FRIED AVOCADO TACOS

Ingredients

2 large eggs, beaten

1½ cups panko bread crumbs

1 cup rice flour

2 avocados, halved, pitted,and peeled

Kosher salt

4 cups peanut oil

8 6-inch corn tortillas

1 cup Refried Black Beans (this page), warmed

1 cup shredded romaine lettuce

½ cup Salsa Verde (this page)

½ cup Pico de Gallo (this page),plus extra for garnish

¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

BREAD AND FRY THE AVOCADOS Set up your frying station: Add the eggs to a medium bowl, the panko to another, and the flour to a third. Slice each avocado half lengthwise into 8 pieces, and season the pieces with salt.

In a large deep pot, heat the oil until it reaches 350°F on an instant-read thermometer.

While the oil is heating, bread the avocado: Dredge the avocado slices in the flour first, shaking the excess back into the bowl. Then dip the slices in the egg, making sure to coat them completely and allowing the excess to drip back into the bowl. Finally dredge the avocado slices in the panko, pressing gently so it adheres. Place the breaded slices on a plate. (Use one hand for dredging and dipping to keep the other hand clean for other tasks.)

Fry the avocado, 6 to 8 slices at a time (you don’t want to overcrowd the pot), in the hot oil, turning them occasionally, until they are golden brown and crisp, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the slices to a wire rack or a plate lined with paper towels to drain, and season them liberally with salt.

MAKE THE TACOS Preheat the oven to 250°F.

Stack the tortillas, wrap them in aluminum foil, place them in the oven, and let them warm until they’re fragrant and pliable, about 15 minutes.

Remove the tortillas from the oven. Unwrap the stack and line up the tortillas, assembly-line-style, on your work surface.

On each of the tortillas, spread 2 tablespoons of the beans. Then top the beans with the lettuce, Salsa Verde, and Pico de Gallo. Place 4 pieces of avocado on top. Garnish with a little more Pico de Gallo and the cilantro.

Notes

Avocado toast has nothing on these tacos. Because you can’t fry avocado toast! The crunchy exterior and creamy inside of this taco is unexpectedly satisfying. It’s rich and, yes, vegetarian. So they’re good…but they’re fried. So they’re bad? The duality! This is another multistep frying project that pays off big-time.