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As my brother and I sat down earlier this week to eat our third and fourth tacos of the day, what dawned on me was not that there was anything wrong with this eating pattern but rather that it was so natural I would have no problem eating tacos the next day as well. The thing is, my two-taco lunch (carnitas in a soft shell and shredded chicken in a hard shell) had been so unlike my two-taco dinner (vegetarian in a hard shell and ground turkey in a soft shell) that they indeed felt like extremely different meals.
This got me thinking: if I was stuck on a desert island and I had to choose to eat one dish for the rest of my life it would probably be the Vietnamese noodle soup, phó. However, if I was told I’d have to eat tacos every meal of every day for the rest of my life, I’d be more than okay with that scenario, I might even be excited.
Loving the taco is not difficult when one has grown up in Southern California as I did surrounded by some of the best Mexican restaurants to be found in this country. Even now, within a quarter mile of my front door I have the choice of three different Mexican restaurants each boasting their own versions of the humble taco. And should the craving arise and a quarter mile is too far, I need do no more than take a walk to my refrigerator where I can open it to find all the fixings to make my taco dream come true.
The taco is a decidedly Mexican invention even if time has changed its interpretation as the dish has spread across borders. It is thought that a version of a taco in the form of small fish wrapped in a maize pancake was being consumed in what is now Mexico at the time Cortez and his men struck land. The name “taco” can be loosely translated from Spanish into “plug”, as in a light lunch to literally fill a hole.
As the dish evolved in Mexican cuisine, the fish taco served on small corn tortillas remained, but whole new creations emerged as well, becoming part of the culinary landscape. Pork seasoned with adobo (al pastor), shrimp (camarones), cow tongue (lingua), and taquitos, or fried rolled tacos, are just a few of the tacos we can find today on either side of the border.
In some senses, a taco is not too unlike a sandwich. In both cases a carbohydrate based casing is used to hold some filling combination of meat, vegetables, and/or cheese--all the basic food groups in one tidy package. Also, both the sandwich and the taco are designed to eat with one’s hands, the perfect versatile on-the-go food for a snack or a meal.
However, the two differ in that I would argue a sandwich is truly the sum of its parts, mediocre bread will make for a mediocre sandwich. Whereas with the taco, although the tortilla is important, a quick look at the ratio of filling to casing makes apparent that the tortilla is there in no more than a supporting role, as a vehicle to deliver the delicious filling to an eager mouth. Which means even if you aren’t blessed with an authentic Mexican bakery delivering tortillas to your local market, even the most generic store-bought tortilla can make for a fine meal if the filling is truly excellent.
The miracle of the modern taco is, with the help of a little Mexican-American ingenuity, the tortilla has grown to support any number of fillings. It is not unusual to find scrambled eggs and cheese on soft flour tortillas for delicious breakfast tacos. The now ubiquitous hard shell taco, a deep fried corn tortilla in a convenient U-shape, is the appropriate receptacle for anything from seasoned ground beef to refried beans and cheese for a sort of folded over tostada. Pork, beef, and chicken are all regulars on the taco scene but interesting vegetarian choices like squash blossoms with corn and cotija cheese or nopales (cactus) and mushroom make for a yummy change of pace from the normal taco shop offering.
Man may not be able to live on bread alone, but tacos might just get one through a long and happy life. As authentic or nouveau as you want them to be, a tortilla with some filling can plug a hole in the mid-afternoon, stack up for a filling end of day meal, or even get your day started on the right foot for a hearty breakfast. There is no right or wrong way to eat a taco. Experiment enough and you too might find the taco to be a tasty way to eat almost--or every--day.
©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/1066-tacos/
Yes, Man Can Live On Taco Alone
As my brother and I sat down earlier this week to eat our third and fourth tacos of the day, what dawned on me was not that there was anything wrong with this eating pattern but rather that it was so natural I would have no problem eating tacos the next day as well. The thing is, my two-taco lunch (carnitas in a soft shell and shredded chicken in a hard shell) had been so unlike my two-taco dinner (vegetarian in a hard shell and ground turkey in a soft shell) that they indeed felt like extremely different meals.
This got me thinking: if I was stuck on a desert island and I had to choose to eat one dish for the rest of my life it would probably be the Vietnamese noodle soup, phó. However, if I was told I’d have to eat tacos every meal of every day for the rest of my life, I’d be more than okay with that scenario, I might even be excited.
