By: Kathy Best-Gibson, February 22, 2019
This recipe works for tacos, burritos, or nachos.
I feel some commentary is necessary beforehand. If you have A.D.D., don’t like to read, are easily offended about sensitive subjects, or just want to get to the recipe, you can skip the next four paragraphs.
I am not a big fan of the meat industry. Factory farms treat animals like inanimate objects that cannot feel, hurt, or suffer and that makes me sad and angry. Scientific research has proven that all animals, including chickens, pigs, cows, ducks, and even snakes have emotional responses to environmental stimulus and experiences.₁ I do not condone or support factory farms or any farm that abuses and mistreats its animals for the sake of profit. With that being said, I do recognize that most people are omnivores and cannot seem to forgo meat consumption. In light of that fact I recommend buying from local reputable farms, finding a source of wild animal protein where you know the animals were killed quickly and respectfully, or as a last resort buying organic, free-range from your local grocery store. Organic standards supposedly enforce a more ethical treatment of factory raised animals. Not only does this allow you to make a statement with your purchasing power, but it also contributes to your own health and well-being in a couple of ways. The first benefit is knowing that you are doing your part to reduce animal suffering. The second benefit is reducing the pharmacological and physical toll on your own body from consumption of tortured and drugged animal flesh.
In case you are not someone who researches nutrition, wellness, or animal treatment let me elaborate a bit. The typical factory farmed animal is injected and fed all kinds of antibiotics to prevent and control diseases and illness related to their environment.₂ This is partially the cause for so many new strains of antibiotic resistant bacteria and viruses. Our bodies have been unknowingly flooded with antibiotics and resistant pathogens from our food for decades. It is also a well-known fact that factory farms feed their animals the cheapest, very often genetically modified feed available.₃ (For those of you that don’t follow big agriculture, genetically modified organisms, (GMO), are plants that have their original DNA modified either with another plant’s DNA, or in many cases have weed killer, like roundup, inserted into the plant DNA to reduce the need to spray plants with pesticides. Now this may sound like a good idea on the surface, but if roundup is toxic to humans when externally exposed, imagine what repeated consumption of weed killer-modified produce can cause. There was a lawsuit in California from a man who was a groundskeeper, and exposed to roundup weed killer over a number of years. He developed cancer due to his exposure and won a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Monsanto for knowingly exposing him to the cancer-causing pesticide.⁴
Now let’s talk about the physical burden our bodies endure from consuming emotionally distraught, fearful, tortured animal flesh. Emotions have a huge impact on our bodies, both human and animal. From the physiological response it elicits, releasing a surge of hormones into the bloodstream and lactic acid into the muscles, to the mental stress, and emotional trauma that when relived repeatedly can cause chronic inflammation in the body.⁵ When animals are repeatedly exposed to harsh, punishing, painful environments, abuse, and torture their emotional responses are stored in their body the same way human emotions are stored. This contributes to chronic inflammation which affect the organs and flesh of the animal. The process of butchering the animal also exposes the meat to microorganisms and bacteria that can be deadly to humans. The blood from butchered animals is also collected and used in fertilizer and feed for other animals.⁶
I digress, what was I talking about originally…….?
Animal cruelty, big agriculture, and factory farming are a few of the topics that really bring out the opinionated, protestor in me. I am not judging anyone that eats meat. I eat it from time to time myself, but I have made it a habit to become informed and aware of what I choose to support with my spending power. I just want more people to make conscious, conscientious, compassionate, educated choices when it comes to food and where we choose to spend our hard earned money. By the way, there are some really tasty alternatives to meat out there now, just make sure you look for non-gmo options, like Quorn.
Okay, okay, now back to my original reason for this post. My slow-cooked fajita taco recipe.
1 pound of venison steak, Quorn meatless style steak strips, or other meat of your choice
1 bag of frozen, non-gmo broccoli (Fresh is better, but time consuming to wash and chop and you waste a lot of the stalks.)
1 bag of frozen, non-gmo cauliflower (Fresh is better, but time consuming to wash and chop and you waste a lot of the stalks,)
1 large organic zucchini, chopped
1 medium red onion diced
1 bag of frozen collard greens or rainbow chard (Fresh if you have the time to wash and chop.)
1 bag of frozen peas
Any other vegetable that you like, except corn or soybeans which are almost all GMO.
