Full transparency: I didn’t set out to make Armenian Tacos.
My intention was to come up with a grain-free recipe for beef stuffed blinchik, a Russian dish that my Armenian mother-in-law makes. Blinchik are crepes (blini) made with flour, milk, egg, sugar and oil, that are stuffed with ground meat, rolled up like little burritos, and then pan fried. A very tasty dish that I have been meaning to hack.
I came up with a crepe recipe, using cooked quinoa and grain-free flours that turned out lovely and thin like blini. However, when it came to rolling it up like little burritos the crepes weren’t sturdy enough and I wasn’t patient enough.
The idea of serving the crepes and meat filling like tacos made a lot of sense, and I came up with some fun, Armenian-themed toppings to serve it with. Everyone was able to make their own taco at the table, which was fun and saved me the time that it would have taken to roll them up myself!
There is room to spice up the meat mixture more, if you’d like. Feel free to sprinkle in some paprika, cumin, garlic powder and dried mint for extra Armenian-themed flavor. Serve with tzatziki or garlic sauce!
1 cup cooked quinoa
1 cup blanched almond flour
¼ cup arrowroot starch
½ teaspoon sea salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (13.66oz) coconut milk, full fat
¼ cup water
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 pound ground lamb, beef or turkey
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
¼ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
1 medium vine-ripened tomato, chopped
½ English cucumber, chopped
¼ cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
2 tablespoons fresh dill, chopped
Preheat a pancake griddle or a non-stick skillet over medium low heat.
Combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and mix until smooth.
Coat the skillet with coconut oil. Pour ¼ cup of batter into the skillet in a large tortilla shape. Cook until set, then flip to brown the other side. Repeat with all of the batter — should make 12 tortillas.
Place the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the onion and sauté for 5 minutes. Add the ground meat and brown, stirring often. Drain the skillet. Return to medium heat, mix in the salt, pepper and parsley. Remove from heat.
Put the browned ground meat in a large bowl and set out with a stack of tortillas and taco toppings. Have fun assembling and devouring your tacos. Enjoy!
Calories: 557
Fat: 37g
Carbohydrates: 33g
Sodium: 466mg
Fiber: 5g
Protein: 11g
Sugar: 1g