It just started to cook!

[That Anime Chick]

I make my special taco meat every now and then. I just put it into the crock pot an hour ago and the whole house smells like it. I haven't eaten very much today and it's making me a bit mad. How can uncooked beef smell so good?

Also, question just to make sure. I usually use chuck roast for this, but no market had it for less than $5 a lb. That's absurd.

One store had very large, very marbled sirloin steaks on sale for $2.50 a lb so I used that. Do you think after 12 hours in the crock pot it will pull apart?

I know that after about 6 hours my last roast pulled apart. I had it on high, so that might have helped too. I understand completely what you mean about it smelling so good. I swear the only reason why I bug DH to make his stew/chili is because it makes the house smell nice. 

[VorFemme]

I have a turkey machacha recipe that I posted to the appropriate folder years ago - it turns leftover Thanksgiving turkey into a reason for there to be extra turkeys in the freezer every year so I can make MORE of this than I'd get from just the small turkey we'd get for just the three of us.  Or that we'd get from bringing home a few leftovers from the grandparents' houses..........now that we are grandparents, it will still be a while before everyone comes to our house for dinner.  DD, DSIL, and DGS are 850 miles away............long way to drive when they both work and DSIL's father & stepmother have them over 40 miles away!

[auntmeegs]

MM, that sounds AMAZING, I am sooo going to make it!

Question: do you put the piece of meat in whole or do you cut it up a  little before putting it in the crockpot? 

[robobecky]

I just made the beef yesterday and reheated and ate today.  Yummy!  Very juicy, but I can see how it would turn out dry if you don't pour the juice over it before freezing.  MadMadge, do you freeze it right in the crockpot dish?  I ended up keeping it in the pan I used while shredding, covered it with plastic and tinfoil while in the freezer, and then put into the oven with tinfoil on it on 300 to reheat.  I also added more cumin and garlic powder while it was in the middle of reheating.

The salsa wasn't bad, but I misread and did not get the fresh cayenne peppers,so I ended up using powdered.  Not the same.  I think I want to find a way to make it chunkier too.  Not sure how yet, may just cutting up the tomatoes instead of using the blender.  Still good though.  I did end up adding Cracked red pepper too, to make up for the missing cayenne pepper.  I may stick with store salsa, not sure yet.

Overall, very good, thank you for that recipe.

[kethria]

Thank you thank you thank  you. We ate this today and I have enough left in the freezer that we can have tacos next week, plus I scored brownie points by taking some to mom with some tortillas.

[MrsJWine]

Yes, this was fabulous. I think next time we have friends over, I will make this. Sooo good. And even though it requires planning ahead, it's not really that much effort. The hardest part is cleaning up the meat. My husband has had a little bit every day for the last five days, and he says it just keeps getting better as it sits in the fridge. I think we could both live on it for months.

[kethria]

I confess I never strained the juices out, I just attacked the meat with 2 forks, shredding it in the juices like a rabid wolverine or Edward Scissorhands. Still worked

[MadMadge43]

Oh my, sorry this has taken so long to respond but I was busy getting married. Thank you all so much for the compliments.

Aunt Meegs, just throw the whole roast in. Robo Becky, I usually put it in a plastic storage container, just because it's much smaller and saves space. But I guess it's up to you.

I made this for our families first dinner in Mexico after the wedding and have to send the recipe out to my cousins.

[Judah]

Funny you resurrected this thread today, because I've got this cooking right now.  I'm not a crockpot fan and this is the first time I've pulled mine out  in years.  It smells yummy!

[Harriet Jones]

I made this a few weeks ago, very yummy!

[still in va]

Oh my, sorry this has taken so long to respond but I was busy getting married. Thank you all so much for the compliments.

Aunt Meegs, just throw the whole roast in. Robo Becky, I usually put it in a plastic storage container, just because it's much smaller and saves space. But I guess it's up to you.

I made this for our families first dinner in Mexico after the wedding and have to send the recipe out to my cousins.

Madge, this sounds delish!  do you have to use a crock-pot?  do you think i could put it in the oven overnight on low and get the same results?

[MadMadge43]

I seriously can't believe how many people have actually made this.

Still in VA- I have no idea. I'm sure it could be done, because people have stewed meat for centuries before the crockpot. I just have never taken a chance at it.

[still in va]

I seriously can't believe how many people have actually made this.

Still in VA- I have no idea. I'm sure it could be done, because people have stewed meat for centuries before the crockpot. I just have never taken a chance at it.

hmm, let me think.  assemble ingredients in a closed roaster after browning meat, oven set at 300, 8 hours to start....i'll let you know how it goes, Madge, after i head off to Costco for a couple of chuck roasts!

i really can't wait to try this.  it's just the two of us here, but i love to make big pots of food and freeze them in meal-sized portions.  it's lovely to pull something out of the freezer to thaw and heat, even if i am now a SAHW.  just my imaginary tasting of this recipe leads me to believe that i could use this "taco" meat in 4 or 5 ways.

[trailgrrl]

Just made it again, and put in the freezer for Enchilada's tomorrow   MadMadge, it is freakin' amazing and totally changed how I view taco meat.  As G_d as my witness, I will never use store bought taco seasoning again.......

[MrsJWine]

My latest batch didn't turn out as awesome. I think it dried out a bit, and I think it's because I used a less fatty roast, and we live at high altitude. I think ten hours the first time around would probably do it for most. So, keep that in mind if you have trouble with other dishes drying out; I have in the past, and should have kept that in mind. It was still very good, though.