Taquito! A new family favorite…

Doesn’t that look yummy? It was super easy, just a little time consuming. Hubs and the kids loved them! I think next time I want to make a double batch and try freezing them!

So the first time I made these I made them with ground beef and steamed tortilla. The problem I was running into was the toothpicks didn’t hold in the steamed tortilla and the ground beef didn’t want to stay in the tortilla.

So how to make the tortillas a bit stronger? My first thought was “wet shirt bend bar” lol (Jackie Chan fans will get that!) SO I pre-fried my tortillas in a bit of melted shortening. (Don’t get uppity! Shortening is just solidified vegetable oil!)  So like this…

Then, ground beef is just a little too lose and rolls around a bit and whatnot… So quick and simple a bit of shredded chicken solved that problem. Then thinking about my gorgeous hunk of geek’s taste buds I thought to add shredded pepper jack cheese.

Toss it all together and load your tortillas with a thin strip of chicken and cheese. Roll up and pin shut with a toothpick. Fry in hot oil, turning to brown on all sides and drain on either a wire cooling rack or a paper towel.

Ta da! I’m thinking next time I’ll try with a shredded roast, pork or beef with either a verde or enchilada dipping sauce. Not bad for my first and second tries, huh?