Review: Fox Run / Norpro / Colibrox Taco tongs

These taco tongs are sold under by a variety of places under several different names, with varying prices, and the reviews I’ve read show varying results. However, they appear to all be the same set from the same manufacturer (I haven’t verified this, I’m just going by the images they use). I bought a pair and here are my experiences, your milage may vary.

When I first received the taco tongs – taco press – taco form whatever you want to call them, the spread on them was wider than what I prefer, so I did modify them slightly by bending them gently inward about 10 degrees from stock. I wouldn’t advice bending them in too sharply, but this simple modification seems to have improved my pair.

Notice that one side sits flat in the pan, and one side sticks up. This has apparently caused much confusion in how to use them (based on several of the reviews I’ve read). I’m not claiming how I use them is correct or safe, but I have success making taco shells using the following method:

Materials needed:

  • Taco tongs
  • Skillet
  • Oil
  • Taco size corn tortillas
  • Meat filling
  • Toppings

Use a skillet big enough that the bottom of the tongs can lay flat along the bottom of the pan. My personal preference is for a heavy cast iron skillet.

Put about a 1/2″ (give or take) of oil in the skillet, doesn’t have to be exact.

Heat the oil to approximately 350 degrees F.

Open the jaws of the tongs and insert a tortilla. Gently close the jaws just enough to hold the tortilla in place in a taco shape. Do not mash the jaws closed or the tortilla will tend to break along the bend. The intent should be to hold the tortilla in place with the correct shape, and force beyond that is counterproductive. If the tortillas aren’t flexible enough, try warming them first to make them more pliable.

Place the flat side of the tongs (holding the tortilla) down to rest in the oil on the bottom of the skillet.

The boiling point of the moisture inside the tortilla is about 212 F, since the oil is 350 F, the moisture inside the tortilla will rapidly start to turn into steam, and bubble up out of the oil to be released into the air. When the tortilla is first put into the oil it has the most moisture, so will bubble the most.

The bubbles will gradually start to subside, and after about a minute there will be noticeably less bubbles forming. How long it will take each to be done will depend on how much moisture is in the starting tortillas, and how crunchy you want the final taco shells to be. If you wait unless it isn’t making any bubbles anymore, chances are they are burnt so stop before then. For best results judge doneness by the amount of bubbles being released and by color rather than by timing (unless you make them often enough to have that dialed in).

Remove from the oil, and allow the excess oil on the tortilla to drain back into the pan. Be vary careful as at this point, the pan is hot, the oil is hot, the tongs are hot and the bottom half of the taco shell is hot.

At this point the bottom half of the taco shell is cooked, but the top half (the half that sticks up) isn’t. This next step takes a little finesse, and should be done carefully to avoid burning yourself. Open the jaws of the tongs over a rack or plate, removing the shell from the tongs. Carefully grasp just the edge tip of the uncooked half of the shell (or use some implement to do so), turn the shell around and place back in the tongs, this time with the uncooked side of the tortilla facing down. Then return to the oil as before and cook the other side, completing the taco shell.

As each is finished, invert the taco shells on a rack so they look like little tents, and continue for each of the taco shells desired.

American style taco filling can be prepared in advance using a variety of recipes. I personally like a combination of ground meat, taco spices, diced onions and chopped jalapeño peppers, but chicken or shredded beef is also popular. Put a couple tablespoons of the prepared filling into the bottom of each taco shell.

Then top each with your choice of toppings. Popular additions include cheese, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sliced olives, salsa, and/or a dollop of sour cream.

I hope you found the above helpful. Below is a link to amazon, it doesn’t cost you any more, but I get a few cents if you use the link to make your purchase.

Ramen: Nongshim Shin Black Spicy

Shin Black is one of my favorite instant brick style ramens. It comes with three packets, and the noodles are thick with just the right amount of chewy. The broth has body and a superior flavor. It is somewhat spicy but not overly so, just enough to leave a warm tingle on the tongue.

I really like Shin Black noodles, the noodles plump well, the broth is tasty, and the dried vegetables rehydrate well. As a bonus they are from Rancho Cucamunga, California, which is fun to say.

Crepes

¾ cup milk
¾ cup water
1 cup flour
pinch of salt
2 eggs
1 tablespoon melted butter
Butter, for coating the pan

In bowl, sift salt into flour, and make a well. Add eggs to well. Slowly pour in milk while stirring. Add melted butter. Beat until smooth.

Place the crepe batter in the refrigerator for at least a half hour, but better if left overnight. The batter will keep for up to 48 hours.

Heat a non-stick or cast iron pan to medium high. Add butter to coat. Pour batter into the center of the pan and swirl to spread evenly, use just enough batter to coat. Cook for a minute or so and flip when edges start to brown and curl and the center is set. Flip, cook other side until done, and remove.

Butterhorn Rolls

1 package yeast
1⁄2 cup sugar
3⁄4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk, lukewarm
2 eggs, beaten
4 1⁄2 cups flour, sifted
1⁄2 cup butter, melted

Crumble yeast into a bowl; add sugar, salt, milk, and eggs.
Mix well; add half of flour and beat well.
Add melted butter and remainder of flour.
Knead until smooth, cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled.

Divide in half, roll each piece into a circle 1/4 inch thick.
Butter, if you like and cut each piece into 16 pie shaped pieces.
Roll each piece, beginning at the wide end towards the tip end, so that the tip is kept at an equal distance from each end of the roll.

Arrange shaped rolls on a well-greased baking sheet, placing the tip underneath the roll to prevent it from popping up and spoiling the shape of the roll.
Allow rolls to rise until doubled and bake at 375F for 12 to 15 minutes.

Ramen: Indomie Barbeque Chicken Flavor

While not always true; it is a common rule of thumb that the more packets in a package of ramen the better. Indonesia’s Indomie Barbeque Chicken Flavor boasts five packets and has a superior flavor. Part of the attraction is that each packet can be used either partially or in total depending on desired taste. As this was my first time trying it, I used all of each, and was pleased with the results.

The noodles are meant to be drained after cooking, which makes it a noodle dish instead of a ramen soup. The instructions state to mix all the packets contents together before adding to the noodles. To minimize the amount of dishes required, I cooked the noodles in a bowl, then transferred the noodles to a strainer, using the bowl to mix the packet contents before returning the noodles and tossing to cover.

The result was a pleasant sweet spicy noodle flavor that I enjoyed, definitely a noticeable step up from average ramen, although I’d like it even better if it included more dried vegetable garnish.

Ramen: Lucky Me! Artificial Beef Flavor

Good flavor, comes with flavor packet and garnish packet. The instructions call for 2 cups of water, but the seasoning is potent enough to season them well. Slightly spicy but not overly so. There are odd meat-ish flavored balls in the garnish. They tasted okay, but a little TVP (textured vegetable protein) tasting and may not be to everyone’s taste.