Trejo's Tacos: Recipes and Stories from L.A.: A Cookbook by Danny Trejo

    • Categories: Dips, spreads & salsas; Mexican; Vegetarian; Vegan
    • Ingredients: tomatoes; red onions; jalapeño chiles; cilantro; limes
    • Accompaniments: Gringo tacos; Shrimp & scallop ceviche
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Notes about this book

  • Dcampos on September 10, 2020

    The vegan mushroom recipe is SO good! The marinade is now a staple. Great with tofu and vegetables.

  • Barb_N on August 08, 2020

    We made the Classic fish tacos with coleslaw, and Vegan mushroom Tacos. Divine and very easy.

Notes about Recipes in this book

  • Pico de gallo

    • southerncooker on December 12, 2021

      Delicious version.

    • Deja1 on July 11, 2025

      This will be my go to pico de gallo from now on.

    • aeb on May 14, 2026

      Was exactly what I needed my pico to be. Will use this recipe from now on.

  • Roasted tomato & chipotle salsa (Salsa roja)

    • D.Barker on December 13, 2021

      We didn't love this salsa, but it ended up weirdly.... Stringy? Maybe from the garlic? Who knows. But it was strange.

    • cameron_9ui0sv on May 13, 2026

      Too spicy for my taste with only one jalapeño instead of the two called for. And yes, I removed the seeds and ribs.

  • Trejo's steak sauce

    • rachel_ywqstg on June 01, 2026

      Delicious! Surprisingly not spicy - Incredibly flavorful with the right amount of acidity and sweetness to balance with a juicy steak. Keeps my mouth salivating for more!

  • Vegan cashew crema

    • foodgloriousfood on April 02, 2022

      This was great and my husband didn't even realize that it wasn't dairy based. However I did bump up the flavor by adding jalapeno, cilantro and extra lime.

  • Avocado crema

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      I made this to go on the Blackened Salmon Bowl. Turned out very tasty. I didn't have any orange juice concentrate to make the orange cream.

    • Deja1 on July 11, 2025

      Very tasty but mine did not turn out as smooth as in the picture. Next time I will make it in the blender instead of the food processor. We had this with the gringo tacos.

  • Cheesy bean dip

    • gamulholland on August 26, 2021

      This was easy, tasty, and very popular with my boys, if you use the hot, sweet pickled jalapeños from Trader Joe’s, like I did, you might want to either increase the amount or just scatter them over the top.

    • EmilyR on May 10, 2023

      Mine didn’t look as appetizing as the book photo, but a nice bean dip.

    • cameron_9ui0sv on May 14, 2026

      Delicious and so easy.

  • Barbacoa brisket

    • eroachTN on August 05, 2021

      I substituted New York Maple syrup for the molasses and it turned out fantastic. Definitely a crowd pleaser.

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      My family and I loved this. It was used in Tacos, burritos, bowls, sandwiches, almost 2 year old grandson devoured some by itself, and I even used some in some cabbage soup.

    • jenburkholder on April 28, 2023

      This was good! If I make it again, I'd cut down the molasses a bit as that flavor was more pronounced than I would want. Also, was fully cooked at 4.5 hours - 8 would have been too much at that temp.

  • Barbacoa brisket tacos

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      Loved these. I also made the Pico De Gallo and homemade Tortilla strips from this book to go on these tacos.

  • Homemade tortilla strips (or chips)

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      Made these to go on tacos and bowls. We also snacked on them. Daughter said they're addictive. Yum!

    • cameron_9ui0sv on May 14, 2026

      Extremely easy and can be downsized to frying a single tortilla in just a couple Tbsp of oil.

  • Barbacoa brisket burritos

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      Made the basic black beans to go on these as well as the brisket. They were delicious.

  • Barbacoa brisket bowls

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      Used some of the Spanish Rice, Basic Black Beans, Pico De Gallo, and fried Tortilla strips from the book for these. Delicious.

  • Carne asada

    • jenmacgregor18 on July 12, 2022

      This is excellent and I will make it again. My only change - I cut back on smoked paprika, for our preference, as it already had chipotle.

  • Carne asada tacos

    • Ishie1013 on July 12, 2024

      Made this along with the salsa roja from the same book, and it was really pleasant. Considering that between the salsa and the carne asada, it used up nearly a whole can of chipotles in adobo (unfathomable!), it wasn't half as spicy as I was expecting. But it was delicious.

  • Trejo's grilled chicken

    • abrownb1 on August 17, 2025

      Tasty and simple! We thought leftovers tasted even better. Great as tacos or in a salad.

  • Grilled chicken tacos

    • abrownb1 on August 17, 2025

      Nice tacos! We used a salsa verde from a local Mexican store but used the other toppings. Mixing salsa with the shredded cabbage was new for me, and it's definitely a method I've filed away for the future.

  • Baja fish tacos

    • megbgraham on June 09, 2025

      We LOVED these fish tacos. Super easy for a weeknight. I liked the tortilla chip crust, it was something different. Next time I would make homemade mango salsa though, the store bought one I had wasn’t the best.

  • Blackened salmon

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      This was delicious. This is the bowls I made with the salmon.

