Another gem. I love that you are bringing back the dynamic duo of “Hey what’s up” + “Let’s eat this thing”!

This one goes out to all the Midwest moms hosting tacos nights for the boys growing up. Love it.

The "Weiner - whadaya think" look is one I know all too well. Bravo, sir.

Docking the tortillas with a fork (just make a bunch of little holes in the surface with a fork), helps a lot to keep them from developing any large air pockets while frying, little tip I've learned from making taco shells like this thousands of times in the restaurant days.

Brian drinking ingredients that are not designed to be drank continues to be one of my favorite bits on the channel

I dropped to my knees in pure emotion when I saw the BriTega Sauce Recipe. My cup runneth over!

Bri guy just wanted to say thanks for all your hard work and dedication. Two years ago before I got married I couldn’t cook anything. I’ve watched every video and made the majority of your recipes. They’ve all been bangers. My wife and I get hyped with every video you release. Keep up the great work homie!

I grew up on the border and honestly American tacos will always hold a place in my heart just as authentic street tacos do.

"Holy s**t, this is filthy" - I FELT that. 😂 Can't wait to make these. Thanks for the video, Bri!

As a midwesterner, this gives me great joy. Thank you! Love you, fam!

Gringo tacos are underrated. These are delicious!

This is peak Brian. Classic food with tons of staple sub recipes, some of the best content on youtube

When I lived in east LA, my girlfriends Mexican grandmother would put the meat (after cooking it) in the tortilla and then pan fry it in oil. Just like you did with the shell. Except we only used one set of tongs to hold the top of the tortillas together. Done one at a time. Put on a paper towel on a plate afterwards. Salt both sides immediately after taking it out. Just a little salt. And doing one taco at a time. Love these tacos! @Brian Lagerstrom, You should try it this way sometime.

I've never seen a taco shell tong before. Never even heard of such a thing. Now I have ordered one. Gotta taste that thing.

Pro tip: Add cheese to the shells first, then the meat. One, the meat melts the cheese, and two, if the shell breaks while you're eating, the cheese helps hold everything together.

I can't thank you enough for your recipes, but importantly, your careful explanations and your STYLE. My wife and I were one of 4 couples in a monthly supper club where someone in the other couples were either former or current chefs and I learned so much from them but that supper club is no more. Your videos have brought me back to a point where learning to cook new and better is again a great focus in my life. Just so you know, I work 40+ works a week and so quick, easy, and tasteful is perfect for me and my wife. THANK YOU!

Tried the taco meat and sauce recipe this evening. Best ever!

Those taco tongs are GLORIOUS!!!!

Those taco shell tongs! Hell yes! I’ve used that two tong method and though the results were good it wasn’t worth the effort for me. Those tongs are gonna be game changers! Thanks Bri!!❤

I made these last night. The taco meat has so much more flavor than the popular recipe sites which call for adding spices to hamburger meat. The tacos along with the sauce were the best I've ever had. The only thing that could make them any better would be to hire a mariachi band.

These are the California rolls of tacos ! We love authentic tacos but we always get back to the basics lol 🌮

Your channel is one of the best things to come from the pandemic. Thank you for sharing your love of food.

I grew up with my mom shallow frying corn tortillas for tacos 😊 she put the cheese down first, works to hold the taco meat in place. Fried curb tortillas really are the best vehicle for a taco, IMO! Gotta say, the uni-tasker taco fryer is intriguing. Great video!

This is by far the best recipe I've found for taco meat. The apple cider vinegar/brown sugar/chicken stock combo really sets it apart.

Holy hell. I made these today for my mom for Mother’s Day. Incredible and perfect. This will be my go to taco meat recipe now for sure. The shells came out tremendous but I can’t see myself doing them a lot but for special days or nights yes. Just a lot of oil. But wow what a great meal.

That meat smasher is such a game changer! Thank you for using often, I broke down & bought it, love it!

Bri, please continue to eat/drink items that are not meant to be consumed solo or in such large quantities. I find it so entertaining, lol!

