*See Kitchen Notes for substitutions, links to special ingredients and vegetarian option.
When the oil is hot, add the squash. Spread the squash out to cook and brown on one side for about 2-3 minutes.
Add the toasted coriander, salt, corn and garlic. Stir into the squash and continue to cook and stir until the squash and corn are done, about 2 more minutes.
Taste, add salt is needed.
Have toppings chopped and prepared and in separate bowls.
Place some of the cheese on a warm tortilla*. Top with the calabacitas, then the onion, bacon or pepitas.
Shake a few dashes of hot sauce on the tacos and then a squeeze of lime. Enjoy!
Corn Tortillas - Homemade tortillas are the best and the lighter soft ones works best for these tacos. For the ones shown in the pictures I used Torti Masa (a white corn flour).
Squash – Use any summer squash you want. We love the flavor of yellow squash so I use it pretty exclusively.
Corn – Fresh (1 ear of corn), frozen or canned all work.
Roasted Green Chile - We've been working on the last of our 2017 chile. For this batch of tacos, we used Joe Parker Hatch chile from The Hatch Chile Store. A very tasty chile and not too spicy, so you can use a lot. You could also use roasted red chile or a mix of red and green. The chile can be fresh roasted, canned, or frozen.
Toasted Coriander - To toast coriander, place the seeds in a hot skillet and shake until the seeds become aromatic. Transfer to a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and grind to a powder.
Cilantro – Parsley, fresh oregano (1 Tbsp), lovage leaves, or chives are good substitutes
Cheddar Cheese - Use a medium or sharp cheddar or for different taste, substitute with cotija or queso fresco. You can place the cheese on the top or bottom of the taco. I like to put it on the bottom so that the hot ingredients melt it a bit. But your choice.
Bacon or Pepitas – These ingredients are for crunch as well as flavor. The bacon adds a crispy smokiness to the tacos. If you don’t eat bacon, then these Sweet and spicy pepitas are a great substitute.
Hot Sauce - We use a Chile de Arbol Hot Sauce, but you can use any hot sauce you like.
Other toppings suggestions - Fresh tomato, queso fresco cheese instead of cheddar, avocado.
Vegetarian and Vegan Options - Replace the bacon with the pepitas. Vegan can omit the cheese or use a non-dairy cheese.
Recipe author: MJ of MJ's Kitchen