Toma Nota

Tacos: Texas loves you

Tacos. They all have the same inspiration, but every region of the world has a different interpretation of what these simple and perfect Mexican meals should look, taste, and feel like. Some people eat tacos for breakfast, others only for lunch or dinner. What about vegetarian tacos, fish tacos, big tacos, small tacos, tacos made with flour tortillas, or corn tortillas or with Monterrey Jack cheese versus Cotija? Each variation on the theme is a unique and valid interpretation of the Mexican original regional variations, and each region (especially throughout the southern United States) is proud of their version.

In Texas, taco pride runs deep and manifests itself in many different ways, with breakfast tacos, the classic TexMex, and authentic varieties of tacos from Mexico City, Oaxaca, and Jalisco, to name a few. I think some of the most delicious and interesting tacos found in Central Texas are breakfast tacos. These are typically smaller tacos made with flour tortillas and containing fillings such as scrambled eggs, Mexican ground chorizo, refried beans, bacon, and cheese. While they are called breakfast tacos, and do make for an excellent start to the day, they are also the perfect snack or light lunch with their delicious flavor and smaller sizing. The simple mix of ingredients (each taco usually only features two fillings) allows for better appreciation of flavors and avoids overwhelming one with overfilling the taco to breaking point or mixing too many contrasting tastes. Central Texas likes to claim breakfast tacos as their own invention, although there are plenty of enterprises throughout the Southwest that also provide them as an order option.