Tacos de Cabeza al Vapor

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Tall tamalera or stockpot with a tight-fitting lid and steamer insert
• •Clean cotton cloth or muslin for wrapping the meat
• •Cast iron comal for charring the salsa and warming tortillas
• •Volcanic stone molcajete or blender for the salsa verde
• •Heavy wooden cutting board for chopping the meats to order
• •Sharp chef's knife

Instructions

1. 1

   Set up the vaporera

   Fill the bottom chamber of a tamalera or large steamer pot with about three inches of water. Drop in the halved onion, halved garlic head, bay leaves, peppercorns, oregano, and one tablespoon of the salt. This is the bath. The steam that rises from it will season the meat as it cooks. Set a steamer rack or perforated insert above the water line. The water must not touch the meat.

   On the street in Ciudad de Mexico the taqueros use a metal canasto with the meat wrapped in cloth and laid over the broth. At home, any tall pot with a steamer insert and a tight lid will do the work. The seal is what matters. If steam escapes, flavor escapes.
2. 2

   Salt the meats and arrange

   Rub the cachete, lengua, maciza, and nervio (if using) all over with the remaining tablespoon of salt. Arrange them on the steamer rack so they sit close but not stacked. The lengua goes on the bottom; it is the densest and takes the longest. The cachete and maciza go on top. Cover the meats with a clean damp cloth, then cover the pot with its lid. Tradition in the street stands wraps the whole load in a cotton cloth before the lid goes on. The cloth catches the condensation and bastes the meat as it cooks.

3. 3

   Steam low and slow

   Bring the water to a strong simmer, then lower the heat until you have a steady, quiet steam. Cover and steam for three hours. Do not lift the lid for the first two hours. Every time you open the pot you lose ten minutes of cooking. At the two-hour mark check the water and add boiling water from a kettle if it is running low. Never cold water. Cold water shocks the steam and stalls the cook.

4. 4

   Make the salsa verde

   While the meat steams, set a comal over medium-high heat. Char the tomatillos, serrano, jalapeno, and the half onion directly on the dry comal, turning until the skins blister and blacken in patches. The tomatillos should soften and start to weep their juice. Transfer everything to a molcajete or blender with the cilantro, garlic, and salt. Grind or pulse to a textured salsa, not a smooth puree. You want to see the chile flecks and the seeds. A taqueria salsa verde has body.

   The taqueros in Mercado de San Juan and along Eje Central make their salsa verde with the tomatillos boiled, not charred. Both versions are correct. Boiled gives you a brighter, sharper salsa. Charred gives you a deeper, smokier one. Choose your stand.
5. 5

   Peel the lengua

   At the three-hour mark, lift the lengua out with tongs. While it is still hot, peel off the thick outer skin. It should come away in sheets if the steaming was right. If it resists, the tongue needs another twenty minutes. Set it back in the steamer and check again. A properly peeled lengua is pale and tender all the way through, with no rubbery membrane. Once peeled, return it to the steamer to stay warm.

6. 6

   Check and rest

   Test the cachete and maciza with a fork. The cachete should pull apart with almost no pressure. It is the prize cut, the one you ask for by name at the stand. The maciza is leaner and gives a cleaner pull. If they need more time, give them another fifteen minutes. When everything is tender, turn off the heat but leave the pot covered. The meat keeps in its own warmth for thirty minutes without losing texture.

7. 7

   Chop the meats to order

   On a wooden cutting board, chop each cut separately. Cachete gets a rough chop, keeping the fatty bits intact. Lengua slices into thin rounds first, then a fine cross-chop. Maciza chops into small pieces. Do not mix them. At the puesto, each cut is its own taco and the customer chooses. That choice is part of the ritual. Ask for cachete.

8. 8

   Warm the tortillas double

   Heat a comal over medium-high. Warm the tortillas in pairs, stacked on top of each other, flipping the stack so both tortillas get hot on both sides. Tacos de cabeza always come on two tortillas. Una sola se rompe. One alone tears under the wet meat and the salsa. The double tortilla is structural, not decorative.

9. 9

   Build and serve

   Place two warm tortillas on a plate. Pile a generous spoonful of meat down the center. The juices from the meat soak into the top tortilla; that is correct. Top with diced raw white onion, chopped cilantro, a heavy spoonful of salsa verde, and a squeeze of lime. Eat standing up if you want the full experience. Saber cocinar es saber vivir.

Chef Tips

• •Order the cuts from a Mexican carniceria, not a supermarket. A good carnicero will sell you cachete trimmed and ready, and will source lengua and nervio if you ask the day before. Pregunta a las senoras del mercado: they know which butcher cuts cabeza the right way.
• •Two tortillas, always. Una sola se rompe. The bottom tortilla protects your hand and the top tortilla soaks the juice. This is not a guideline. This is the structure of the taco.
• •If your butcher does not carry cachete, do not substitute brisket or chuck and call it cabeza. Make a different taco. Tacos de cachete is its own thing and the substitution would be a different dish wearing the wrong name.

Advance Preparation

• •The meats can be steamed one day ahead. Cool in the pot, refrigerate whole, and re-steam for 30 minutes to warm through before chopping. The texture holds beautifully.
• •Salsa verde keeps refrigerated for three days. The flavor settles after a few hours, so making it in the morning for an evening meal works in your favor.
• •Tortillas should be fresh on the day. Stale tortillas crack under the weight of the meat and salsa, and the doubled tortilla loses its point.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 365g)