In his Historia de la comida en México, the first general history of Mexican gastronomy, Amando Farga described Mexican food as “the happy meeting between the indigenous clay pot and the Spanish copper cauldron. This ‘fusion of two great peoples’ (the Aztecs and the Spanish) had given rise to the ‘lineage of today’s Mexican cuisine.’” Tacos al pastor, “shepherd style,” are filled with spit-grilled meat, usually pork, a cooking method based on traditional Lebanese lamb shawarma but with a flavor profile that is pure Mexico. Popular in Puebla, where there is a sizable Lebanese Mexican population, the meat is seasoned with a combination of Middle Eastern herbs and spices originally introduced by the Lebanese, including Mediterranean oregano (not to be confused with Mexican oregano), cumin, and cinnamon, along with ingredients indigenous to central Mexico. It is served wrapped in pan árabe, a cross between a tortilla and pita. In this vegetarian take, the earthiness of a trio of wild mushrooms is the perfect foil for the smokiness of the chipotles in the salsa. If you can’t find wild mushrooms, you can use 9 ounces (255 g) of cultivated mushrooms, such as cremini and shiitake.
Ingredients
- 10 homemade tortillas
- 3 ounces (85 g) hen of the wood mushrooms
- 3 ounces (85 g) morels
- 3 ounces (85 g) king trumpet mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 large cloves garlic, grated or minced
- Kosher salt
- 1¼ to 1¾ cups (300 to 420 ml) Salsa Al Pastor (page 63)
- 5 limes, cut into wedges, for serving
- 10 ounces (280 g) grated queso Cotija or Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup (65 g) minced Spanish white onion mixed with ½ cup (20 g) chopped fresh cilantro
Preparation
Rinse the mushrooms in a bowl of warm water then cut them into roughly 1-inch (2.5-cm) pieces, making sure the pieces are all about the same size. Line a sheet pan with a kitchen towel, lay the mushroom pieces on the towel in a single layer, and let dry for about 1 hour.
Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add the oil and tip the pan to spread the oil evenly over the bottom. Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until just lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the garlic, season with salt, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes longer, making sure not to burn the garlic. If you do not have a large sauté pan, cook the mushrooms in two batches to avoid overcrowding, which will result in soggy mushrooms.
While the mushrooms are cooking, warm the tortillas on a hot comal (or hot pan). As you pull each tortilla from the comal, add a spoonful of the mushrooms hot from the pan. Top the mushrooms with 2 to 3 tablespoons of the salsa, then season with salt (remember, the cheese is also salty) and a squeeze of lime juice. Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the cheese over the top of each taco, then garnish with the onion-cilantro mixture. Serve at once with lime wedges on the side. Makes 10 tacos.
