Day 140: Skillet Tacos

Last night I used Kingsford charcoal for the first time since about February.  I'd forgotten how tiny the briquettes are.  I've been using Sam's Choice from Walmart, and they are about double the size of Kingsford.  So I did a skillet meal, since I'm always gone Thursday nights.  I used 24 briquettes under my 12" oven.  It could have been that I was impatient and in a hurry, but it seemed to take forever to get the ground beef sizzling. 

Now I know that in theory all briquettes should be about the same, but learning to use a different brand of briquettes is like learning to use a new oven.  The new one may heat up slower, it might have hot spots in different places or the temperatures may be just a little different that the old oven you used forever.  You just have to adapt a little bit and learn how to make the new one cook just right.  Does that make any sense?  : P

Today's recipe came from Real Mom Kitchen, one of my favorite food blogs.  It is a super easy and quick one pot meal.

Taco Skillet
12" dutch oven

1 pound ground beef
1 small red onion, chopped
1 1/2 cup frozen corn
10 corn tortillas (6 inches), cut into 1-inch pieces (I use my pizza cutter to do this)
1 bottle (8 ounces) taco sauce (I used El Pato jalapeno tomato sauce)
1-1/4 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided

In your DO, cook beef and onion over 20-24 coals until meat is no longer pink; drain.
Rinse frozen corn in a colander with warm water and drain.
Add the drained corn, taco sauce, and 1 cup cheese to meat until well mixed.
Mix in tortilla pieces and heat through.
Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Serves 5-6

The Finished Product

The Review

In all fairness, this was good.  I just isn't a dish that meets my standard for an everyday meal.  We're really not casserole people even though I make them fairly often just because they're quick and easy. However, this would be a great camping meal.  Its made in one pot-quick and easy- just like you want when you're roughing it.  It has good flavor and you could top it with salsa, sour cream or anything you like.  So as an everyday meal, I give this a C, but as a camping meal I have to say B+.