Sometimes the best recipes are the simplest ones. Good Mexican chorizo from your local carniceria makes taco night easy and delicious. Break it up, let the fat render, and watch it transform into crispy, deeply flavored bits that are absolutely perfect for tacos.←Back to Taco Base Recipes
1.5 lb Mexican chorizo, casings removed
1 medium white onion, diced (optional)
3 cloves garlic cloves, minced (optional)
Heat a large skillet over medium heat—no oil needed, the chorizo will release its own rendered fat.
Add the chorizo and break it up with a wooden spoon, cooking for 3-4 minutes until it starts browning and releasing fat.
Add the diced onion (optional) and cook together for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the chorizo is deeply browned and the onion is golden and caramelized.
Toss in the garlic (optional) and cook for another minute until fragrant.
That's it—you just made perfect chorizo that'll make any taco weep with joy.
Chef's Notes
Sometimes the best cooking is knowing when to get out of the way. Good Mexican chorizo needs nothing but heat and time to become taco gold. Mexican chorizo (fresh, crumbly, bright red with chiles and spices) is completely different from Spanish chorizo (cured, sliceable, smoky). This recipe wants Mexican. Find it at your local carnicería (Mexican butcher shop), Latin grocery stores, or increasingly at regular supermarkets in tubes or casings. Quality varies: good chorizo should be deep red, smell of chiles and vinegar, and feel slightly loose rather than compressed. El Mexicano, Cacique, and Reynaldo's are decent grocery store brands; the stuff from an actual carnicería is usually better. Don't add oil. Good chorizo has plenty of fat that renders out during cooking, becoming the flavorful cooking medium for everything else. Crumble it with a wooden spoon as it cooks, breaking up any large chunks. The goal is small, crispy bits with some tender pieces for textural contrast. Let it cook undisturbed for stretches to develop those golden, crispy edges where the fat has rendered and the meat has caramelized. Those crispy bits are where the magic lives. Drain excess fat if there's a lot (save it for cooking beans or eggs), but leave enough to coat the meat with flavor. The simplicity of this recipe is the point. Not everything needs to be complicated. Sometimes a taco just needs good chorizo and a warm tortilla.
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