Homemade Cheesy Gordita Crunch (Chicken & Beef)
Ingredients
Seasoned Beef
450 g (1 lb) 80/20 ground beef
7 g (1 tsp) salt
6 g (1 tsp) spoon onion powder
6 g (1 tsp) ground cumin
3 g (1/2 tsp) spoon ground cayenne
3 g (1/2 tsp) spoon ground paprika
Squirt tomato paste
Dash of water
Optional: sprinkle of MSG
Chipotle Chicken
450 g (1 lb) chicken breasts, cubed
30 g (1/4 cup) mayo
1 chipotle in adobo, minced
Sprinkle of ground cumin
5 g (1 tsp) Salt
Spicy Ranch
100 g (1/2 c) sour cream
100 g (1/2 c) mayo
Splash of hot sauce
Sprinkle of ground cumin
Sprikle coriander
7 g (1 tbsp) pickled jalapenos, minced
Juice from 1/4 lime
Sprinkle of salt
Optional: Sprinkle of MSG
Components
Hard shell tacos (wide)
Small pitas*
Iceberg lettuce, thinly sliced
Red onion, diced
Yellow Colby jack cheese, grated
Instructions
Start the ground beef & prep the chicken: Over medium-high heat, add the ground beef to a pan and the salt, onion powder, cumin, paprika, and cayenne. Use a potato masher or metal spatula to break it up as it sears.
In a bowl or cutting board, mix the cubed chicken breast with the mayo, adobo, cumin, and salt. Set aside.
Once the beef is deeply browned and cooked through, add a squirt of tomato paste and a splash of water to deglaze the pan. Mix thoroughly to evenly coat the mixture.
Set aside the beef & sear the chicken: Reserve the beef in a container and wipe out the pan. Over high heat, sear the chicken until cooked through and browned on each side. Remove from pan when done.
Prep the toppings & make the ranch: While the chicken is cooking, thinly slice some lettuce and onions, and then grate the cheese. In a container, thoroughly mix all spicy ranch components and taste for salt & heat, and adjust if necessary.
Assemble: Add a layer of cheese to a pita and melt with a microwave, toaster oven/broiler, or kitchen torch. When the cheese is still warm, surround the hard taco shell so that the two stick together. Fill the taco shell with your desired meat, another layer of grated cheese, spicy ranch, and then lettuce and onion. Enjoy.
Notes & Variations
*Most flour tortillas on the market aren’t thick enough to replicate the Taco Bell gordita wrap. I’ve found a pita works the best as far as texture.
In the spicy ranch, you can replace the mayo and sour cream with Greek yogurt for a high-protein, low-fat condiment.
Feel free to sub in any protein or toppings, to your preference.
