I laughed at this little clip quite a bit. The music made it. It came via a site called Toronto Taco. Click on the Tacodex and see all the taco joints in Toronto. I didn’t know there were so many.

Taco Plates

If you’re in need of a plate to keep your tacos upright, then go here. Personally, I hate styrofoam and my soft tacos come flat on the plate so I don’t have that problem. Despite their call to action to “Keep ‘Em Upright Tonight!” I’ll just let my tacos lay flat morning, noon and night, even though I’m told that “TacoPlates Provide Maximum Taco Enjoyment.”

One of my New Year resolutions is to learn Esperanto; thus, the title above, which means Happy New Year Tacos. Another resolution is charting the path for the sequel to my cookbook Tacos: Authentic, Festive & Flavorful. In college, I majored in Anthropology, and racked up enough credits for a minor, before switching to Spanish. Both disciplines have been invaluable to me as a rogue slacker savant, and I intend to use them in 2010 to dive deeper into the Taco Matrix. A little travel is in order too. I haven’t got out much in the last dozen years, what with building a homestead and not having much cash flow. The siren song of the taco calls me now and I shall endeavor to heed that bid.

OK, so I had a pig head in my freezer for awhile, a gift from some farmer friends. I debated whether to make head cheese again or to just make pig head tacos. The latter won. So it was that I cooked that head on December 30. The meat doesn’t take long to cook, about 2 hours. I stripped off all the meat and junk while it was still warm. I put the bones back into the stock and simmered it another couple of hours. When it cooled, it set up nicely and would have made a good headcheese. There is quite a bit of gristle and fat on the head. In order to make it more edible, as in not having to chew on big pieces, I mince it quite finely, which is also helpful to disguise to full nature of the endeavor from the children. The meat need not be cut as small, and indeed, the best pieces, which come from where the jaw attaches to the skull, are rich and delicious enough to be eaten solo.

We ate the Pig Head Tacos for New Year’s Eve, a strange nod to Auld Lang Syne. The fat in the meat is rich and does well to be cut with something tangy and hot. Though we didn’t have any, a cabbage slaw would have been a nice counterpoint. I’m not complaining though; there was a mild tomatillo salsa, canned Herdez salsa ranchera (ran out of homemade chile arbol salsa), grilled cebollitas, avocado, cilantro, white onion, limes, beer, tequila…!



My first tacos of 2010 came from our favorite local place, La Tapatia. Alas, they were closed on Jan 1st, so we had to wait until Jan 2nd to get our hands on some.

What would Christmas Eve be without tacos? I didn’t want to find out, so we headed up to Taqueria El Gallo in Medford after an afternoon of ice skating in Ashland. El Gallo was empty except for us. The tacos were great. I had two al pastor and two carnitas.

Last night we went to see the theater production of It’s A Wonderful Life at Barnstormer’s Theater in Grants Pass. It was a good show. But what I really found captivating was that one of the actors said in his blurb in the showbill that he wished he could take all the audience out for tacos after the show. Needless to say, after the show, we went down to the green room to look for him and take him up on the offer. He was not to be found. He must have heard that the Taco Matrix was in the house and feared that his wallet was in danger!

Happy New Year everybody! A fun activity that I like to do is eat tacos on December 31st, then again on January 1st. A perfect way to end and begin the year.

During the days since my last post, I’ve been contemplating life in the Taco Matrix, a world of tortillas and fillings, obsessive niche blogging, the search for a unifying principle with the taco as both sustenance fueling the search and as pedagogic symbol of something deeper, perhaps. Sometimes not. In its multitudinous boneyard of dimensions, the matrix goes not only vertical but horizontal as well, with vast plains of seeming superficiality dampening the spirit at times. Herein, I present some of my findings from the boneyard. You be the judge of the epic and the quotidian, or the edifying and oxymoronic mash-up of the two.

We begin with Hot Chicks Eating Tacos. Anatomical and etymological connotations notwithstanding, the tacos themselves are hard shells and serve as props for MILFY and pre-MILFY chicks. They all seem to be having fun. The blog’s byline, “Two great tastes that go great together” kinda makes you wanna pair different girls with different tacos, doesn’t it?

