Quick Dinner Idea: 5 Minute Tacos

We won Friday, 35-14. The offense found its footing in the second quarter and didn't let go. My senior receiver Marcus had four catches for ninety yards, including a deep post that I've been installing since spring and which finally executed at full speed in a game. When a play you've drawn up on a whiteboard in February runs perfectly in September, it is one of the specific pleasures of this work. I drove home after midnight with the window down, letting the Colorado September air in, and thought about that play the whole way.

Diego came to the game with Lisa, which he does for every home game. He was in the stands eating green chile nachos from the tailgate and I could see him from the sideline in the fourth quarter, standing up on a play that went well. I don't look into the stands during games as a rule. But I looked this time. The kid has been carrying something since Ruben died — he and his uncle were close in the way of nephews and uncles who bond over sports, and the loss landed on him differently than it landed on the twins, who are too young, or Sofia, who processes things inwardly. Diego grieves outwardly and needs things to do with it. He's channeling it into football, same as me. I'll take that. I'll take the tool as long as it's being used.

Made carne adovada this week for the first time in a while — pork shoulder braised in red chile sauce overnight, then finished in the oven until it pulls. I served it on flour tortillas with pickled red onions and sour cream. Lisa made a face at the sour cream, because sour cream is not traditional and she's become more traditional about New Mexican food than me at this point, which I find hilarious. Twelve years ago she'd never heard of carne adovada. Now she corrects my recipe. Love does strange and wonderful things to people's culinary opinions.

The carne adovada is a weekend project — pork shoulder, overnight, the whole commitment — and not every week has that kind of runway. Game weeks especially. When I get home late on a Tuesday after film review and Diego has homework spread across the kitchen table and Lisa is already looking at me like what are we doing for dinner, I need something that gets food on the table before anyone loses their mind. These tacos are what I reach for. They’re not the slow braise I love, but they carry enough of the same spirit — chile, warm tortillas, something to gather around — that they feel like the right meal for a family that’s holding itself together one weeknight at a time.

Prep Time: 2 min | Cook Time: 5 min | Total Time: 7 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef (80/20)
1 packet (1 oz) taco seasoning, or 2 tablespoons homemade blend
1/3 cup water
8 small flour or corn tortillas, warmed
1 cup shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 medium tomato, diced
1/2 cup sour cream (optional)
1/4 cup pickled red onions (optional)
Hot sauce or salsa, to serve

Instructions

Brown the beef. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it up with a spatula, for about 3–4 minutes until no pink remains. Drain excess fat if needed.
Season. Add the taco seasoning and water to the skillet. Stir to combine and let it simmer for 1–2 minutes until the sauce thickens and coats the meat.
Warm the tortillas. While the meat finishes, warm tortillas directly over a gas flame for 20–30 seconds per side, or wrap in a damp paper towel and microwave for 30 seconds.
Assemble. Spoon the seasoned beef into each tortilla. Top with cheese, lettuce, tomato, and any optional toppings — sour cream, pickled red onions, hot sauce — whatever the table calls for.
Serve immediately. These are best eaten hot, straight from the skillet. Set out toppings in small bowls so everyone can build their own.

Nutrition (per serving)

Quick Dinner Idea: 5 Minute Tacos — When the Chile Runs Out and the Week Keeps Going