Volcano Burrito: the Congo Approach to Awesome Tex-Mex

Amy hungry. Amy want Taco Bell cinnamon twists.

In 1995 Taco Bell introduced a Congo promotional tie-in burrito "piled high with seasoned beef, rice, beans, a blend of three cheeses, and fiery red sauce". At 99 cents the Volcano Burrito sounds like a steal, except it was made by Taco Bell, so it probably wasn't very good. But the commercial was cool.

The commercial features a fabulous Tex-Mex dinner stripped down to its core components: meat, beans, rice, and heat. It's not fancy, and it's not strictly authentic Mexican, but it doesn't need to be. Authentic Mexican food has its place and the oft maligned "white family taco night" meal has its own very beloved place. With a little bit of skill, and fresh ingredients, you can do it better than Taco Bell, and even better than most restaurants. It takes about 45 minutes. Here's what you do:

• rinse your veggies
• chop the stem off of your head of iceberg, and skillfully carve out the white and yellow core and discard. Shred the tasty green remainder.
• dice tomato (at least one)
• finely chop a large yellow onion and a few cloves of garlic
• chop a fresh(!) jalapeno, or two, or whatever assortment of peppers you like

Now you have to start your rice, because it takes the longest by far. This is the trickiest part of the dish, and may take you a few tries to learn how to make it to your own taste. Take half of your onion and garlic and sweat it in about a 1/4 cup of oil. Now add somewhere between a handful and a cup of rice and fry it in the oil until it gets lightly toasted, stirring constantly. Salt and pepper. Now add a can of petite diced tomato, a tiny can of tomato sauce, water, and a bit of chicken broth. Bring to a boil, then lower to a low simmer and cover. cook for 25 minutes. When adding water, be sure to account for the water content of other ingredients in your calculation.

• boil 2 cups of water
• heat a bit of oil in another pan sweat the remaining onions and garlic. Add peppers and a small can of hatch green chili
• cook ground beef in your vegetable medley, and poor out excess grease in a coffee can, or something
• add your own proprietary blend of spices, red chili powder and cumin. Or a packet of Lowery's Taco seasoning
• add freeze dried pinto beans to boiling water simmer for five minutes, Or make other bean arrangements

Now feel free to combine all above ingredients and sharp cheddar cheese(my preference) in any way you like. If you can secure some fresh made flower tortillas from a shop or restaurant, then that's great! Alternatively you can heat some corn tortillas in hot oil for five seconds on each side (quickly drip dry), you can just add corn chips, or have no tortilla at all (it's fine). Cauliflower rice is even an option, but you have to add more vegies and flavor.