Celebrate National Taco Day whenever you want with these delicious recipes

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(CNN) --

If the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the word taco is that crispy corn tortilla stuffed with seasoned ground beef, shredded yellow cheese and lettuce, then it's time to move beyond the emoji.

October 4th is National Taco Day in the United States, but any day in October (or any month, really) is a good opportunity to immerse yourself in the varied world of tacos.

"When I lived in Mexico, I realized that there is this word, 'taquear,' which means to put something in a tortilla or to go eat tacos somewhere," says Lesley Téllez, a New York-based writer and author of " Eat Mexico".

"It's not just a physical thing, it's a way of eating something," he added.

From the stuffed tacos of Tex-Mex cuisine to the fish tacos of Baja California, to the food trucks that offer regional specialties, there are tacos for all tastes.

Credit: sonyakamoz/Adobe Stock

If you have tortillas, you are already halfway to making tacos.

Whether made with soft flour or corn tortillas (dough), fried corn tortillas, or with other grain variants like quinoa or yucca flour tortillas, the taco is truly flexible, both literally and metaphorically.

You can buy a bunch of ready-made tortillas or make your own at home;

King Arthur Baking has several recipes with different flours.

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Tortillas have been used as edible containers since the time of the Aztecs, but the popularity of tacos grew with the spread of modern Mexican cuisine in the 20th century.

They can be filled with almost anything imaginable: from the stuffed tacos of Tex-Mex cuisine, to the fish tacos of Baja California, to food trucks that offer regional specialties, there are endless possibilities.

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And with so many ways to fill a taco, why limit yourself?

"I'm opposed to the idea of ​​a taco night because it's not one night, it can be every day," Tellez says.

"There's a whole universe of tacos out there."

This month, use the taco as a canvas to delight yourself with both traditional and improvised recipes.

And if you're near San Bernardino, California, you can visit Mitla Café and try the tacos that inspired the founder of Taco Bell.

Once you've had one of Mitla's freshly fried tacos, like I did at the end of a long drive down Route 66, you'll wonder how you can ever eat a fast food taco again.

Meat tacos

When it comes to taco fillings, soft pork and beef are traditional and beloved by many.

Sure, you have a favorite taqueria that offers you a mouthwatering plate of tacos, but if you want to make them at home, you can try one of these recipes.

The carnitas, made with pork shoulder cooked in orange juice and Coca-Cola, are juicy and crunchy at the same time.

Traditionally, pork is fried in lard before slow cooking, but this slow cooker carnitas recipe offers the option of using coconut oil.

Barbecue refers to the method of slow-roasting tough cuts of beef, goat, or lamb, in a pit.

(When it comes to tacos, beef tends to be the most popular.) But instead of digging a hole in the backyard, barbecuing in the Instant Pot makes the process that much easier.

Chicken tinga, a Pueblan dish characterized by its spicy chipotle tomato sauce, is another favorite filling.

This shredded chicken is another taco filling that's easy to replicate in the Instant Pot, or for a no-fuss dinner, you can use shredded rotisserie chicken.

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vegetarian tacos

For veggie box subscribers struggling to figure out what to do with their produce, tacos are always a good answer.

If a vegetable can be cooked, it can be made into a taco filling, according to Téllez.

"Tacos can be made with lots of sautéed mushrooms, sautéed butternut squash, and diced tomatoes," he suggests.

Mushroom tacos can be made simply with a pan of sautéed cremini mushrooms, or with meaty wild varieties like oyster mushrooms for a vegetarian version of carnitas.

(If you want even more ways to cook with mushrooms, try these ideas.)

Pumpkin Tacos can be filled with summer squash and zucchini when in season, or hard squash varieties like butternut, kabocha, or delicata during the cooler months.

When the delicate squash blossoms are available, grab a handful and pan-fry them in a light batter as a filling for a fleetingly special taco.

In one of Tellez's recipes from "Eat Mexico," shredded carrots are the most unexpectedly delicious taco filling.

They can be rolled into tortillas and pan-fried for a flauta or simply in a tortilla of your choice.

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Breakfast tacos for any time of the day

Austin, Texas seems to have turned the breakfast taco into something to wake up to in the morning, but you don't have to travel to the Lone Star State—or anywhere else beyond your kitchen—to enjoy a loaded omelette. and fill.

Eggs are standard in breakfast tacos, whether scrambled or fried, but the rest of the filling is up to you.

Chorizo, potatoes, cheese, salsa, beans, avocado (fresh or fried), and even meat or brisket are among the possibilities.

And if all else fails, just look at what you have on hand and turn it into a cue.

“My favorite tacos use the leftovers that I take out of the fridge and reinvent them,” Tellez says.

His secret to transforming sad leftovers is to always stock the fridge with classic taco ingredients that pack a punch.

"I tend to store a lot of dressings," she explains.

"I always keep hot sauce that I love, cilantro, raw jalapeno, and raw cabbage because it lasts forever."

With an arsenal of fresh, tangy, and crunchy toppings, everything from fried rice to frittatas can be turned into taco filling.

Take stock of what you have and strike at ease.

-- Casey Barber is a writer, artist, and editor of the Good website.

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