You’re in luck, because the upcoming book, T & T & A (as in Tacos & Tits & Ass) does just that. Photographer Tony Stamolis has created something unique with his new opus. For a couple of reviews, check out LA TACO and Houston Press’ Taco Truck Gourmet

Hey, check out The Great Tortilla Conspiracy, an art installation in San Francisco by artist Rio Yañez

Food writer John T. Edge has a book coming out soon called Truck Food Nation. Looking forward to that.

I want to close with some taco voyeurism. After all, tacos are what got me into this mess. First we visit Exile Kiss (via LA TACO) wherein are reviewed eight types of carnitas. Not only delicious looking, there are a few tacos there that are rather off the beaten path and worth knowing about, a true survey of whole hog cooking. And finally, check out Street Gourmet LA. It’s not all tacos there but even so, I want to eat everything he reviews.

LA TACO 8 types of carnitas
http://www.lataco.com/taco/8-types-of-carnitas-reviewed-at-metro-balderas-los-angeles

Last week, CaliforniaTacoTrucks.com held a taco truck photography contest throughout the state of California. The winner is Jose Aurelio Barrera of East Los Angeles.

To see more of his photos, please visit his website Calaveras Callejeras. The prize was a copy of my book Tacos: Authentic, Festive & Flavorful.

Gwen Harlow took second place. You can see more of her work at Ofrenda. She won five bucks to spend on tacos.

Back in August 2008, I was negotiating the contract for Tacos: Authentic, Festive & Flavorful with Sasquatch Books. My editor told me they had lined up a great photographer named Lara Ferroni who did all her own cooking, food styling, and photography. I took a look at her websites and immediately knew that I was going to do Tacos. With photos like hers in the book, I knew it would be a work of beauty and something we could all be proud of. She worked off the rough draft of my recipes early on, and produced some excellent pictures. Without further distraction, I present the interview:

Taco Matrix: Did you like tacos or taco trucks before doing the photos for Tacos: Authentic, Festive & Flavorful? What’s your favorite taco? Favorite taco joint?

Lara Ferroni: Absolutely! In fact, my husband and I did a little Taco Truck Tour of Seattle just before I knew I was going to be shooting this book (I even made a Google map of Seattle Taco Trucks for it. I usually get either a carne asada taco or a grilled fish taco, but I like to change it up. Not sure I have one favorite… as for favorite taco joint, I like Costa Alegre down in Rainier Beach for taco trucks, and for a late night snack, Taco Gringos on Capital Hill always has intriguing flavor combinations.

TM: Did you find any challenges unique to shooting tacos, either in the studio or plein-air?

LF: I think tacos are really beautiful because they are usually topped with yummy looking salsa or fresh herbs of some sort… things that photograph really well. However, any time you photograph a single subject over and over, it gets to be a challenge to have the photos not all look the same. So, finding new, interesting ways to present the tacos tricky.

TM: You must be an accomplished cook, to make the dishes that you photograph. Tell us a bit about your previous cooking experience. What do you like to cook at home?

LF: I do cook a lot, but I’m not a trained cook by any means. I just try to follow the recipe, with a special note to how the food looks. Most of my cooking experience came from cooking for my own blog, and just trying things until I got them right. I cook anything at home… but rarely the same dish twice. Except for a good roast chicken. It’s always a great dish.

TM: You shot the studio pictures early on, from a pretty rough manuscript. Is it hard to follow recipes that haven’t been cleaned up yet? How was it making the recipes for Tacos?

LF: It can be. Tacos was in quite good shape when I got it… much better than some other cookbooks I’ve shot actually. So, thank you(!) for that. I have had a few experiences where the recipe was not yet tested, and I’ve had to kind of wing it and then give the author feedback on how the recipe could be improved. I don’t think I had to do that at all for Tacos though… and I also had a lot of really delicious salsas left over that my family and neighbors loved.