I put a teaspoon or 2 of cocoa powder in my taco meat. It brings out a beefy flavor that is really good.

Made the taco meat today and it was awesome! Super easy, and reminded me of your one pot spaghetti and chili recipes with the techniques used. This will be our go to recipe for taco meat from now on!

Edition 1 of this I've made like 50 times. Pumped to try this with homemade sauce!!!

I love that you include metric measurements in grams. Since I got into baking during the pandemic, it's the only way to go!

I was hoping for a dry scoop taste test with the store bought taco seasoning but I'm glad I waited for the Ortega sauce chugging. Did not disappoint!

We used to brush the tortilla with oil and hang them off of the oven rack to get crunchy shells. It's not perfect but it works.

I've tried to mimic Taco Bells small/loose/granular beef w/o success....now with your little gadget and the addition of onions, and your recipe, my meat mixture looks and taste wonderful.............I bought the taco holders and the other gadget for folding/frying the tortillas..........what a difference on Taco Night Thanks so much for your good info

I've watched dozens of your videos and saved as many recopies, but this is the first one I've made. My wife loves Tacos an said these were the best she's ever had, and I agree. Thanks Bri, now lets eat this thiiing.

If you put cheese on the bottom, then meat, it tends to hold the shell together better and it doesn't fall apart in your hands.😊

I have just cooked this. Thank you Brian. I live somewhere where there are zero Mexican restaurants and wanted tacos - so had to make them .Absolutely scrummy and a huge mess to eat. Delish!!!

Could you do a video on what to do post cooking with oil? like a how to re-use video for oil and other stuff?

Bri i just want to say you’re indispensable to the way i cook, i haven’t found anyone else in the recipe space whose target audience is in that spot where they’re a home cook but not an amateur. also i appreciate how broad your palette is, and how you explain the reasons behind things. keep up the great work

"Make your own tacos" has been one of my go-to family dinner dishes for ages; I used to make it with straight-up ground beef and lately I've been making a kickass carne asada. Tonight I made the ground beef filling from this recipe and it was a *huge* hit. Served it with hard and soft taco shells, rice, diced tomato, lettuce, grated carrot, shred cheese, guacamole and salsa; usually I julienne some cucumber as well but I didn't have any.

Just bought the taco tongs. Didnt know they made anything like that. Uts gonba make taco night so kych easier. Those tacos look especially delicious. Thsnks Bri.

Once I started frying my taco shells there was no going back!😆. PLS PLS post a printable recipe link, all of your recipes are fantastic!!! TY!

Lorn ending is the perfect testimonial!

Your, “What’s up?” Is so friendly. I missed it and had to check the date of this video to see if it is current! Thanks!

Making these tonight, and used Ancho chili powder and regular chili powder… these are the best taco night tacos I’ve ever had

In Chicago IL, I crave the fat beef tacos, where the beef *inside* the shell prior to deep frying, but it is difficult to pull off at home! I love that tortilla holder! Thanks for sharing your great talents!! Will be trying this!

"Holy sh*t. That is FILTHY " - best line yet. 😂

I’m from central America where tacos are a thing and this recipe is pretty, pretty good.

Just made this recipe and it did NOT disappoint!! It tasted amazing and the tacos were great. We also bought the special Taco Clamp thing and it worked great! The only thing I would change is make the beef slightly less spicey but thats just our preference!

Awesome thank you. Do you perhaps have a recipe to make the taco shell? Thanks so much.

my favorite tacos ever are basically doing this with locally made chorizo from the mexican market instead of ground beef

Homemade tacos have never been great until this video came along. 10/10. Thanks Bri!

I literally came home from work and made beef for my taco supper, then see your episode. I'm psychic!

Anytime I make tacos at home now, I've taken to frying corn tortillas for the shells instead of using store bought shells. It's a complete game changer. Not to mention ridiculously easy.

