Taco Salad

Method

1. sear7 min
   medium-high, undisturbed then broken up
   vegetable oil + ground beef pressed into one flat layer — leave it alone until the underside is brown before breaking it up, because the water that comes out of stirred beef pools and drops the pan below browning temperature
2. saute4 min
   medium
   + onion + garlic, cooked in the rendered fat until the onion turns translucent at the edges; add the garlic in the last minute so it perfumes rather than scorches
3. toast1 min
   medium, stirring constantly
   + chili powder + cumin + smoked paprika + salt, moved through the hot fat for a full minute — dry ground chili is mostly fat-soluble, and spice thrown in with the water later stays flat and dusty
4. simmer5 min
   medium-low, until nearly dry
   + water + black beans, scraping the fond off the pan bottom, and reduce until the liquid coats the meat instead of running off it = taco filling; a wet filling will wilt the lettuce into slime within a minute
5. whisk2 min
   off heat
   sour cream + salsa + lime juice, until it pours in a thin ribbon = dressing; the lime acid thins the cream, so add it last and stop when it moves like buttermilk
6. rest3 min
   filling off heat
   let the filling drop to warm before it meets the greens — straight from the pan it steams the lettuce; fully cold, the cheese never softens
7. top2 min
   assemble at the table
   lettuce + tomato as the base, then warm filling + cheddar + dressing, and only then the tortilla chips folded through — the chips go in last and get eaten immediately, since they turn to paste about four minutes after the dressing touches them