TM: How long have you been shooting food and travel photos? How did you get into it?

LF: I’ve been shooting seriously since 2005, and professionally since 2006. It all started from my blog, and me needing to take a few shots. I remember I made a batch of raspberry scones and all of a sudden really started enjoying the photography aspect even more than the cooking & writing. I started reading food blogs voraciously, especially those with great photography (like 101cookbooks.com), and it just sort of grew from there.

TM: What are some of the coolest assignments you’ve had? Worst? Most challenging?

LF: I do a lot of shooting for Edible Seattle, and those shoots are always fantastic. I’ve gotten to shoot a family with an Argentinian Barbecue in their backyard, where we sat and talked and made empanadas and palm heart salad while the grill was being heated… or to go into the kitchen at a Korean church where they were making vats and vats of kimchi. Most recently, I got to attend a pie making class to learn to make the most delicious apple pies. It’s hard to rank the experiences though, because they are all different. The taco cookbook was pretty cool too!

As for worst, it wasn’t really a bad assignment, but there was so much bureaucracy around the shoot that even though I had two sets going at the same time, we were lucky to get 4 shots done in a day. I don’t like just standing around waiting.

The most challenging was probably the cover I did for R&I magazine of an egg skillet dish. The client was remote, and so I’d prepare and shoot the dish, send them the shot, and they’d come back with feedback… more cheese, less cheese, more bacon… and then I’d have to make it all again. I think I went through two dozen eggs. But, they ended up happy with the shot in the end!

TM: You have a new cookbook coming out in 2010 on the subject of donuts. Tell us a bit about that. What’s your favorite donut?

LF: I do indeed. I’m just finishing up the writing now, and the recipes are out to a whole slew of testers. I’m really excited about it… the feedback has been great so far. I also started a doughnut blog that I’ll be updating now and then over the next year until the book comes out… and then it will be a place for some of the recipes that won’t fit in the cookbook. The blog is doughnutcookbook.com.

As for favorite… I’m pretty simple when it comes to doughnuts… plain cakes suit me fine. I also like the Tim Horton’s Honey Crullers. As for my own recipes, I really like the chocolate doughnut hole macaroons.

TM: One of your blogs, Still Life With, is sort of an information source/forum for food photography. How important is it for you to interact with other photographers and foodies?

LF: It’s funny… when I started my blogs, Seattle had quite a few food bloggers but we never really did anything together. That’s all changed in the last couple of years. Seattle now has a really booming food blogger scene that is very, very social. Many of them are really getting interested in food photography too, so I’m starting to see and be involved in various food photography workshops and things. It’s been fun to crawl out of my studio for a while to talk with folks who are doing similar things. And, I always love to help others develop their skills.

TM: Who are some of your favorite food photographers?

LF: Kind of too many to name… but Matt Armendariz, Heidi Swanson, Keiko Oikawa, Bea Peltre, John Kernick, Christopher Hersheimer, Jason Lowe, Con Poulos… I have a list of photographers who inspire me on Still Life With. Or, if you follow my Still Life With Twitter stream, I post new inspirations all the time (@StillLifeWith)

TM: What would be your dream assignment ($1 million advance, private jet, unlimited camera equipment, you know)?

LF: You know, I kind of have my dream job already. I know that sounds corny, but I love what I do when I’m just home, cooking and shooting. But sure, a million bucks would be no hell. Oh, and having someone else do all the post-production!

TM: Do you love tacos more now than you did before shooting Tacos: Authentic, Festive & Flavorful?

LF: I don’t know if I love them more. But, I do feel more confident about making them myself. I grew up in a house where we pressed our own tortillas, but we usually just filled them with ground beef, cheddar cheese and onions. Since the shoot, I always have a supply of about 5 varieties of dried chilies around so I can whip up a salsa with just a little notice and I’m much more inclined to stew up a pork shoulder.

