Mexican discada

Discada is northern Mexico’s glorious answer to the question “what if we cooked six meats in one giant disc?” Traditionally made on a plow disc (the disco that names the dish) over an open fire, it is a smoky, beer-splashed feast built for a crowd and destined for tacos.

I learned it from my neighbors, a wonderful family from northern Mexico, over a dinner where I shamelessly asked for the recipe before dessert. Their version layers beef, pork, bacon, ham, sausages and chorizo with a blended tomato-spice sauce and a couple of cans of beer.

You do not need a plow disc — a big heavy pot or disco-style pan works — but you do need tortillas, because discada served any other way is a missed opportunity.

Mexican Discada Recipe

Prep time: 20 minutes · Cook time: 40 minutes · Total: 1 hour · Servings: 8 · Calories: ~464 per serving

Ingredients

• 4 pounds beef (sirloin or chuck), diced
• 2 pounds pork leg, diced
• 1 pound smoked bacon, chopped
• 1 pound smoked ham, diced
• 1 pound Vienna sausages, sliced
• 1 pound pork chorizo
• 3 onions, divided
• 3 garlic cloves
• 6 tomatoes, divided
• 1 bunch cilantro
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon thyme
• 1 teaspoon oregano or marjoram
• 2 cans of beer
• Oil, as needed
• Salt, to taste

Instructions

1. Dice all the meats. Blend half the onion and half the tomatoes with the garlic, cumin, pepper, thyme and marjoram, adding enough water for a smooth sauce.
2. Heat oil in a large heavy pot (or disco) and fry the bacon and pork until half-cooked.
3. Add the beef with a little salt.
4. When the beef is half done, pour in the beer and add the remaining onion and tomato, plus the ham, sausages and chorizo. Stir in the blended sauce.
5. Cook everything together for about 20 minutes, until the meats are done and the flavors have fused.
6. Serve in tacos with flour or corn tortillas — charro beans on the side make it a proper norteño feast.

Recipe Notes

• Bell peppers, jalapeños or a handful of cheese are popular additions.
• Any meat can be swapped — turkey bacon, chicken sausage, whatever your table prefers.
• For a vegetarian discada, mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini and beans take the meats’ place surprisingly well.
• Leftovers make legendary breakfast burritos.