Burned Scallion Crema Food

SLAB-BACON TACOS WITH BURNED-SCALLION CREMA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 450 degrees. Mix the chile powder, ground cumin, brown sugar and black pepper together in a large bowl, and then add the bacon slices, tossing to coat them with the spice mixture.
• Arrange the coated bacon slices on a sheet pan, ideally one fitted with a wire rack. Roast in the oven until they are caramelized and starting to crisp at the edges, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pan from oven, chop the bacon into large dice and keep warm. Reserve the bacon fat for another use.
• While the bacon cooks, make the crema. Put the scallions and jalapeño in a large dry sauté pan and cook over high heat, tossing occasionally, until the scallions and jalapeño have blackened at the edges, approximately 10 to 12 minutes.
• Put the scallions and jalapeño in the bowl of a food processor, and blitz them with the juice of 1 lime, then add the sour cream and mayonnaise, and blitz the mixture until it is smooth and flecked with blackened bits. Season to taste with the salt and, if you'd like the mixture thinner, the juice of the second lime. Scrape into a bowl, and reserve.
• To serve, warm the tortillas in the dry pan, one or two at a time, and reserve them in a tortilla warmer or clean dish towel. Fill them with the diced bacon and a slash of the crema, along with quartered limes and, if you like, salsa, cilantro, mint and hot sauce.

BURNED-SCALLION CREMA

Steps:

• Put the scallions and jalapeño in a large dry sauté pan and cook over high heat, tossing occasionally, until the scallions and jalapeño have blackened at the edges, approximately 10 to 12 minutes.
• Put the scallions and jalapeño in the bowl of a food processor, and blitz them with the juice of 1 lime, then add the sour cream and mayonnaise, and blitz the mixture until it is smooth and flecked with blackened bits. Season to taste with the salt and, if you'd like the mixture thinner, the juice of the second lime. Scrape into a bowl, and reserve.

CREMA

Steps:

• Whisk the sour cream and heavy cream together in a bowl, then add the salt and the lime juice, and whisk again. Cover the bowl, and allow it to sit at room temperature for a minimum of 2 hours and ideally overnight. It will thicken nicely. Use right away, or transfer to a jar and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

CHARRED SCALLION CREMA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Place scallions on a quarter-sheet pan fitted with a wire rack. Bake until charred and dehydrated, 20 to 30 minutes. (You can also grill the scallions, turning every 2 to 3 minutes, over medium-high heat until charred, 10 to 12 minutes.) Let cool completely.
• Place scallions in a mini food processor and pulse until finely chopped. Add sour cream, adobo, agave and salt and pulse until blended. Season to taste with additional salt.