Taco Truck Crawl 3

Note: this post will be updated as more information becomes available. Update 9 April 2010 In case you haven't heard, the third Taco Truck Crawl is happening this Saturday. This is an event hosted by the Houston Chowhounds and 29-95. We will be led on this adventure by Jay of @gunsandtacos fame. The plan is to meet up at 10:30 AM Saturday, April 10th.

The meeting spot will be the Target store by I-10 and Sawyer.

The itinerary was a closely guarded secret, but Jay did let the cat out of the bag. The full itinerary can be found here . The first stop will be Karanchos , which has real tacos de trompo. The list with the other locations was being guarded by this guy in the picture. Or at least his ghost.

So what do you need to throw in the truck before you head out Saturday morning? Here is my checklist.

1. Cash - preferably a few $5's and $10's

2. Cooler - preferably full of Dos Equis and Topo Chico Mineral Water

3. Proper music - I will have a good selection of music from Chalino Sanchez , Ramon Ayala, and a few of my other norteno favorites

4. Folding chairs ( I will also throw a small table in the with these. This came in handy last time.)

5. CHL and sidearm ( this is Texas!)

6. Hand Sanitizer

7. Guide to TT terms

Ziggy's TT guide

There are a few terms you should know if you are a bit rusty on that Spanish you learned in HS last year. Ok, so maybe it was 10 or 20 years ago. The taqueros will often ask you your preference on these items

Maiz? - corn, as in corn tortillas

Harina? - Flour, again for tortillas

cilantro y cebolla? - cilantro and onions - the non-gringo topping for most tacos. Lettuce and tomato is for the Taco Bell set. The taqueros will often ask "Con todo?" which usually refers to these condiments. If you really want lettuce and tomato, order a tostada.

Here are some more vocabulary terms for the types of tacos and condiments often offered at trucks

barbacoa and/or cabeza- cheek meat

pastor - pork

chivo - goat

tripa or tripita - tripe (intestines)

chicharron - pork skin

longaniza - a type of sausage

chiles toreados - these are basically a grilled or roasted jalapeno pepper. Many trucks offer them for free with your order. If the side of the truck says "chiles gratis", then make sure you get it with your tacos

cebollitas - these are the small onions that have part of the stem with them. They are grilled like the chiles toreados and are quite tasty. Often the trucks will have "cebollitas y chiles gratis" written on the side of the truck, so these should accompany your order.

Lengua - beef tongue, the favorite food of Kid Lengua

Bistec - Beef Steak

Pollo - Chicken

Milanesa - a breaded and fried piece of thin beef steak

deshebrada - shredded beef

chorizo - another type of sausage, but it is usually served with eggs

machitos - another form of tripe

suadero - brisket meat

campechano - a mix of chorizo and beef

nopales or nopalitos - cactus (spines removed) Pretty much the only thing vegetarian on a TT menu. These are actually very good when done right.

A note about these terms - Often the spelling on the menus of taco trucks is "creative", so what you see written on the side of a truck may differ slightly from the spelling in my TT guide.