I love store taco mix but I get the low sodium version and add cayenne to the mix. I put the seasoning pack in a short mason jar and add 1 TBSP to about 1/4 lb. of 80/20 ground beef. Add a little water after browned and good ta go! I always buy organic taco shells. I prefer organic peanut oil for frying. It's the best. Yes, it's worth it to buy taco holders. $20 for four. Totally worth it. OMG Bri I had no idea they had a lil taco holder for frying! Spend the money, be happy! Oh no I always put down grated cheese, first and then the meat and then salted thin-sliced cabbage and then the sour cream and then the avocado and salsa verde on to with half-sliced cherry tomatoes tucked in on the side of the shell. Heaven!

Love this! I must give it a try! I usually squash raw meat on half a fresh taco shell, put unmeat side down in about a quarter inch of hot oil, cook until crisp then flip it over to the meat side and cook until done! You need to pry it open a little to slide a thickish piece of cheese into it and and a slice of tomatoe! Put some lettuce in and hot sauce and voila! It sounds harder than it is! Learned from a Mexican who learned from his mom! Salt and pepper meat before frying!💪🏻

it cracks me up everytime he swears, 10/10 lets eat this thing those tacos looked delicious

I make tacos as part of my meal rotation. I sometimes use 1/2 chorizo which adds a great flavor and a bit if heat. Instead of a fancy meat masher, I use a potatoe masher. Just wait until the beef is browned a bit. To get a Toco Bell consistency, add a bit of water.

This is absolutely the video I have been waiting for! We're making these tonight! Thank you for making this one.

My favorite hardshell tacos at Mexican restaurants are stuffed first with the meat, folded so the two ends meet then deep fried. Then they remove from the oil, gently pry it open stuff the heck out of them with tons of shredded lettuce and cheese (like, 1/4 cup of cheese). Since the taco shell is semi-closed after frying it, it keeps things really tight. They usually offer shredded chicken, beef or ground beef.

Dude this is like better than taco bell.. I wanna start a food truck

OMG!!! UBER Psyched over those taco shell tongs!!!!! I mean, RIDICULOUSLY excited!!

In a push, brushing the tortillas with oil and hanging them over a few wires of an oven shelf works. Loading and unloading the rack outside the oven makes things easier but needs two people. Not fried but you get lots cooked at a time.

I believe you, Bri. Tacos are one of life's greatest joys and these look fantastic

Straight up. Liking American style tacos shouldn't result in loss of street cred, they're objectively delicious. Great video Brian, as always. I have a smaller channel myself and I greatly admire the work and presentation of this channel. I hope im able to get there some day myself

Been making your older recipe for this for a while and everyone loves it. I can't tell yet what's much different here. I tried those tongs before but prefer a more u shaped rather than v shaped shell. Amazon has some other 2 piece metal molds sort of things you should check out. You could deep fry with them just the same but i shallow fry and flip them. Pretty hands off.

Brian, there is (at least) a third shell method between the two. As a kid in the proto-70s, I lived in California's central valley. My mother had someone make up a bunch of taco shell forms. These were, like your tongs, taco shell shapes inside and outside of the food. Made of pierced sheet metal (like vent coverings), they held the shape while (with several pairs) several shells cooked. And, key difference, they could be shaped as you wanted. I like shells with a wide bottom -- no problem. I've been soft tortilla lately, but feel a set of these in my future.

This recipe will be an instant classic 😮

I would suggest if using store bought seasoning use the old el paso mild packet. Much more flavor.

That’s hysterical, and the recipes looks delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipes, I love watching your funny side, but mostly the delicious foods!

I love your videos, particularly this one. I'm not crazy about two ads in one episode.

I like to add a half cup or so of water to the beef while mashing it. Makes it way easier to mash down and steams off pretty quick.

Another great tip I use, would be in the layering. Put down a little bit of lettuce first, to act as a barrier between the shell and the meat. That way the shell keeps crunchy longer, instead of being in contact with the moisture from the meat!

YES please!! Can't wait to make these. You rock, Bri!!

I came here to watch the video on sourdough for beginners, but clicked this afterward out of curiosity. I will now feel personally indebted to you forever. May God bless your sweet ingenious little soul for the rest of your natural born life.❤

Have to agree on the fried taco shells. Totally different taste and texture.

