King’s Highway diner in Palm Springs, CA, gave us the recipe for their mushroom chorizo and creamy sauce, and our tacos will never be the same.
Ingredients
4 servings
Adobo Sauce
6
4
4
2
1
2
1
5
¼
2
Mushroom Chorizo
2
1
¾
Masa Queso
1
½
1
½
⅓
2
3
Assembly
1
8
Special Equipment
Preparation
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Adobo
Step 1
Stem and seed chiles and snip into 1″ pieces with scissors. Pour 2 cups boiling water over chiles in a small bowl and let sit, pushing down occasionally or weighing down with another small bowl to keep submerged, until softened, about 20 minutes.
Step 2
Meanwhile, toast cloves and cumin seeds in a small skillet over medium heat, tossing occasionally, until spices are fragrant (do not let burn), about 2 minutes. Transfer to spice mill or mortar and pestle, then finely grind.
Step 3
Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally and lowering heat as needed, until onions are caramelized, 15–20 minutes. Add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Stir in ground spices.
Step 4
Add chiles and their soaking liquid to saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, uncovered, until chiles are tender and flavors have melded, 15–20 minutes. Let cool slightly. Transfer to a blender (reserve saucepan for mushroom chorizo), add vinegar and brown sugar, and purée until smooth. Season to taste with salt.
Step 5
Do Ahead: Adobo can be made 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.
-
Mushroom Chorizo
Step 6
Heat oil in reserved saucepan over medium. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring and scraping bottom of pan occasionally, until mushrooms are very tender, 8–10 minutes. Continue to cook until mushrooms are lightly browned, about 5 minutes longer. Let cool.
Step 7
Pulse mushrooms and rice in a food processor until mixture resembles coarsely ground meat. Add ½ cup adobo sauce and pulse just to combine. Season with salt.
Step 8
Do Ahead: Chorizo can be made 4 days ahead. Cover and chill.
-
Masa Queso
Step 9
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until very soft, 6–8 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Step 10
Transfer onion mixture to a blender (reserve saucepan; you’ll need it in a minute). Add milk, cream, and masa to blender, then purée until smooth. Transfer liquid back to saucepan and heat over medium. Gently simmer, lowering heat if needed to avoid scorching bottom of saucepan and whisking often, until masa no longer tastes raw and mixture is very thick, 5–8 minutes.
Step 11
Reduce heat to low and whisk in cheese a handful at a time, whisking constantly and letting cheese fully melt between additions. Season with salt. Keep warm over very low heat (do not let come to a simmer).
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Assembly
Step 12
Heat oil in a medium skillet, preferably nonstick, over medium. Add mushroom chorizo and cook, without stirring, until browned underneath, about 2 minutes. Toss chorizo and continue to cook, tossing occasionally, until browned in spots and very fragrant, about 3 minutes longer.
Step 13
Divide chorizo among tortillas and top with mushrooms, masa queso, pickled onions, crispy mushrooms, and cilantro, if using. Serve with lime wedges alongside, if using.