Asian Tacos

Well, I had been leaving you in suspense since I posted my flour tortillas as to what we ate in them. The time is finally here to announce and it is certainly delicious...ASIAN INSPIRED TACOS!!! Yay! Can you even believe it?!? What a wonderful idea.

These things make my mouth water just thinking of them. In fact, I am *super* excited to share that tonight is finally Asian taco leftover night!! I love leftovers. Especially when it was just so good the first time round. I have been waiting and waiting for tonight. Okay, it's only been a couple of days but even that has been too long.

The taco meat is kind of tangy, sesame-y, spicy, and slightly sweet. THEN, you top it with this crunchy quick pickle that is out of this world. Put them all on my homemade tortillas with a little Sriracha and lime and I am in heaven!

Now, when I made this recipe I knew we were going to have leftovers so I actually halved the quick pickle recipe. I like the veggies crunchy so if I were to leave the prepared quick pickle in the fridge for a couple of days it would kind of get floppy. You just wouldn't want to eat a floppy quick pickle...so make what you need for the night, please! Tonight before I heat up the tortillas and meat I'll pull together the quick pickle and it will be ready by the time we eat!

ASIAN TACOS
recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens
prep time: 15 minutes, cook time: 20 minutes
makes: enough for 8 tacos (4 servings)

INGREDIENTS

For the quick pickle:

• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup very thinly sliced cucumber
• 1 cup shredded red cabbage

For the tacos:

• 8 flour tortillas
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon corn starch
• lime wedges
• Sriracha, optional

DIRECTIONS

1. Whisk the vinegar, sugar, and salt together in a small bowl for the quick pickle. Mix in the cucumber and red cabbage. Let sit for 15 minutes to 6 hours.
2. Brown ground turkey over medium-high heat. Once it is cooked through, drain any excess fat. Set aside.
3. Add the sesame oil to a skillet. Once heated, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds or until slightly browned. Add the ginger, crushed red pepper, soy sauce, brown sugar, and rice vinegar and heat through.
4. Mix the water and corn starch together. When the soy sauce mixture is slightly bubbling around the edges, slowly add the water and corn starch mixture while constantly stirring to incorporate. The sauce should thicken quickly. 
5. Once thickened, add the turkey back into the sauce and let simmer until it is heated through.
6. Prepare the tacos with the ground turkey and quick pickles. Serve with lime wedges, and Sriracha, to taste.