THE TACO

2. THE TACO • is a traditional Mexican dish composed of a corn or wheat tortilla folded or rolled around a filling. • Made with a variety of fillings, including beef, chicken, seafood, vegetables and cheese, allowing for great versatility and variety. • Generally eaten without utensils and is often accompanied by garnishes such as salsa, avocado or guacamole, cilantro, tomatoes, onions and lettuce.

3. Dishes • Tacos are often eaten with guacamole and tortilas. • Mexican style rice or beans

4. History • The taco predates the arrival of Europeans in Mexico. There is anthropological evidence that the indigenous people living in the lake region of the Valley of Mexico traditionally ate tacos filled with small fish. • Writing at the time of the Spanish conquistadors, Bernal Díaz del Castillo documented the first taco feast enjoyed by Europeans, a meal which Hernán Cortés arranged for his captains in Coyoacán

5. Hard shell • Beginning from the early part of the twentieth century, various styles of tacos have become popular in the United States and Canada. • The style that has become most common is the hard-shell. These have been sold by restaurants and by fast food chains. Even non-Mexican oriented fast food restaurants have sold tacos. Such tacos are crisp-fried corn tortillas filled with seasoned ground beef, cheese, lettuce, and sometimes tomato, onion, salsa, sour cream, and avocado or guacamole.

6. Soft shell • Traditionally, soft-shelled tacos referred to corn tortillas that were cooked to a softer state than a hard taco - usually by grilling or steaming. • More recently the term has come to include flour tortilla based tacos mostly from large manufacturers and restaurant chains. In this context, soft tacos are tacos made with wheat flour tortillas and filled with the same ingredients as a hard taco.