disasters and victories

It's good to remember that the word disaster comes from two roots meaning "bad star." Sometimes the stars align with your purposes, and sometimes they don't. As I continue to prep for this coming Thursday's office luncheon, I've had two victories and two disasters. The salsa I made Monday morning has had a chance to sit and allow its flavors to marry, so it's only gotten better over time. The taco beef I made last night, while not quite at the flavor balance I wanted, is still easily good enough for nachos. The beef also works perfectly with the salsa: they're a synergistic match made in Kevin.

Unfortunately, the same can't be said for the refried beans and the chorizo. Both of these turned out horribly, but I have no one to blame but myself. For the beans... well, I should have gone to Itaewon to buy a can of refried beans. Instead, I used local baked beans from the store, which I already knew wasn't going to work. But, being stubborn, I doggedly tried to make it work, anyway, by adding jalapeño juice (and peppers), onion, cumin, and a few other ingredients in an effort to tamp down the sweetness (I did drain off some of the ketchup-y liquid). With a stick blender, I blitzed the whole thing into a loose, sauce-like mass that was way too runny for refried beans. This result was the Frankenstein's monster that I knew it would be, and yet it proved strangely edible. No one would ever mistake this dish for actual refried beans, but I think I'm going to bring the beans on Thursday all the same: they might actually work, in a weird way, with the rest of the components for nachos.

The same can't be said for the chorizo. This was just an out-and-out nightmare, and I'm going to throw the entire batch away: 1.3 kg of pork utterly wasted. I'm still thinking through what might have gone wrong; I think part of the problem was that there was too much chorizo powder in the mix even though I'd significantly reduced the amount going into the pork. The other problem was the pork itself, which I suspect was right at its sell-by date, just on the edge of rancidity. I shrugged and tried making and cooking the chorizo, anyway, but the smell and taste proved intolerable—a disgusting, salty mess. Off to the garbage with you, then!

The troops will be able to make their own nachos, so they'll have the option of avoiding the beans if they want to, and I'll probably chuck the beans at the end of the meal, anyway. Meanwhile, the salsa and beef will carry the weight of the meal on their shoulders. Tonight, I'm going to attempt to make corn tortillas that I'll then cut into wedges and fry up into homemade corn chips. If this, too, turns out to be a shit-show, I'll just buy regular tortilla chips from Costco or SSG Food Mart.

Expect pics tonight.