Lara Ferroni’s Websites:

The Doughnut Blog

Still Life With

Plates and Packs

Cyrus Farivar, the editor of CaliforniaTacoTrucks.com, is holding a taco truck photo contest, with the first prize being a copy of my new book Tacos:Authentic, Festive & Flavorful. Even though I’m not in the contest, there’s my taco truck photo. I’m positive that readers’ photos will be way more exiting than that! Good luck everyone.

If you live in California, here are the contest guidelines:

To submit an entry, send me an email [cyrus @californiatacotrucks.com] with “Taco truck photo contest� in the subject line and an original photo of something related to a taco truck in California.

It could be a photo of tacos bought at a truck, horchata being poured, taqueros, art — anything. There just needs to be a California taco truck in operation somewhere in the photo.

If you’re so inclined, feel free to upload to Flickr with the tag “taco truck photo contest,� and send me an email with the URL.

Please include your name, city, and the name and location of the taco truck that you shot.

1st prize – a copy of the above book
2nd and 3rd prize – $5, Paypaled to you by me to spend at the taco truck of your choice.

The photos will be judged by me.Deadline: November 4, 2009, 12 pm Pacific Time

Good luck!

Interview With Mike Prasad of Kogi BBQ At Blog World

18 Taquerias Die In San Francisco Since 2008

The burrito eaters over at BurritoEater.com report a disheartening number of shuttered taco joints in the City By The Bay.

Taquerias Video on YouTube

This is a very trippy video. The Spanish speaking voice sounds like it belongs to someone in the witness protection program. It’s quite informative, but peppered with irreverence. If you’re serious about tacos and speak Spanish, it’s a must watch.

Halloween Tacos

I’ve been wanting to be a taco for Halloween for a couple of years now. But then I saw the picture below over at Tacotown.org
and now I just want to be with the taco girls for Halloween, or any other day of their choice.

According to the heads at Taco Town, “There’s a new Austin-made short film available via HBO on Demand called “Taco! Taco! Taco!.â€? Directed by UT-alum John Estrada, all we know is that its about a taco-stand owner and his plot to bring down a new competitor.. looks spicy!” You can view shots of the film shoot on Flickr

The Taco Truck

Not just any taco truck, this is THEEEE TACO TRUCK. Here we we have the apotheosis of vendrification, the logical conclusion of a chain of events that began thousands of years ago with the domestication of corn, the accouchement of nixtamalization, the birth of the tortilla, the first taco. I’m starting to feel that these taquero dream teams elevate humility to absurd levels, a superior humility, if you will. On one hand, we have taqueros on street corners in neighborhoods, with one eye on the griddle and one the street, feeding la gente. On the other, we have edgy fonts and tricked out websites, Chief Operating Officers and Media Relations Officers creating brands with merch and social networking and, oh yeah I almost forgot, tacos. Like a pet rock fashion consultant or a chia hairstylist, where does the road lead for the players in the inevitable run through of this trend?

I don’t really mean to pick on The Taco Truck. They have Roberto Sanitbañez and a crack team of folks. If I get out to Jersey I will order some of their tacos and let them slap my bald head for talking smack. You can sign up for The Taco Truck YouTube Channel here.

San Francisco Chronicle’s Bargain Bites

Here is a rather extensive list of inexpensive places to eat in the San Francisco Bay Area. There are lots of taquerias and Mexican joints.

Last Call For Tacos

Last Call for Tacos Trailer from Vishwanand Shetti on Vimeo.

The movie inspired by the life of Maria Corbalán, founder of Taco Xpress in Austin, Texas and acknowledged as the Taco Queen of South Austin. She also wrote an autobiography called Maridee. Buy the book here.

Esquire’s 20 Best New Restaurants of 2009

Of Esquire’s Top 20, two are high end Mexican places, Rivera in Los Angeles and Nopalito in San Francisco. Check out this video from Evan Kleiman at KCRW as she waxes about Rivera’s flower, not flour tortillas. The menus of both places are mouth watering and though they don’t sell much in the way of tacos, there’s nothing stopping a diner from ordering an entree and making their own tacos with the homemade tortillas served at both places!