Loving the taco is not difficult when one has grown up in Southern California as I did surrounded by some of the best Mexican restaurants to be found in this country. Even now, within a quarter mile of my front door I have the choice of three different Mexican restaurants each boasting their own versions of the humble taco. And should the craving arise and a quarter mile is too far, I need do no more than take a walk to my refrigerator where I can open it to find all the fixings to make my taco dream come true.
The taco is a decidedly Mexican invention even if time has changed its interpretation as the dish has spread across borders. It is thought that a version of a taco in the form of small fish wrapped in a maize pancake was being consumed in what is now Mexico at the time Cortez and his men struck land. The name “taco” can be loosely translated from Spanish into “plug”, as in a light lunch to literally fill a hole.
As the dish evolved in Mexican cuisine, the fish taco served on small corn tortillas remained, but whole new creations emerged as well, becoming part of the culinary landscape. Pork seasoned with adobo (al pastor), shrimp (camarones), cow tongue (lingua), and taquitos, or fried rolled tacos, are just a few of the tacos we can find today on either side of the border.
In some senses, a taco is not too unlike a sandwich. In both cases a carbohydrate based casing is used to hold some filling combination of meat, vegetables, and/or cheese--all the basic food groups in one tidy package. Also, both the sandwich and the taco are designed to eat with one’s hands, the perfect versatile on-the-go food for a snack or a meal.
However, the two differ in that I would argue a sandwich is truly the sum of its parts, mediocre bread will make for a mediocre sandwich. Whereas with the taco, although the tortilla is important, a quick look at the ratio of filling to casing makes apparent that the tortilla is there in no more than a supporting role, as a vehicle to deliver the delicious filling to an eager mouth. Which means even if you aren’t blessed with an authentic Mexican bakery delivering tortillas to your local market, even the most generic store-bought tortilla can make for a fine meal if the filling is truly excellent.
The miracle of the modern taco is, with the help of a little Mexican-American ingenuity, the tortilla has grown to support any number of fillings. It is not unusual to find scrambled eggs and cheese on soft flour tortillas for delicious breakfast tacos. The now ubiquitous hard shell taco, a deep fried corn tortilla in a convenient U-shape, is the appropriate receptacle for anything from seasoned ground beef to refried beans and cheese for a sort of folded over tostada. Pork, beef, and chicken are all regulars on the taco scene but interesting vegetarian choices like squash blossoms with corn and cotija cheese or nopales (cactus) and mushroom make for a yummy change of pace from the normal taco shop offering.
Man may not be able to live on bread alone, but tacos might just get one through a long and happy life. As authentic or nouveau as you want them to be, a tortilla with some filling can plug a hole in the mid-afternoon, stack up for a filling end of day meal, or even get your day started on the right foot for a hearty breakfast. There is no right or wrong way to eat a taco. Experiment enough and you too might find the taco to be a tasty way to eat almost--or every--day.
Shredded Chicken and Tomatillo Tacos
Made with chicken stock, ground cumin, vegetable oil, onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper, chicken thighs, salt and pepper, tomatillos, cilantro
Made with chicken stock, ground cumin, vegetable oil, onion, garlic, jalapeno pepper, chicken thighs, salt and pepper, tomatillos, cilantro
Serves/Makes: 8
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 small onion, sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced
- 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- salt and pepper
- 6 tomatillos, husks removed, rinsed, and quartered
- 1/2 small bunch cilantro, stems and leaves chopped separately
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 8 corn tortillas, warmed
***Optional***
- shredded cheese
- chopped tomato
- chopped onion
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and jalapeno and cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes.
Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Add the chicken, tomatillos, cilantro stems, cumin, and chicken stock to the skillet. Bring the stock to a boil then cover the skillet and reduce the heat to a simmer. Let cook for 10 minutes.
Remove the lid and turn the chicken over. Cook for 10 minutes, uncovered, or until the chicken is cooked through.
Remove the pan from the heat and shred the chicken in the sauce. Stir in the cilantro leaves. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper as needed.
Serve the chicken and sauce on the warmed tortillas, topped with cheese, tomato, and onion, as desired.
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©2026 CDKitchen, Inc. No reproduction or distribution of any portion of this article is allowed without express permission from CDKitchen, Inc.
To share this article with others, you may link to this page:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/cooking-experts/amy-powell/1066-tacos/