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What I Ate: September 30, 2009 (Taqueria Star)

Posted 30 September, 2009 at 9:02pm by Michael Chu
(Filed under: Food, What I Ate)

Lunch: I decided to make my version of an American classic - spaghetti and meatballs (yes, American - not Italian… I don't think any region of Italy puts meatballs, marinara, and spaghetti together in the way we Americans do). I used ground beef from Coyote Creek Farms' pastured cattle to make several large (1/8 pound) meatballs, browned them in a convection oven, and then simmered in marinara sauce. I served them over a bed of angel hair pasta alongside roasted squash and fresh arugula.
Italian Meatballs

Dinner: Tina and I drove up to Taqueria Star (343 S Congress Ave, Austin, TX‎ - (512) 909-8423‎), a taco truck parked in the parking lot of a liquor store on the corner of Riverside and South Congress.
Taqueria Star

Al Pastor (rotisserie cooked pork) Special - 5 small tacos with avocado and queso blanco.
Taqueria Star - Tacos Al Pastor Special

Lengua (beef tongue) Taco
Taqueria Star - Lengua Taco

We also had a campechana taco which had Mexican chorizo (chopped beef cooked with chili spices), pineapple, onion, and cilantro, but I had put the camera away already. We liked all of the food, but Tina especially liked the tacos al pastor and I especially liked the lengua.

Taqueria Star has some weird hours, so here they are for your reference:
Monday - Thursday: 8am - 2pm; 6pm - 12 midnight
Friday: 8am - 2pm; 6pm - 3am
Saturday: 6pm - 3am

3 comments to What I Ate: September 30, 2009 (Taqueria Star)

Eric, October 1st, 2009 at 10:03 am:

  • Could you post the full recipe for the pasta sauce you made please?

MissPanda, October 1st, 2009 at 10:44 am:

  • Could you also post the recipe for the meatballs?

Michael Chu, October 2nd, 2009 at 12:12 pm:

  • The marinara sauce I used was from a jar - Newman's Own brand. I've never used their pasta sauces before and actually quite liked the flavor.

    The meatballs were made by combining the following:
    1 lb. ground beef
    1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
    1/2 cup bread crumbs
    1 large egg
    1 tsp garlic powder
    1/2 tsp oregano
    salt and fresh ground black pepper
    (I used Coyote Creak ground beef and a Coyote Creek egg. The bread crumbs were from a stale loaf of Rosemary and Olive Oil Italian bread that I ground up and stored. I used parmegiano reggiano grated with a Microplane zester for the cheese.)

    I then formed the meat mixture into eight tightly packed balls. Coated them with a tad of vegetable oil (wet my hand and wiped it around) and baked them in a convection oven at 450°F until browned (about 15 minutes).

    Then I simmered them in the marinara sauce (which I already brought up to a simmer) for about 15-20 minutes while preparing the rest of the meal (pasta, squash, and arugula salad).
    simmer in marinara sauce (1/2 hour)

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