In my younger days I had a friend whose mom was from Central America. She had a way of making tacos that left the upper half or so crispy, while the portion that had the meat was softened. I think the shells ended up in the fry pan or oven at some point, but I can’t remember how it’s done. I eat tacos 3-4 times a week and haven’t figured out this trick.
Any help?
If you put the meat in the shells, set them upright, then pop them into the oven, you might get that effect. The juices from the filling should soften the shells while the heat crisps the tops?
My dad used to fry up taco shells instead of buying the already crispy ones in the box. He would use corn tortillas - the centers were always much softer than the outer edges - and yummy!
I’ve tried that by warming the shells for a few mins, then filling them, then putting them back in for a few. Never tried it with them filled to start with, but the first way wasn’t the same as I remember so I can’t see 3 more minutes making a difference.
Could it be because I’m draining the grease after browning the meat, and therefore it’s too dry? I don’t even remember how she made the meat, maybe that had something to do with it. Hell, I was young, for all I know she made her own shells.
A shot in the dark, but I’m holding out hope a bunch of Dopers eat tacos and can make suggestions.
Now this sounds more like what I was used to. How did he fry them? Were they just regular ole corn tortillas? Were they the soft or hard kind?
Assuming she fried them by hand, maybe she only fried half of them…? I would think if you folded a tortilla in half over a wooden spoon, for example, you could dip just the ends of the tortilla into the oil…and it takes less than a minute to fry them, depending on how hot the oil is.
They were the regular “raw” corn tortillas. He would heat up vegetable oil in a big frying pan. When the oil was hot, he would put a tortill in the pan and cook it for a few second on one side. Then he would turn it over and fold it in half, and then cook it on each folded side until the desired crispiness.
If you use this method, be sure to let them degrease on a paper towel for a bit while cooling down.
Buy soft corn tortillas. Put some vegetable oil (about 1/4 inch) in a small pan. Heat to about med-high. Don’t fold the tortillas beforehand. Put them flat into the pan. If the oil is hot enough, it should start bubbling and they will start to puff up. When they just start to brown, turn them over and let them puff up again.
Take out of the oil using tongs and let the oil drain off of them. Sit them on a doubled-over papertowel and place something like the handle of a wooden spoon in the center. Taking the tongs, fold them in half, papertowel and all. Let the papertowel absorb a bit more oil and they are ready to be filled with whatever you would like.
Hope that helps. We do them all the time that way and they come out as you describe. Crunchy around the edges, softer in the middle. You might need to experiment a little and get the hang of how long to leave them in the oil. You’ll be a pro in no time.
PS- Don’t say a liberal never taught you anything. 
Thanks Club 33, I’ll try it tomorrow. And I never said I didn’t learn anything from liberals. After all, I did go to public school. 