No Mexican Expertise Required

I am far from an expert making Mexican food. I used to use a Mexican spice packet with directions on the side, the few times I served tacos to my kids. I am an Italian girl and Italian bread, divine Italian cold cuts, olive oil and provolone cheese was my idea of a delicious sandwich. This is something new for me: low fodmap taco filling.

Will Eliminating Key Ingredients Affect Flavor?

No! I have created a low fodmap taco filling that is actually quite delicious. Even though I no longer use the Mexican spice packet because it contains too many fodmaps like garlic and onion, there are plenty of Mexican spices I can still use to give my tacos that authentic Tex-Mex flavor we all love.

A Hack for Keeping Garlic Flavor

I always infuse my olive oil with garlic by sautéing it with several fresh cloves of thinly sliced garlic. I stir the garlic around until I can smell its lovely garlic essence. I then remove it from the oil and continue with the recipe. If you are wondering, the Monash University fodmap app describes this method as safe. You can also do this with shallots and onion. Just make sure to remove every single bit of garlic or onion from the oil, leaving only the garlic or onion flavoring in the oil.

Can Ground Turkey Really Replace Beef?

Turns out, I love browning ground turkey more than browning ground beef. Why? It browns well and it tastes so delicious in a ground meat filling probably because it doesn’t toughen up like beef does, but remains tender in every bite. It also accepts seasoning well. You will notice that adding the cumin and chili powder causes the ground turkey to brown even better and exude a lovely, spicy essence as you continue to brown it.

Then when you add in the green onion stems, sliced peppers and chopped chives, be sure to continue turning the meat and veggies until the onion stems have softened a bit and the onion smells delicious.

At this point I sprinkle the GF flour on the taco filling and stir it into the mixture, making sure it coats every part. Then I slowly add in the broth in maybe three or four additions so that it thickens with each addition. Keep stirring it until all the broth is added and the filling is slightly thick. If too thick, add a bit more water+ until the consistency is the way you like it.

When it comes to the taco that would be best with this, only you know if you prefer corn (which is GF) or GF flour, if there is such a thing. I looked, but didn’t find it, so I kind of had to go with Trader Joe’s corn taco shells which turned out to be delicious. After I heated them up in the oven ,which made them crispy and full of fresh corn flavor, I was so surprised at how yummy they tasted with a low fodmap taco filling.

Any Low Fodmap Toppings?

There are plenty of low fodmap toppings you can use for these low fodmap tacos. I certainly loved the big dollop of guacamole I put on top which tasted divine. There is lactose free cheese for those who have lactose issues (many IBS folk do), but real sharp cheddar doesn’t contain lactose, so you should be good eating it. I do and it is fine.

I make my own salsa, but you can buy salsa from Fody Foods that is free of garlic and onion, but I have not tried it myself. Instead, I make my own salsa recipes, and substitute diced green onion or scallions for the garlic and sauté garlic into the oil to infuse it before using it in the salsa. I also love a big dollop of Greek yogurt as a substitute for sour cream. It tastes every bit as delicious as sour cream. Greek yogurt does not hurt me,( I think the lactose is out of it), but substitute lactose free yogurt if you need to.

In the end, I was pleasantly surprised. A corn taco shell stuffed with low fodmap taco filling turned out to be delicious.

Ingredients:

1 lb ground turkey, 93% lean, placed in a bowl with salt, cracked pepper and mixed well with a spoon

1 tbsp olive oil

Olive oil spray

2 cloves of garlic, sliced thin

1 tbsp. cumin

1 tbsp. chili powder (I stick with mild because too spicy can cause digestive upset.)

Salt and pepper to taste

1/4 to 1/2 cup sliced light green stems of scallion and chopped chive stems

1/2 a large red pepper, seeded, and sliced up

1 cup water or safe chicken stock

1 tsp. Fody Food Chicken Bouillon powder added to the water

1 tbsp. King Arthur GF Measure for Measure Flour

Directions:

In a 10 inch skillet on medium high, spray the skillet with olive oil spray and add in the tbsp. of olive oil. Put in the garlic slices and stir them around until they start to sizzle and give out their essence of garlic smell. Remove immediately from the pan.

Add in a bit more oil and add the ground turkey. Brown the turkey well, stirring constantly until it is brown on all sides.

Add in the onion stems, peppers and chives and stir them into the mixture. Sauté for a minute or two until the peppers have softened a bit.

Sprinkle the meat mixture with the GF flour, cumin and chili powder and stir vigorously so that the mixture doesn’t stick as you make sure all the mixture is coated with the spices.

When the mixture is coated and the spices have browned a bit, add in the water in 3 or 4 additions, stirring with each addition until it begins to thicken; then, add the next addition until all the broth is added in. Keep stirring until the mixture has thickened nicely. If too thick, add a bit more water until you like the consistency.

Set the filling aside. Take out your toppings of guacamole, Greek yogurt, safe salsa (no garlic or onion) and safe cheese; heat up your tacos. Serve the filling in a bowl along with the topping and tacos. Voila! A safe Tex-Mex taco lunch or dinner.