Mama’s Tacos are traditional baked tacos. They pack an enormous amount of flavor into a taco shell. They definitely are not your typical, run-of-the-mill taco. These have been called “art in a taco shell”! The melted cheese seals in the flavors, and the shell softens as they bake. Delicious and a crowd favorite every time we make these. We were lucky enough to have Rolando visit and make his Mama’s recipe for our video!
All In The Prep Work for Mama’s Tacos
Simple ingredients, but lovingly prepared. Chopping all of the “stuffing” material ahead of time allows a quick assembly line to put these together. It’s important that the beef is still warm as it goes into the taco shells, so having the prep work done ahead of time is your best bet.
The lettuce is a head of iceberg. Pull the stem out by pounding it on the counter. That loosens it so it pulls right out of the head of lettuce. We remove a couple outer leaves, then cut down the middle of the lettuce. Cut slices about 1/4″ – 1/2″ wide. You want to use the outside green part for the tacos, and cut it into 4-5″ lengths. The white part of the lettuce is bitter, so you don’t want to use it with the tacos. Great for a salad later!
Dice the Roma tomatoes are into about 1/2″ cubes. We use Romas because they have less juice than a regular tomato, and you don’t want any extra juice in the taco shells as you put them together. Easiest way I have found is to cut the top and bottom off the tomato then cut it into 1/2″ slices. The slices become cubes with a couple more cuts.
Cheese is the icing on the cake. We try to find Colby cheese when we can. It melts a lot better than cheddar and has a a milder flavor that lets the rest of the taco flavor shine through. Usually, we can only find it at the deli counter instead of the cheese section. They are more than happy to slice a pound off instead of the slices they are used to. Cheddar definitely works, but adds extra oil as it melts and the taco shells can fall apart instead of staying together. Grate the full pound of cheese and you’re ready to start the meat.
The Meat
85% lean ground beef is perfect for this dish. Any leaner, and there isn’t enough fat content to soak into the taco shells as they bake. You’ll use 1 pound of meat. Fry the meat in a pan with 1 tsp each of salt, pepper and garlic powder. As the meat cooks, keep breaking the meat into smaller and smaller pieces. You want it cooked through completely, all the seasonings mixed through the meat, and pieces as small as possible. Drain the fat off the meat, then it’s ready to go.
Assembly Line
Preheat the oven to 350F before you start the assembly on the shells.
We use a 9X13 glass casserole dish to hold the taco shells as we put them together, then they’re ready to go into the oven when the stuffing is all done.
The taco shells are also an important piece. You need a dozen shells, 5.8 oz for the 12 shells. A lot of times, these are considered jumbo or advertised as 20% larger or something like that. You need these larger shells to hold all of the goodness you are stuffing into them.
Cover the bottom of the shell with the beef. A thin layer is great, and leave a bit of room at the end of the taco shell for the cheese to seal in the flavors.
Next layer is the tomatoes. You cover the beef with tomatoes. The ultimate is a single layer that doesn’t allow any of the beef to show through.
The lettuce is next. Again, a thin layer that covers the tomatoes and leaves room for the cheese layer is all that’s necessary.
The grated cheese covers the top of the taco shells. You want them completely covered so the cheese seals the whole taco shell as it melts in the oven. A full pound of cheese is just right to pack into the dozen shells.
Bake Mama’s Tacos at 350F for about 10 minutes. The cheese should be melted and smooth when you pull them out.
Let them cool just a bit. It takes a bit of work with a spatula to pull individual tacos out of the pan. If you slide the spatula between the side of the tortilla and the cheese, it opens up for some sour cream and salsa or whatever you like on your tacos!
Enjoy Mama’s Tacos!
Wine Time
We chose a lager style beer to go with these. Very good as it matches up with all of the flavors!
For wine, especially if you add some salsa, a Tempranillo or Spanish Rioja would be fantastic. If you like really hot salsa, some Zinfandel would handle the heat!
Mama’s Tacos
Course: DinnerCuisine: MexicanDifficulty: Medium4
servings30
minutes10
minutes670
kcal40
minutesThese traditional baked tacos pack an enormous amount of flavor into a taco shell. They definitely are not your typical, run-of-the-mill taco. These have been called “art in a taco shell”! The melted cheese seals in the flavors, and the shell softens as they bake. Delicious and a crowd favorite every time we make these. We were lucky enough to have Rolando visit and make his Mama’s recipe for our video!
Ingredients
1 lb 83% Lean Ground Beef
1 Head Iceberg Lettuce – cut into strips
5 Roma Tomatoes – 1/2″ cubes
1 lb Colby or Cheddar Cheese – grated
Taco Shells – 5.8 oz for a dozen shells
1 tsp Salt
1 tsp Black Pepper
1 tsp Garlic Powder
Directions
- Cut the lettuce and tomatoes so they’re ready to use. Grate the cheese
- Cook the meat in a fry pan with the spices. Chop the meat into small pieces as it cooks and make sure spices are mixed into the meat completely. Drain the fat from the meat when it’s cooked
- Preheat oven to 350F
- Stuff the shells with a layer of the beef, then a layer of tomatoes, a layer of lettuce and cover completely with cheese. Place the shell in a 9X13 glass casserole dish
- Once all shells are stuffed, bake the tacos for about 10 minutes. They are done when the cheese is melted smooth. Let them sit for a couple minutes so cheese can set up. Use a spatula to separate the tacos, and to open a side of the shell for sour cream, salsa, etc.!