when we lived in massachusetts, my husband and i had a favorite mexican place near our house that we always visited whenever we wanted some authentic (well, by east coast standards anyway) mexican food*. what the place lacked in ambiance (depending on your view of televisions showing the current fútbol game), it more than made up for with seriously delicious food (and cheap prices!).
one of the first times i went there, i was having an adventurous moment and ordered the chorizo and potato quesadilla. aaaaand instantly fell in love. turns out chorizo is delicious!
at some point, the restaurant changed the printed menu a little bit and no longer listed this particular item, though they still had all of the ingredients and were happy to make the dish for me when i asked.
after a while though, i decided to try ordering something off the actual menu, though still with chorizo, because now that i knew how good it was, HOW was i going to order anything else? i settled on chorizo soft tacos, which did not include potatoes.
oh man. those are some tasty tacos. also? chorizo can be pretty greasy. it turns out that eating several tacos filled to the brim with just chorizo can leave a pretty intense puddle behind on the plate when you’re done.
when i decided to recreate chorizo tacos at home, i knew that i wanted to include some potatoes to help fill up the tacos without being quite so filled to the brim with meat. and, irish heritage notwithstanding, i just don’t have a lot of love for white potatoes. they’re just so… nothing.
enter… chorizo and sweet potato tacos! the creamy, roasted sweet potatoes add such a nice contrast to the spiced pork and crunchy red cabbage and onions. and because we chop the sweet potatoes into little cubes before we roast them, they are done in less than 20 minutes, so we don’t have to wait too long to enjoy our chorizo and sweet potato tacos.
in fact, since we moved, it’s now way faster to make these tacos myself than it is to drive the 2 hours back to the mexican restaurant. and now that i figured out my favorite recipe for chorizo and sweet potato tacos, i’m not even that tempted to. well, not very often, anyway…
*taqueria el amigo in waltham, for anyone within a 25-mile radius who likes good mexican food.
ps – love tacos? me too! check out asian style salmon tacos and easy and spicy turkey burgers and tacos.
did you make this recipe? i’d love to know what you think of it! leave a comment below and share a picture on instagram with the hashtag #tastyseasons.
chorizo and sweet potato tacos
Save to BigOven 
Ingredients
- 3 small sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into ½” (1.25 cm) dice
- 2 teaspoons avocado or olive oil
- 8 oz. (227 g.) mexican chorizo, casings removed, see notes
- 2 cups of thinly sliced red cabbage
- ½ cup finely diced yellow onion
- 2 avocados, thinly sliced
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 8 small tortillas, see notes
- 1 lime, cut into 8 wedges
Instructions
- preheat the oven to 400° F.
- on a rimmed baking sheet, toss the sweet potato cubes and oil to coat the potatoes. spread into a single layer and roast, stirring once, for 18 – 20 minutes, until the potatoes are tender and starting to turn golden brown.
- meanwhile, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. add the chorizo (which should be similar to ground pork after you removed the casings) and sauté until cooked through, stirring frequently. all of the spices make it difficult to tell if the chorizo has browned and cooked all the way through but luckily the crispy parts that develop as you keep cooking it, wondering if it’s done yet, are delicious, so don’t fret about them. don’t turn the entire pan into a crisp, but once about 25% of the meat is crispy, i decide that all of it must be cooked by now.
- once everything else is totally ready to go, stack the tortillas on a microwave safe plate. slightly dampen a paper towel (squeeze out any excess water) and cover the stack with the paper towel. microwave for about 30 seconds, just until the tortillas are warm and pliable (this is especially important to prevent corn tortillas from cracking in half). once the tortillas are warmed, you want to act fast while they are still warm, so wait until the last moment to do this.
- to assemble, divide the chorizo and potatoes among the tortilla shells. top with red cabbage, onions, avocado, and cilantro. serve with lime wedges so that everyone can spray lime juice all over their tacos and the table. enjoy!
Notes
mexican chorizo is sold raw, as compared to spanish chorizo, which is sold cured/cooked. we want mexican chorizo here, so that we can remove it from its casings and cook it like ground pork in a skillet.
if you eat both corn and wheat, the corn and wheat tortillas from trader joe’s are excellent. the corn gives them a delicious flour and the flour gives them the strength and durability that corn tortillas often lack. or just use your favorite small tortillas.
Nutrition Facts
chorizo and sweet potato tacos
Serves: 8 tacos
| Amount Per Serving: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 316.74 kcal | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 20.11 g | 30.9% | |
| Saturated Fat 5.43 g | 27.2% | |
| Trans Fat | ||
| Cholesterol 24.95 mg | 8.3% | |
| Sodium 391.6 mg | 16.3% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 26.38 g | 8.8% | |
| Dietary Fiber 6.88 g | 27.5% | |
| Sugars 3.5 g | ||
| Protein 10.29 g | ||
| Vitamin A | Vitamin C | |
| Calcium | Iron | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
tasty seasons
nutrition facts are per taco
I love chorizo! It takes breakfast, lunch, and dinner recipes to the next level. I cannot wait to make these tacos.
Happy Tuesday
http://www.lovecompassionatelee.com/thinkoutloud/success-that-lasts
i totally agree! i’m glad you found this recipe and i’m about to post a recipe for homemade mexican chorizo too – yum!