This year on May 5, celebrate Cinco de Mayo with recipes from Blue Plate Catering's Chef Randal Jacobs. First up: delicious Sofrito Braised Barbacoa Tacos with chopped cilantro, white onion, and fresh lime wedges. But there's more: wash it all down with a satisfying margarita from Lov Carpenter, Blue Plate’s lead mixologist and cocktail connoisseur. Carpenter suggests freezing fruit puree (strawberries, watermelon, though just about anything would work) into ice cubes and adding a few to your drink or pitcher as a simple, fun, and healthy way to add dimension to a margarita.
Chef Randal Jacobs
Sofrito Braised Barbacoa Taco
With chopped cilantro, white onion and fresh lime wedges
Yields 16 tacos
4 dried guajillo chilies
2 tsp cumin seeds (toasted)
1/8 whole cloves (toasted)
2 cups or beef or chicken stock
1/2 teaspoon ground ancho chile powder
2 medium onion 1½ quartered and ½ small diced)
1 cup red pepper (diced)
1 cup green pepper (diced)
3 plum tomatoes
1 bunch cilantro
6 cloves garlic
2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp ground thyme
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 whole limes (wedges)
1 (4 lb) boneless beef chuck roast
2 bay leaves
1. Season roast with salt, oregano, thyme and pepper. Heat oil in a roasting pan. Sear roast. Remove roast and set aside.
2. Add onions to the roasting pan and sauté until brown; add the red pepper, green pepper, tomatoes, garlic, and chiles and cook until soft. Add cilantro, cloves, chili powder and cumin. Add the water. Bring to a simmer.
3. Return the roast to the pan, add vinegar and cover with plastic wrap and foil. Roast at 290˚ F until internal roast temperature reaches 160˚ F (approximately 1 to 1 1/2 hours for 3 to 4 pound roast).
4. Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes.
5. Remove roast from cooking liquid and cool. Once roast is cool, shred meat and place in a mixing bowl.
6. Puree the sofrito (cooking liquid) mixture in a blender and adjust with seasoning. Fold the sofrito into the shredded meat and serve with corn tortillas, chopped cilantro, white onions, and fresh limes.
Tip - It’s better to warm up the tortillas in a pan than use the microwave.
Mixologist Lov Carpenter
The Perfect Margarita
2 oz tequila
1 oz lime juice
.5 oz Cointreau
Frozen fruit purée ice cubes
Put your fresh or frozen fruit into your blender, add a teaspoon of water (add more if needed), blend, then pour into ice cube trays and freeze for about 3 hours. When ready to serve, place your fruit ice cubes in a glass and pour your margarita over them.
