FRIDAY, MAY 5, 2023
RECIPES / MEXICAN / TACOS
The absolute king of Mexican food here in America is Rick Bayless, who has been studying Mexican cuisine his entire life.
In this video, Rick tackles what many people think are the king of tacos: the birria.
Birria has been having a moment for some time now, especially birria tacos with melted cheese, the ones called quesabirria. I have nothing against them, though I think they’ve started to eclipse the essentially perfect taco de birria, slightly obscuring that perfection with cheese. Those words, I know, are fighting words for some of you. So don’t get me wrong: I love melted cheese—I do! It’s just that sometimes birria wants to do a one man show—juicy-tender goat or lamb braised with red chile, browned a little, wrapped in a tortilla that’s rubbed with chile-infused fat and allowed to crisp a little on the griddle. The taco gets a splash of the braising juices, some onions and cilantro, maybe a little spicy arbol salsa. One bite of a perfectly made taco de birria and you’ve reached taco nirvana.