Tacos de Canasta | Basket Tacos
The first time I had basket tacos was in the streets of Tijuana. Years ago, my husband and I took a weekend road trip across the border in search of a great meal. This trip was on a whim when we were young, wild and childless. We thought “what the heck”, dusted off our passports and made our way south.
We sampled lobster, lots of lobster. Washed it down with margaritas and micheladas and concluded our lunch with flan and arroz con leche. Day two was supposed to be a day of shopping for souvenirs, hand made crafts and stocking up on Mexican candy. We planned for our meals to be light and quick in order to take advantage of full daylight before heading back to the US.
As we walked in and out of downtown Tijuana streets, a little taco cart caught my eye. “Tacos Sudados” or “Sweaty Tacos” read in big, bold, red hand painted letters. “Sweaty?’ I thought. A term not appealing at all. I asked the taco vendor what these tacos were and he told me they were “al vapor,” steamed. He pulled back the plastic sheet from a giant basket behind the cart and displayed mounds and mounds of steamed tacos. All stacked up in order of filling, with an aroma of smoky dried chile, and shredded beef. “They are also called basket tacos,” the vendor reaffirmed.
Needless to say, we had ourselves a street curb picnic and sampled every different filling folded in a tender, steamed tortilla. Day turned to night and we rushed home as soon as we could.
I researched the origin of these delicious tacos endlessly and found out that basket tacos, also known as tacos sudados (sweaty tacos) or tacos al vapor (steamed tacos), are sold in the streets of Mexico by basket toting vendors in bicycles or stands. These popular tacos steam in a whicker basket lined with parchment paper and plastic for at least one hour before enjoying. Fillings include of not too wet ingredients such as ground or shredded meat, chicken, chicharron or chopped potatoes, Poblano strips or beans. They are considered a traditional Mexican street food that originated in the streets of Tlaxcala.
So there you have it. Basket tacos are fairly simple to prepare. The delicate steamed tortilla tends to fall apart on your plate, so make sure you have a fork in hand to enjoy every last morsel of this tasty Mexican street food you can now prepare at home.
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