Blog From A Broad

ay carumba!

As much as this nation loves to diss America and her inhabitants, I salute her culinary treats. In my opinion, no one does a burger, cheesecake, hotdog, or diner breakfast better than the (North) Americans. I also have to admire their ability to adapt dishes and make it their own, which I suppose is not surprising for a young country made up of so many different cultures. Few dishes are indigenous; most are interpretations of foods brought over by ancestors.

Which brings me to today. I recently came across the concept of a "breakfast taco" (a "taco" being a soft tortilla, as it's called in Mexican cuisine) and thought I'd give it a go this morning. You can fill it with whatever you want, though it seems to be most commonly filled with egg, potato, bacon, and topped with salsa and/or hot sauce.

I fried off some back bacon (which is what we usually eat for breakfast here, as opposed to American "streaky" thin bacon), removed it, and in the same pan I sauteed some parboiled cubes of new potato, red pepper, and spring onion (scallions/green onion.) I would suggest that if you're using streaky bacon you drain off the fat before sauteing the vegetables.

Meanwhile, I scrambled an egg and heated a wholewheat tortilla over the flame on the gas stove top. By the way, my top tip: don't wander away from the stove when you're heating the tortilla over the flame to make a cup of tea. The tortilla will turn an interesting colour then burst into flames, which is not really what you're going for. I filled the tortilla with the egg and mixture from the frying pan, and sat down to eat.

It was delicious in a "this should taste like student food/hangover food, but it's quite nice" kind of way. I do think that it needs some sort of sauce to prevent a dry texture as you're eating it, so I'll top it with salsa next time. I also think this would work well with cream cheese, guacamole (or mashed avocado), or sour cream spread on the tortilla before filling. A "Spanish" take on this with a chorizo, potato, and egg filling would be great, topped with a tomato-based sauce.

Thank you, America. I was running out of breakfast ideas, and you came to my rescue. While you're at it, please send me a Denny's.