Get out your slow cooker. If you are using real meat I suggest slow cooking the meat overnight by itself with the following Mexican seasoning and about enough purified water to cover the bottom of the slow cooker.
Mexican
Seasoning Recipe:
1 – 2 TBS chili powder
1 – 2 TBS cumin
2 tsp Celtic sea salt
1 – 2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp coriander
½ tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
½ tsp oregano
2 tsp
coconut sugar (optional)
Place the meat in the slow cooker. Mix the seasoning ingredients together and sprinkle it over the meat. Seal the slow cooker and cook on low for about 8 – 12 hours.
If you are using fake meat or no meat you can place everything in a skillet on medium low heat with enough water to cover the bottom of the skillet. Pour the seasoning mix over the skillet ingredients. Mix the seasoning up in the vegetables and water and cook for approximately 1-2 hours. Stir the skillet ingredients every 30 minutes and remove from heat when vegetables are tender, but still crunchy.
If you slow-cooked meat, cook the vegetables in the skillet and add the seasoned, juice-water to the skillet setting the meat aside for now. Cook the veggies on low for about an hour.
Add the meat and stir, cook until the meat is warmed and the vegetables are tender, but crunchy.
Meanwhile, heat up a can of refried, fat-free beans in a small pot. I use La Preferdia brand, but there are some organic brands that are pretty good too. I know some of you don’t care for refried beans on nachos or tacos, but I was raised in Southern Texas where refried beans are a delicious staple of good Mexican food.
Grate some cheese, preferably raw-milk organic cheese or almond cheese. I use Lisanatti Almond Mozerella.
Get out your tortillas or tortilla chips
I use Udi’s gluten free tortillas. I don’t eat tortilla chips anymore because corn does not agree with my skin or digestive system. I was a big fan of Beanitos black bean chips. I used to buy a bag a week. They changed their recipe recently and they taste like cardboard now, so I quit wasting my money. I also sent them an email to let them know they had lost a loyal customer. Some people think sending such emails are rude and a waste of time. I feel like companies have gotten too complacent when it comes to customer satisfaction and customer appreciation. Integrity is something severely lacking in many of today’s big corporations and customers are the only ones that can hold companies accountable.
Okay, I promise no more soap box talk.
So spread the warm refried beans on the tortilla or chips.
Layer the “meat” and vegetables on top of the beans.
Spread a thin lay of cheese on top and fold both sides of the tortilla toward the center so you can flip it over without everything falling out. (Obviously if you are using chips you don’t need to fold them or flip them.)
Now you spread some guacamole on top. Oh damn! I forgot to give you my amazing guacamole recipe. Actually I showed my husband how to make it and his skill has surpassed mine when it comes to guacamole so I ask him to do it now.
Guacamole Recipe
4 ripe avocados (soft, but not squishy to the touch)
2 large cloves of garlic finely chopped
2-3 TBS of chopped onion
1 TBS turmeric
1-2 tsp of Celtic sea salt
1 tsp pepper
½ of a lemon (juice only)
Rinse avocados and slice in half lengthwise. Scrape out the flesh and remove the seed. Mash all the avocados and mix in all of the other ingredients. Blend well. That’s it. I Love guacamole, especially when my husband makes it!
After you spread the guacamole on top spoon some salsa on top of the guacamole and you are ready to eat. I don’t make my own salsa and usually buy the Kroger brand medium salsa or picante’ sauce.
As always pray over your food before you eat it. Prayer has been shown to lower blood pressure, reduce stress, promote well-being and in some instances healing.⁷
Here’s the one I use:
Dear God, archangels, guardian angels, Jesus, Mother Mary, and nature spirits, thank you for blessing this sustenance I am about to receive. I send my love, appreciation, and gratitude to all of the animals, plants and people that provided this sustenance for me and to my body knowing that everything I consume heals, nourishes, strengthens, and sustains me body, mind, and soul. Amen. So it is. Thank you God!
- https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/07/150714-animal-dog-thinking-feelings-brain-science/ ; https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/emotion-in-animals
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK216502/
- https://friendsoftheearth.uk/sites/default/files/downloads/gm_animal_feeds.pdf
- https://www.npr.org/2018/08/10/637722786/jury-awards-terminally-ill-man-289-million-in-lawsuit-against-monsanto
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/04/120402162546.htm
- https://animalequality.org/news/if-you-eat-meat-you-need-to-know-these-5-facts/
