How to make Mexican ‘Flautas”/ Como hacer flautas mexicanas

Hello again,

It feels strange to be posting again, it seems like a long time ago I decided to start this blog with so many hopes for posting recipes very often.

Has it ever happened to you that you make plans and none of them happen as you had hoped? Have you ever heard of the phrase that says: “Want to make God laugh? Then tell him your plans”. Well, that is exactly what happened to me. God really had a good laugh when He heard my plans of posting once a week.

Little did I know the year He had already planned for me, including the challenges and rewards of homeschooling a bright teenager, plus my husband’s unexpected visit to the ER when he was hospitalized after Thanksgiving. But some things did go according to plan, like celebrating our 25th Wedding Anniversary in our favorite city (New York) at the end of the year. I am thankful for all that God gave us in 2009. I’m also thankful for your patience, I know some of you stopped by and wrote some notes. I thank you all for your comments, always …

Now, lets talk about this recipe. The name of these crispy rolled tacos (“Flautas”) is given to them because of their resemblance of a “flute”, and because you hold them with your fingers to eat them. In some parts of Mexico these tacos are made using a thin long oval-shaped corn tortillas and deep fried in lard. The best flautas I have ever had are from Toluca,while I was living there back in the late ‘80s. Those flautas were long, thick and cooked in a mix of vegetable oil and lard topped with a spicy jalapeno sauce. If you live close to some areas of Chicago, Texas and California you can buy these tortillas at the Tortilla Factories. But we are using regular corn tortillas as many people in Mexico do for this recipe. Flautas are very popular among the children and are really easy and affordable to make. My mother still makes them with a potato filling like back then when she had 8 children to feed. But this time she cooks for her grandchildren that come to Grandma’s house every day for lunch after school.

Ingredients:

12 corn tortillas (the thinner the better)

2 cups of the filling of your choice, Beef, chicken or potato (see instructions bellow)

12 toothpicks to hold the tortillas together

Vegetable oil to fry the flautas

1 cup of “Cotija” Cheese shredded or fresh Mexican Cheese Crumbled

1/2 cup Mexican cream or creme fraiche

Note: Optional toppings

Shredded lettuce or cabbage, tomato slices, chopped onion, avocado slices, and some people even add cilantro.

Instructions:

For the beef filling

1 Pound of Flank steak or skirt cut in cubes

1/4 of an onion

2 garlic cloves peeled

1 bay leave

Enough water to cover the meat.

Salt to taste

Cook the meat in a small pot with the onion, garlic, bay leave, salt and water. Simmer covered for about 40-45 minutes or until tender, cool and shred the meat.

For the chicken filling:

1 large chicken breast bone in,

1 garlic clove

2 slices of onion

Enough water to cover the chicken

salt to taste

Place the Chicken, garlic, onion, salt and water in a pot and simmer covered for about 30 minutes.or until tender. Let it cool and shred.

For the potato filling:

2 Large potatoes

salt to taste and enough water to cover the potatoes.

Peel and cut the potatoes in large cubes, cook in salted water until tender, do not over cook. Drain and mash. Taste in case it needs more salt.

Heat the tortillas on a griddle to make them more pliable and easy to roll. Put some shreds of the meat close to the edge of the tortilla.

Roll tightly but not to much to avoid squeezing the filling out of the tortilla.

Secure the tortilla with a toothpick. Roll another tortilla with its filling and again hold the center with a toothpick. You can attach them in pairs as shown in the picture.

While you are rolling the tacos, heat the oil in a frying pan on high heat.

Deep fry the flautas in the already heated oil turning once until golden and crisp.

Remove and drain the excess oil on paper towels, as shown in the picture at the top.

It’s also a good idea to let them cool a little since the filling will be very hot.

Serve 3 per plate and top with the salsa of your choice, Mexican cream, and cheese. My son likes them with cream and cheese (and ketchup) only. I prefer to eat them with lettuce, onion, tomato, cheese and salsa.

Enjoy! And remember you do not need your silverware to eat this dish.

How to make refried beans/Como hacer frijoles refritos “chinitos”

Beans, along with rice and corn, are one of the trilogies of Mexican cuisine, another one are tomatoes, peppers and onion. But today it is about the beans, refried beans, that’s it. Beans are often just fried after they have been cooked. What do I mean by that? Well, after the beans are cooked with a piece of onion garlic cloves, a Serrano pepper and some Epazote leaves, they are slightly fried in a frying pan with chopped onions. The amount of oil is not as considerable as for refried beans. Refried beans have a smooth creamy texture. I think of refried beans more like a Sunday treat in my breakfast brunch. A special occasion or as an ingredient of a dish like “Huevos rancheros” or "Molletes'. Even thought I have lived in the North, South and central states of my country, I had rarely seen refried beans being served as a dip like the ones you find here at the grocery stores sold in a jar next to the tortilla chips. That’s a great idea, but it’s much better if you make them at home without the added chemicals found in the store-bought versions. You will enjoy a greater difference in taste and an opportunity to add your own seasonings.

Ingredients for about to 2 cups

3 cups of cooked beans with some of its broth.

1/3 cup finely chopped white onion

3 Tablespoons of lard, vegetable oil, bacon or chorizo drippings

To garnish: Mexican Crumbling Cheese and Tortilla chips.

Salt to taste

Instructions:

Heat the oil or lard in a frying pan in a medium-low heat.

Start frying the onions until they are transparent and start to brown. Add the beans and mash down until they become a paste. If you prefer to use you blender, place the beans in your blender before adding to the frying pan with the onions. (Note: I added chopped bacon before the onions, you could also use chorizo)

Add the beans and mash down using a potato masher until they become a paste. If you prefer to use you blender, place the beans in your blender before adding to the frying pan with the onions. Blend to a smooth pure and then add them to the frying pan where the onions are being browned. They will become a thick puree, keep scrapping from the edges and bottom of the pan. If you prefer to add a little more oil, this is the time.

Tilt the frying pan sideways and form a roll with the bean paste. I like to flip them like pancakes a little bit. Taste to check if it needs salt.

To serve, place them on a plate. Sprinkle with cheese and garnish with tortilla chips.

Enjoy!

Note: To my friends that visit this blog. How often do you eat refried beans?