Chorizo and Potato Tacos

Maybe I should rename this the taco blog!  I do love a good taco and this is my current favorite.  It might sounds a bit odd to have potatoes in a taco but I can promise you that it is delicious.

The inspiration for these tacos was from a trip to the Mexican island of Cozumel.  We spent a heavenly week there, some years ago, at a lovely resort, sunbathing, scuba diving, snorkling, and of course eating!

On the very last day of our trip, we managed to find the local food market.  And in the middle of the market was a taco stand...a wonderful amazing taco stand with a huge variety of fillings.  One of these fillings was potato and chorizo, and it was sublime.

For the chorizo, I am using the fresh variety which must be cooked, not the dried type that you would eat sliced with cheese.  The flavors are very similar but the texture is different.  If you can't find the fresh type, then you could use the dried but just make sure to chop it quite finely, so you don't get big chunks of hard sausage.

You can use whatever kind of potatoes you like--it doesn't matter whether or not they are a boiling or mashing variety because the potato does not have to hold its shape.

Serves 4 to 5

about 750 grams potatoes
2 onions
400 to 500 grams fresh chorizo
about 12 small flour tortillas
salt and pepper to taste

To garnish
tomatoes
onion
cilantro
avocado
lime

First, you prepare boil the potatoes.  This can be done in advance. Peel the potatoes and put in a pot.  Fill with water and add a generous amount of salt.  Bring to a boil and turn down the heat to medium low.  Boil for 15 to 25 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked and are tender and can be easily pierced by a fork.  Drain the water from the potatoes, put a towel over the pot and the lid back on.  Set aside and leave to cool until you are ready to make your taco filling.

Prepare all the ingredients for the taco filling.  Chop the onions into medium sized pieces, chop the cooked potatoes into chunks.  Slice the skin of the chorizo lengthwise and peel off the skin.  Cut the naked chorizo into small chunks.

Heat a pan with a bit of olive oil and add the chorizo and onion. Saute on a medium heat, stirring now and then until the onions start to soften.  Add the potatoes.  Cook, stirring occassionally, until the onions and potatoes have some nice crispy bits and the chorizo is all cooked.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  I find usually that very little salt is necessary since the chorio adds enough flavor.

While this is happening, prepare your garnishes (onion, cilantro, tomato, and avocado), chopping each quite finely and putting them in separate bowls.  Cut a lime into wedges to squeeze over the mixture.

When the taco filling is cooked to your liking, put the pan on the table with the bowls of garnish and let everyone help themselves.