After a winter of braises, spring tacos should taste like the opposite: green, crunchy, sharp, and fast to cook.
What to look for at the market
- Asparagus: grilled or blistered in a hot pan, cut into two-inch pieces.
- English peas and snap peas: raw or barely blanched, they add sweetness and pop.
- Radishes: sliced thin, the classic taqueria garnish, at their best in spring.
- Spring onions and ramps: charred whole, then chopped.
- Fava beans: worth the peeling, mashed with lime and cotija.
- Nopales: young cactus paddles are tender in spring and traditional.
- Early greens and herbs: arugula, cilantro, epazote, mint.
Three combinations to build
- Grilled asparagus, fava mash, cotija, mint, lime. Bright and substantial.
- Charred spring onion, nopales, queso fresco, salsa verde. Fully traditional and deeply seasonal.
- Snap peas, radish, avocado, pickled onion, chile de arbol salsa. No cooking required beyond warming tortillas.
Cooking rules for spring vegetables
Cook hot and fast, or not at all. These vegetables lose their character with long cooking. Blister in a screaming skillet for two or three minutes, salt immediately, and hit with lime off the heat.
Do not skip fat and salt
Vegetable tacos fail when they are too lean. Add avocado, crema, cotija, or a generous drizzle of salsa macha, and salt more than feels right.
Protein add-ons that fit
Grilled shrimp, soft-scrambled eggs, or crisped halloumi all pair well without overwhelming the vegetables.
Our nopales, grilled corn and zucchini, and avocado salsa verde recipes make good starting points.
