FOUND! Fancyass Sonoran Dog

I am neither hip nor with it. Big Star is. (Click for a better photo!!). They recently updated their menu to include a SONORAN HOT DOG!!!!! Of course, this ain't your average Tucson gas station parking lot dog, and that kinda made me misty, but it was still some delightfully chewy nostalgia. The big diff was that the hot dog was a girthy, beefy piece of meat and the bread was a bolillo. It was nearly impossible to eat with my hands (but I did it anyway, after the bartender suggested cutting it in half). All in all, I'll probably have another one in the near future, but my favorite part of Big Star is still the walk-up window where I spend all my tip money on their out of this world pork belly tacos. Free lollipop!

And for the record, my favorite, non-south side sonoran dogs are tied with the one on 6th street and Park (across from U of A Liquors) and BD's, which sets up in the parking lot of Antigone's on Fourth.

Update: Success!

The food-selling went much better than expected, raking in over twice our modestly projected amount. Definitely enough to buy a new set of bike tires (I posted a sign on a cabinet "Some dickhead/s stole my shit!" which proved to be effective in relaying the cause).

After about twenty seconds of brainstorming, we came up with a sign reading "Madam Crispy's Ethno-Food Bucket: Cheap food for you filthy whore mouths." I am Madam Crispy, and will henceforth be addressed as such. The menu was low-cost and went splitsies between Korean and Mexican fare. Every item was two bucks (a focus group comprised of my boyfriend's room/bandmates pushed for a dollar menu, saying three bucks was too many bucks. Behold the art of compromise).

The menu specs are as follows:
*Korean mandu- dumplings filled with glass noodles, tofu, carrot, green onion, spicy chorizo (optional for vegetarians), and seasoned with garlic, ginger, s&p, and sesame oil. Pan fried to order with choice of wasabi mustard or spicy bean paste dippin' sauce.
*Fried rice- Red and green bell pepper, peas, carrots, onion, (beef and egg optional), all sauteed in a wok (!) to order with rice and soy sauce.
*Chips and Guac- make a pico with tomato, red onion, red bell pepper, jalapeno, serrano, cilantro and smush it around with lime and avocado. I made the tortilla chips (that is, I fried the soft tortillas from the store) and it's seriously THE ONLY WAY YOU SHOULD BE EATING TORTILLA CHIPS!!!! Also, save your fryin' oil. Thank me later.
*Pineapple enchiladas- Big ups to m'lady Kara for the recipe. A can of pineapple, two cans of black beans, cilantro, a whole red onion, sour cream, and cheese. Roll it up and smother in enchilada sauce and cheese (we used Chihuahua cheese for the filling and sharp cheddar for the topping) Bake at 350 for...um...whenever you think it's melty and hot.

And that's all, folks. I wish I had some pictures, but my man was busy DJ-ing/rocking and I was busy cooking/drinking strangers' whiskey. Thank you, strangers!

Brainstorm ACTIVATE!

Hey guys. This Friday my man and I will be making a second attempt at unlicensed food vending. This time it will be inside a house and not on the street! It will be during a hardcore show (think patchy denim jackets, not the skate shoes and emo hair kind!) Menu items will be prepped beforehand and cooked to order. They so far include- spicy chorizo and vegetarian Korean-style dumplings, fried rice, fresh chips and homemade guac, pineapple enchilada casserole. Any ideas on some other foods that can be cooked fast and made cheaply? There is one burner left open on the stove, and no deep fryer.

Also, what should we call ourselves? We kinda want to make this a thing, ya know?

Cemitas, Chilaquiles and Fart Cakes

I have finally met a man whose appetite for Mexican food rivals even my own. We've been doing a lot of cooking at home. (A, like, totally trippy plate of stuffed mushroom cap, polenta and leeks happened, as well as some seriously heavy pasta alfredo and bake-at-home pizzas to which we add an immodest amount of pizzazz). As for Mexican cookery, well, there are no highlights- It's all solid gold in my book. Nacho-mageddon was just the beginning.

(edit Note from the future- this is extremely inaccurate) We made Cemitas, or for those of you uncomfortable with foreign words, "Mexican sloppy Joes." Chihuahua cheese melted on the bottom bun to prevent sogginess, then meat (fake meat if you're into that), chipotles, lettuce and avocado. Top bun. Seasoning the meat was where I screwed it up. The chipotles came in an adobo sauce that I thought would be good to simmer the steak in. Turned out face-meltingly spicy, but nonetheless genital-tingling tasty. Food photography is not my strong point, but please enjoy the shiny sleaze of the pictures provided.

I don't know what took me so long to try chilaquiles. We didn't make them in the traditional way (soak the chips in salsa until they get soft) because I like crunchy foods. Are you buying bagged tortilla chips? ARE YOU?!? Make your own, because they are amazing and only take about a minute to fry. (Pro tip- take 'em out of the oil when you feel them getting hard but are still pale to prevent overcooking!) Okay, make your beans and rice, and shred some iceberg lettuce. If you're feeling fancy, maybe some tomato, onion, and guac. This is your healthy garnish. While the tortillas are cooling on paper towels, scramble some eggs, and smother them in red or green salsa and a sprinkling of cilantro, green chilies and cheese. Toss or layer them with your chips and POW! Put them in your mouth.

And finally, the only thing better than coming home after work to a clean kitchen is coming home after work to a clean kitchen AND and a Funfetti cake that says FART.

A Whole Lotta Nacho

Human head and dollar bill shown for scale.