the torta
I love tortas. The first time I said so in public, I received a very prompt Spanish lesson from a colleague. It's true, though. I love all kinds of tortas. I eat tortas like every week. I demolish tortas, and especially the carnitas ones.
"But Cathy, I'm from Huntington Beach and I don't even know un poquito de español! What's a torta?"
Tortas are a category of Mexican sandwich served on white bread rolls. There's a million different kinds, and I like basically all of them. Tortas are the sandwiches of all time (for me, at least). I'm going to make them anywhere I go, even if it means mangling them.
takeout-style
This is the torta you'll find at taquerias in California and the Southwestern states. It's cheap, it's simple, and there's a bunch of different ways to order it. If a protein is on the menu and doesn't come drenched in sauce, you can probably get it on a torta. I like a carnitas torta these days, but my go-to used to be al pastor. The way the economy's been going, though, it's much more economical to make a torta at home with reheated leftovers or hot counter meats from a Mexican store. My local store does a big batch of carnitas daily and sells it for 10 USD per pound. .
My usual dinner torta uses 5 bucks of carnitas, a 75c telera, 75c of avocado, 10c lime juice, 25c tomato, 15c onion, 1c cilantro, and 25c lettuce. The point is, it's a lot cheaper than a 12 USD one at a taqueria.
WHAT YOU NEED
- 1 telera (bolillos are cool too)
- protein(s) of your choice (cooked meats, cold cuts and cheese, fried fish, eggs, etc.)
- a handful of shredded iceberg lettuce
- some pico de gallo
- some guacamole (the simple kind, not the Super Bowl kind)
- optional items: frijoles refritos, sour cream, mayonnaise, pickles, etc.
- salsa and pickles (on the side)
__________________
HOW-TO
- Make your pico de gallo, guac, salsas, and other stuff. This recipe moves fast and you want them ready in advance..
- Cut the telera in half horizontally, down the middle. Toast the inner faces. (I use a toaster oven, but a regular oven, comal, or large pan are all fine, too.)
- While the bread is toasting, cook or warm up your meat. I like to use leftovers or pre-made stuff for my tortas a lot.
- Spread the top bun with the guac. If you want, you can put some mashed beans, sour cream, or mayo on the bottom bun. I don't usually do that, but some places do it and it's not bad at all. (My wife likes her torta with beans on the bottom. Bean fiend, that one.)
- Put your protein on the bottom bun, then top it with the pico de gallo. Add pickles here if you're using them, too.
- Put the lettuce on the top bun. If you press it lightly, it will stick to the guac like glue.
- Assemble the sandwich, then wrap it tightly in paper. Press it, then slice in half vertically.
- Serve with salsa and pickles on the side. Taqueria-style escabeche and salsa de aguacate are the best, IMO.
the lonche
The lonche is a torta from down in Jalisco. You don't usually find it on takeout menus in the US. If you're not making them at home, you've probably seen someone eating one on their lunch break at some point. These tortas are a bit more like a sub than the taqueria ones, except I like them a lot better than I like a sub. For pierna or similar, put in on the torta warm. For deli cuts, just put them on cold.
Five things I know about Jalisco off the top of my head right now:
- the second biggest avocado-producing state in Mexico (after Michoacan)
- a lot of my coworkers have been from there
- birria, birotes, and lonches
- Nuestra Señora de San Juan de los Lagos
- a lot of scary news
WHAT YOU NEED
- 1 bolillo or birote
- protein(s) of your choice (ham slices, pierna de cerdo, etc.)
- a handful of shredded iceberg lettuce
- thinly sliced tomatoes
- thinly sliced onion
- thinly sliced avocado
- pickled jalapeño slices
- hot sauce of your choice (I like Valentina)
- sour cream
- mustard
__________________
HOW-TO
- Cut the bread in half horizontally, down the middle. If the bread isn't fresh and soft, toast the inner faces.
- Spread the inner faces of the bread with sour cream and mustard.
- Put your protein on the bottom bun, then top it with lettuc and shake on a generous amount of hot sauce.
- Add successive layers of tomato, onion, and avocado. Salt each in turn as you go, then top with the pickled jalapeños.
- Assemble the sandwich, then wrap it tightly in paper. Press it, then serve.
__________________
TIPS AND TRICKS
- "I can't get a telera, bolillo, or birote." I gotcha! Any kind of sandwich roll will work, as long as it's like a cheap white french bread. I'm definitely not adverse to a sourdough torta, either. The best bread for a sandwich is the right bread, but the second best is the one you have on hand.
- honestly wrote this post to brag about my toaster oven