Yo soy pura gringa. And yet, thanks to my husband, I am part of a beautiful Guatemalan/German family.
As a food lover and newly initiated family member, I thoroughly enjoy learning the histories of my husband’s family through food. Standing at the stove with my mother in-law, I discover the heritage dishes of the generations before and relish the bright, fresh flavors of comfort food from Guatemala.
In any culinary journey, the key to discovering the nuances of an unfamiliar territory is through comfort food. But eater beware. Once sampled, another culture’s comfort food has the power to beguile, distract and–most impressively–require further in depth exploration. One bite and suddenly you’re filled with a longing for that comforting flavor that can match the craving of the people that have been eating it all their lives. Tasting Mixtas for the first time, I suddenly wanted to hop a plane to Guatemala.
Mixtas, known as Guatemalan street food, is more than just a hot dog on a tortilla. Made with fresh and inexpensive ingredients, the mixtas is a hot dog rolled up with a refreshing lime-dressed cole slaw, delicate guacamole, green chiles and spicy hot sauce. A perfect mid day snack or late night bite on the cheap, a mixtas makes you wonder why you’ve never had a hot dog soft taco before.
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Mixtas, or the Guatemalan Hot Dog Taco
From a Family recipe
1 package of fresh tortillas (corn), heated in microwave in a towel or warmed over gas flame of stove
1 package of hot dogs (beef or pork), cooked in boiling water
Guatemalan slaw (recipe below)
Guatemalan guacamole (recipe below)
Hot sauce (Tapatio or Sriracha)
1 can of green chili
Guatemalan Slaw
1 bag of shredded cabbage “angel hair” style (or thinly slice half of one cabbage)
Juice of one lime
2 tbs chopped cilantro
1 Red onion, minced
4 tbs Olive oil
Salt and pepper, to taste
Toss shredded cabbage with the juice of one lime, chopped cilantro and minced red onion. Drizzle with olive oil, enough to just coat the mixture. Season with salt and pepper.
Guacamole de Antigua
2 ripe Haas avocados
¼ red onion, minced
½ small lime, juiced
1 teaspoon of dried oregano
pinch of salt
1 can of green chiles (optional)
Remove meat of the avocado and mash with a fork in a bowl (or on a plate!). Mix in the red onion. Squeeze the juice of half a lime over the mixture–the citrus not only flavors the mixture it keeps the avocado from turning brown. Rub the teaspoon of oregano in your hand to release the herb’s oils and then add to avocado mixture. Add salt to taste.
To make mixtas:
Boil hot dogs in hot water. When done serve on warm tortillas (double up the tortillas if you prefer) with slaw, guacamole, hot sauce and green chilies.
Enjoy!
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
Decadent! I think I need to try one of these on a hot summer day with a pale, refreshing beer, sitting on the beach. Thanks!
The kids are going to love these Mixtas!
What in interesting way to eat hot dogs. Looks yummy.
What a treat to be enjoying familial cultures through food and recipes. Both of the recipes you’ve written about so far are making my mouth water!
The way you described them brings to mind all the time I share these with friends.
Everytime you hear "HMMM WHYMMM HAVEMM I HADDMM THESSMMM BEFOREMM< GULP AHHH" as they talk with their mouth full…
OMG this is so weeeeird! did you tell NS about this? or morty? it’s weirder than the SNOOOPY–a grilled hot dog panini (sort of thing) that ol’ mort discovered late one night at pelicanos…
did you get my comment on this? i cannot tell if they go through. so complicato.
I’m Guatemalan.. If you like hot dogs, love guacamole, and like tortillas, trust me you’ll LOVE these!
Hello! I’m Guatemalan and I just wanted to add one more thing, if you want more flavor from the hot dog boil them with a little bit of vinegar, yes VINEGAR. Trust me, you wont regret it!
Eimy, Thanks for the tip. I look forward to trying the vinegar trick!