Not at all homemade: Taco Night

I mentioned in my first post that one of the things that kept me from going GF for a long time was my reliance on convenience foods. I still haven't cleaned out my office at work where I still have a box of instant oatmeal and about half a dozen protein bars. Sometimes, I just don't have time for homemade, or a whole food. Taco nights are usually about convenience for me. Thawed ground meat takes about 20 minutes to turn into tacos and I can easily chop up lettuce and tomatoes and simmer rice and/or beans as sides. But on my last trip to the grocery store, I was surprised to find that not all taco kits are gluten free.

Normally, my husband would just pick up a Taco Bell Home Originals kit for taco night. Seasoning packet, taco shells, tomato mix type stuff is right there in the box. It doesn't get much easier than that. Unfortunately, Taco Bell's taco seasoning isn't gluten free. While Kraft does attest that the corn taco shells ARE gluten free, the seasoning isn't. So, I looked around for other options. The store brand also didn't have all the information on the label I was looking for (and I didn't want to chance it) so I went with Old El Paso.

Both of these products are gluten free, and delicious.  However, I don't want to give Taco Bell Home Originals a bad name.  They have many products that are gluten free, but the taco seasoning packets are not one of them.  I served their fat free refried beans as a side.  But, so that you have the information, here's a list of their Home Originals products that are gluten free:

Ready to Eat Dips:
Black Bean con Queso
Chili con Queso with Beef
Medium Salsa con Queso
Mild Salsa con Queso

Refried Beans
Original
Fat Free
Vegetarian Blend

Restaurant Sauce:
Mild
Hot

Taco Sauce:
Medium
Mild

Taco Shells (corn only, flour tortillas are not GF)
Thick 'n Chunky Salsa:
Medium
Mild

This information was gathered from gfoverflow.com.  Remember though that this is just for Taco Bell Home Originals: what is used in the fast food restaurants may be different (I know the taco shells at the restaurant are not listed as a GF item) so be sure to check their website if you're planning on eating there.

Of course, we did up the tacos with the normal fixings like lettuce, tomato, cheese, and sour cream.  It's really no different than a normal "convenience food" taco night.  The preparation was just as easy.  Now that I know which mixes and shells are okay for me to eat, shopping for these items will be just as simple as it was before.  If you're feeling up to the challenge, you can of course, always make your own taco shells.  One of the things that I keep on hand in the house nowadays is a pack of corn tortillas.  I know that some folks going GF also avoid corn, but it doesn't seem to agitate me at all, so I eat corn products.

You can either fry the tortillas in oil in a skillet on medium heat (drain on a paper towel after frying), or bake them.  If baking, you should check your oven rack.  If you have really wide, or very small spaces in the grate, this might not work for you.  But, if your oven rack is like many, you can drape the tortillas over them and bake.

1. Preheat the oven to 375.
2. Wrap four of the tortillas in a slightly damp paper towel and microwave for about 30 seconds to steam
3. Coat both sides of the tortilla with olive oil or cooking spray
4. (at this point, you can spice up your shells with seasonings like chili powder, paprika, etc)
5. Drape the tortilla over two closely spaced places on the oven rack and bake til crispy (about 7 to 8 minutes)
6. Repeat until you have the number of tortillas you need!