would tomorrow be too soon? 

The Little Ones had a fun time assembling their tacos, they made quite a mess with taco sauce all over their faces and fingers.  Our first taco fiesta was a great time, we hope to have another one soon. 

Here is the recipe:

Spicy Chicken 

1/2 kilo boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets cut into strips (if you prefer beef use 1/2 kilo lean ground beef)

1 medium white onion, minced

1/2 tsp cumin

2 tbsp chili powder

3/4 tsp cayenne powder

2 tbsps vegetable oil

2 tbsps tomato paste

1/4 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

1. In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, saute onion with cumin, chili powder and cayenne pepper in 2 tbsps vegetable oil for 2 minutes.

2. Stir in the chicken and cook until the meant just turns opaque.

3. Add tomato paste and water and give the mixture a good stir.  Lower flame to medium-low and let simmer an additional 4 to 5 minutes, until the meat is cooked through.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Taco Sauce Recipe

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium white onion, minced

1 tsp cumin

3 tbsps chili powder

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 cup water

1 250-gram pack tomato sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1. In a medium pot over medium-low heat, saute onion and garlic with cumin, chili powder and cayenne pepper in oil until the onion is translucent.  Add the tomato sauce and water; bring to a simmer.

2. Let simmer for 6 to 8 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. 

Then layer the ingredients in the taco shell.  Usually you start with the lettuce, then the meat, some salsa if you like, then cheese and taco sauce.  But I do mine with some chicken first then lots of lettuce and salsa, then a little cheese topped with some taco sauce.  Do it any way you want, that's the fun of doing this dish at home, you can have fun with it.