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Tacos de aguacate

A handful of years ago, I moved to Mexico City for a short stint. I lived in a small studio on the top floor of a two-story building. My downstairs neighbor, a woman named Maria, had a remarkably lush avocado tree in her backyard. Some mornings, as I sipped my coffee, I’d watch her wander outside, humming all the while, to pick an avocado or two. That’s my kind of luxury, I remember thinking.

The first time Maria invited me over for a meal, we dined outside, near her pots of herbs and flowering strawberry plants. On the wooden table was a pitcher of lime and mango agua fresca, a plate of tortillas half-wrapped in a towel, a bowl of deep red salsa and a small cutting board.

“I didn’t really cook, I hope you don’t mind,” she said, “We’re having avocado tacos.” She twisted three avocados off a branch, swiftly halved and pitted them with a small knife, and, using a spoon, scooped some of their flesh into a warm tortilla. A drizzle of salsa, a squeeze of lime and there it was: dinner.

I must have eaten at least half a dozen avocado tacos that night. The heat of the salsa tempered the buttery fruit as it melted into the warm, tender corn tortillas. This recipe, with a pico de gallo that features summer tomatoes and black beans, is a nod to Maria’s avocado tacos.

First, make the salsa. There’s a lot of chopping involved, but I think pico de gallo is best when it’s chopped by hand. That said, there’s an easy way to speed things up: Roughly chop the tomatoes, onion, chile, cilantro and garlic and then pulse the vegetables in a food processor until they form a chunky salsa. Then, stir in the black beans. They’ll add a velvety texture and a bit of protein to the meal.

To serve, heat the tortillas, and then do as Maria did: Halve, pit and scoop chunks of avocado onto each tortilla, top it with the salsa and eat!

Avocado Tacos With Black Bean Pico de Gallo

Pico de gallo is arguably the most common salsa fresca in Mexico. Because it’s not cooked, it’s best made with summer tomatoes. A touch of onion, garlic, cilantro and lime juice add lots of flavor, and here, it’s fortified with cooked black beans. Feel free to play around with it:

• Use peaches, mangos or bell peppers in place of some of the tomatoes.
• Scallions instead of the onion or garlic
• Parsley or mint instead of the cilantro
• Try pinto or lentils instead of the black beans

And feel free to add to it: Crumbled queso fresco, feta, firm tofu, green olives, additional herbs, more chiles, grapes, corn or diced zucchini would be nice additions.

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Servings: 4

Total time: 25 mins

Ingredients

• 2 medium ripe tomatoes (12 ounces total), cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1/2 medium white onion (4 ounces), cut into 1/4-inch dice
• 1 small jalapeño or serrano pepper (2 ounces), seeded and cut into 1/4-inch dice (use half for a less-spicy salsa)
• 1 clove garlic, minced or finely grated
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice (from 2 to 3 limes), plus more as needed
• 1/4 cup (1/2 ounce) chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea or table salt, plus more as needed
• 1 tablespoon avocado or olive oil (optional)
• 1 cup (6 ounces) canned or cooked and drained black beans (optional)
• 8 small tortillas, preferably corn
• 4 medium ripe Hass avocados (1 1/2 pounds total), halved and pitted

Steps

1. In a medium, nonreactive bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, jalapeño or serrano, garlic, lime juice, cilantro, salt and oil, if using. Stir in the black beans, if using. Taste, and season with additional salt and/or lime juice, if desired.
2. Warm the tortillas in a lightly oiled skillet over medium-high heat, or briefly char over the grates of a gas burner.
3. To serve, use a spoon to scoop an avocado half into each tortilla. Mash it slightly so it stays in place, and top with at least 1/4 cup of the pico de gallo.

Nutrition information per (2 taco) serving: Calories: 469; Total Fat: 27g; Saturated Fat: 4g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 337mg; Carbohydrates: 55g; Dietary Fiber: 20g; Sugars: 6g; Protein: 11g.

See you Monday!