The Dish: Cinco de Mayo Tacos

Cinco de Mayo, once the celebration of an unlikely victory by the Mexican army over French forces in 1862 has, more recently, become something akin to a South-of-the-Border St. Patrick's Day, at least in the U.S. However, any excuse to celebrate with margaritas and Mexican food is A-ok with us, so we asked our friend Chef Betty Vázquez from the famed Garza Canela in San Blas, located a few hours north of Puerto Vallarta (and worth the excursion) on what to prepare.

"We do not celebrate 5 de Mayo as much as you do in the U.S., but having a taco in your life [on any day], is a celebration," says the Chef. "The flavors of a good taco can be memorable. Farm workers will bring their itacate, their box lunch, to the fields and a taco is the best lunch ever. Every single bite is a piece of heaven, every single taco has a story to tell, every family has their own recipe."

"Start with tortillas, a basic item for a good taco, made of real corn, our main grain in México," continues Chef Vázquez. "The filling is your choice, anything you can think, but a salsa, in this case salsa martajada, can make a good taco into the best taco."

Salsa Martajada
Roasted tomatoes
Diced onion 
Garlic
Diced chilies 

Preparation: Mash ingredients together in a Mexican mortar called a molcajete. The salsa will be soft mashed, leaving chunky tomatoes for a better texture.