Tried the recipe this week, frying the corn tortillas with the shallow pan and two tongs method was really tough but they were delicious! May have to get the taco tongs

These look fantastic! And, you could eat them fresh over a few days, if you don't mind frying the tortillas. Great recipe. Thanks you guys

I have to say that I deeply appreciate that you write the weights of the ingredients in your recipes. I don't live in America and I find that for veggies and such, whatever we have almost always weighs half or less per unit than what you write. But I do wish you have a website with printable recipes cause it takes forever to write them down.

Crunchy tacos started in Mexico and migrated to Los Angeles (the place is still there - I think it's called Cielito Lindo, after the famous classic song), but it didn't get popularized across America until places like Taco Bell. The originals are deep fried tacos, not just the shell, as far as I know.

Going to share a little tip my friend told me about years ago. If you are using corn tortillas take them out of the pkg in the morning and lay them out on cooling racks, the kind you would use for cookies or cakes. Don’t overlap the tortillas. Elevate the racks so that air can get underneath, this allows a lot of the moisture to evaporate and they fry much faster and are crunchier and somewhat flaky. This method works especially well if you are making tostadas or chalupas as they are called in some areas. Don’t make the mistake I did in thinking if a little drying is good a lot of drying is better. There’s such a thing as too dry and they don’t fry well. I allow the tortillas to sit out on the racks from morning until I’m ready to make dinner that evening. They come out crisp and tender without over browning because they aren’t in the oil for very long. I hope if you try this method you like it.🌮🌮🌮

I could watch him all day. Smart, informative, funny.

Where you toss the onion in I also put in a diced jalapeno and some diced red pepper. And about half a can of refried beans.

That sweep swig of taco sauce is how I check for sauce quality, too. Good man. 👍

Yum! I miss your dancing at the end of your videos! 😊

God bless YOU Bri! Great content! Could we get another Q&A vid? What does Lorn do during your vids?

Brian, absolute banger of a video! I rushed out to grab the ingredients the moment your video dropped. Dinner in clutch thanks to you!

That taco tong is the most amazing thing EVER!!!

We do tacos every week so love seeing your take. Will definitely be trying some of this!

Great video. I fry my tortillas the harder way that I learned in another of your videos but no longer after seeing that tool. Idk about you, but I sprinkle fine sea salt on them as soon as they come out. Seems to be a good touch

Try #2 of asking you to make a cookbook. 🙏

Pretty much exactly my taco meat recipe. Add a couple TBSP of cheese powder to that, and you're golden!

Always excellent tips with your cooking so thank you very much. I only came across your videos about a month ago and I’ve watched many. You crack me up. Bless your taco heart. 🤗

For my fellow UK viewers the 'tomato sauce' in this recipe is passata not ketchup. We tend to call ketchup tomato sauce for any American confused reading this.

I've always wondered what made americans think crunchy wrap is the thing you want, but apparently it's the greatest gift to the world.

I never expected Brian to say "That is filthy!" While eating tacos, no less 😂.

I must admit that corn tortillas take me back to my childhood when “Mexican” food meant the frozen Old El Paso Mexican dinners with grotesque corn tortillas. So I was skeptical of your guidance. I did buy the taco tongs for delivery tomorrow but did a trial run on tacos tonight. I made 1.5 recipes of the taco meat for an upcoming family vacation trip. We had fried maize tortillas tonight, fried flat in a little oil. That was enough to change my lifelong dislike of corn tortillas. Thanks, Brian. Can’t wait for the full Montie tacos with all the fixings and deep fried.

I'm happy to see you incorporating the dried chilies into your taco sauce. I do the same for the meat, subbing out some of the chili powder.

Yet again, Brian, you make us feel like pro’s man!👍🏼❤️

Every time I watch one of these videos where you use that blue Le Crueset pan, I have to give a little chuckle. I also live in St. Louis, and I have the same pan - same color and everything. I believe it’s actually a risotto pan. I bought mine on special from Williams Sonoma, and it’s been a minute. I do love that pan. It’s probably use one I use the most. That’s all.