  • Blackened salmon bowls

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      I used some of the Spanish Rice, basic black beans, grilled corn, and avocado crema from the book in these. I didn't have orange juice concentrate so didn't make the orange cream use avocado one instead.

  • Gringo tacos

    • southerncooker on December 12, 2021

      These were very good. Family enjoyed. I made the Pico de Gallo, his seasoning and added the suggested toppings and some of his Trejo's hot sauce.

    • Deja1 on July 11, 2025

      We enjoyed this very much. Followed the recipe with all the accompanying toppings, which is easy to make.

  • Grilled spicy diablo shrimp

    • VineTomato on May 13, 2026

      The shrimp had a nice flavour but I was expecting it to be AMAZING given everything that went into the sauce. I made slow roasted garlic so that might have influenced the outcome. My pan was also over crowded so the shrimp didn't get a chance to catch. I will give this another go and this time follow the instructions for the garlic and give the shrimp a bit more heat and space.

  • Bacon cheeseburger tacos

    • EmilyR on May 10, 2023

      I used lower fat beef and didn’t oil the skillet. That might not have been a good idea… this felt like it was a touch dry. Also, I had to use pancetta as that’s what I had.

  • Breakfast burrito

    • D.Barker on December 13, 2021

      This was delicious!! A lot of work to make each individual component, but I am sure store bought would be just as good (better in some cases, since I didn't enjoy the salsa too much) but overall this was fantastic (and that bean dip was sooooo good.)!!

  • El jefe salad

    • foodgloriousfood on June 26, 2023

      We enjoyed this. I knew we weren’t going to eat it all at once so I reserved the romaine and added when serving so it didn’t go limp. I didn’t serve it with the guacamole and I don’t think it needs that as it would make it too gluggy. I found the dressing too bland so zipped it up with some hot sauce and a teaspoon of honey. Ours was a Cutino mango hot sauce which worked very well but a chipotle hot sauce would work well too.

  • How to roast corn

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      I used the pan roasted method. Very good.

  • Roasted Brussels sprouts with red chimichurri

    • D.Barker on May 06, 2021

      Really good! I did a mix of brussels sprouts and broccoli, and the sauce was great on both. I would recommend cutting the oil down by a bit, and if you want it more "saucy" than "salad-y" I would almost recommend blending the sauce ingredients rather than chopping. Either way, though, the flavors were very tasty.

    • imaluckyducky on April 17, 2025

      5 stars. This is addicting. Had some leftover chimichurri and added the chiles en adobo for a speedy rendition. Will repeat.

    • Rachel_ on January 01, 2026

      Substituted apple cider vinegar with a splash of red cooking wine without any trouble. Definitely going to be using the red chimichurri in other places.

  • Cotija & chile mashed potatoes

    • D.Barker on October 22, 2021

      This was sooooo good! It has an unholy amount of butter, haha, but it was an amazing flavor and not a lot of effort.

    • foodgloriousfood on March 29, 2022

      Doubled the poblanos and I would recommend that if, like us, you love the flavor of poblanos. I also put this in a gratin and broiled it until the cheese was bubbly and I would definitely do that again!

  • Basic black beans

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      These were very good. I omitted the Cinnamon stick since we don't enjoy Cinnamon in savory dishes.

  • Spanish rice

    • southerncooker on January 06, 2022

      We really enjoyed this version of Spanish Rice.

  • Mexican hot chocolate cookies

    • Ishie1013 on October 06, 2025

      This were very nice. Do NOT overbake them though. My first batch lacked a lot of flavor while not tasting burnt, because I made them considerably smaller than the 2 TBSP size the recipe called for. On the next batch, I shorted the time by three minutes and they were perfect, soft and perfectly chewy. Lots of compliments.

    • shelbstirr on December 24, 2025

      Very chocolatey, not too sweet, yummy cookie. Really fast and easy to make, no chilling required. Baked for 12 minutes as directed with good results.

  • Hibiscus margarita

    • crandall57 on September 25, 2022

      This makes a delicious margarita! I made the hibiscus syrup using the dried hibiscus flower petals. I cut the syrup in half, as I didn't think we'd use it up in a week.

  • Gringo seasoning

    • southerncooker on December 12, 2021

      Easy to make and very good. I already had all ingredients in my pantry.

    • EmilyR on May 10, 2023

      A simple homemade taco seasoning.

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  • ISBN 10 1984826859
  • ISBN 13 9781984826855
  • Linked ISBNs
  • Published Apr 21 2020
  • Format Hardcover
  • Page Count 224
  • Language English
  • Countries United States
  • Publisher Clarkson Potter

Publishers Text

From the legendary actor and L.A restaurateur comes a cookbook featuring 75 badass recipes, from lowrider donuts and award-winning vegan cauliflower tacos to a sweet and spicy brisket inspired by Danny's mom's barbacoa.

Throughout Danny's life, sharing good food has always been essential--whether it was home-cooked meals made by his mom while imagining the menu for their dream restaurant or whipping up post-wrap celebratory tacos for his Hollywood friends.

Now, with his own restaurant empire growing, