Cooking Without Nightshades, Gluten & More: Nightshade-free Taco or Burrito Meat with optional Black Beans

Welcome

Join me as I discover and re-create recipes to fit my family's many food allergies.

I will be focusing on foods that do not include the nightshade family, gluten, soy, natural flavors, peanuts, MSG, nutmeg, cumin, raspberries, cherries, oats, pork, pumpkin, chamomile, pistachios, corn (unless it is organic), preservatives, food colors, natural and artificial flavors, cottonseed oil, spinach, aged & colored cheeses (cream cheese & mozzarella are OK, Monterey Jack is OK in moderation), yeast (unless in safe bread), anything cured, aged, fermented or malted. We also only use milk in moderation. The nightshade family is a particularly long list and includes spices, potatoes (sweet are fine), tomatoes, peppers & more.

Whew, yes, this is all a long list. What an adventure it is to cook this way.

Monday, July 8, 2013

Nightshade-free Taco or Burrito Meat with optional Black Beans

My husband spent a lot of his childhood in Mexico, so Mexican food has always been a favorite in our household. With the allergies it has been hard to figure out alternatives that work for us and still give us the flavor we love. I have finally come up with a recipe for seasoned hamburger that works for tacos and burritos. It would also be a great add-on for a rice and vegetables mixture. I have been adding safe canned black beans to part of the batch. I just take out some for the person who can't have beans and then add the beans & liquid to the pan. This helps when freezing the leftovers for them to stay moist.
In the picture below I have served the taco meat with beans in a tortilla with cheese and lettuce added. I served salad, blue corn chips and a slice of lime, all on the side. Using gluten-free tortillas and tortilla chips will make this a gluten-free meal. We really enjoy having this stocked ahead in the freezer.

Nightshade-free Taco or Burrito Meat w/ Optional Black Beans

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef (I like ground round)
1 onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. ground coriander
4 tsp. oregano leaves (regular or mexican, mexican really gives it a more authentic taste, but both are good)
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. thyme leaves
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/4 tsp. ground white pepper
1 - 15 oz. can of black beans (optional)

Directions:

In a large skillet over medium heat brown hamburger, onions and garlic until hamburger is browned, but not overcooked.

Drain hamburger. (see tip below)

Add the rest of the spices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes to blend flavors. At this point I take out a portion of the meat mixture for the person who doesn't want beans in it.

Add 1 can of black beans, including the liquid from the can, if you desire and heat until hot. (We use a slotted spoon & regular spoon to dish out so that each person can have liquid or not.) The liquid really helps keep it moist if you are freezing leftovers.

Tips:

One easy way to drain the hamburger is to drain it with a colander. I put a square of aluminum foil, which I have made square corners on to catch the grease. Makes for easy clean-up and easy draining.