Chipolte Tacos

Tacos have become a staple of the American diet. What once was purely a Mexican food has practically become an institution. In many homes "taco night" is a once a week tradition. Kids love them, they are easy to make, and they are fun to eat!
I first came across the chipotle pepper (pronounced Chee POTE lay) at the international farmers market in Atlanta. I was looking for a pepper that would give me lots of flavor with out too much heat. Chipotle have definitely got the flavor! These are actually jalapeño peppers that have been smoked. They have a rich smoky flavor that infuses into the foods they are cooked with. A word of warning though these peppers are hot (considered medium on on the Scoville scale). I love spicy food, but my children don't. Therefore, for cooking tacos, I remove the seeds and then only use half of the pepper. I've had some trouble finding these peppers in North Carolina, the only place I've found them so far is World Market.

Chipolte Tacos

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground Beef or Turkey
1/2 onion-chopped fine
2 cloves garlic- minced
1 Chipotle pepper cut-up fine- (remove seeds or use 1/2 pepper to reduce spiciness)
1 tsp lime juice
3/4 cup water
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp oregano
1 tsp sugar
Salt and pepper to taste

Optional ingredients:
1 cup of cut corn
Several sprigs of chopped fresh cilantro
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Serve with:
Corn Tortillas, either soft or crunchy
Chopped Lettuce
Diced tomato or Salsa
Shredded cheese
Sour cream
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Directions:
• Put ground meat in to a medium sized, pre-heated pan(medium heat), cook the ground meat until brown on both sides.
• Transfer the meat to a colander and rinse it with warm water (to rinse away all of the fat)
• Return the rinsed meat to the pan and add the water, onion, lime juice, garlic and chipotle. stir and cook for a few minutes until the onion is translucent.
• Add the ground cumin, oregano, cinnamon, sugar, salt and pepper. Stir all and bring to a boil.
• Add cut corn (optional)
• Reduce heat to simmer and cook @ 10 minutes. let cool a few minutes before serving. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro (optional).

•Serve in corn tortillas with the lettuce, cheese, sour cream, tomato and/or salsa or however you enjoy your tacos!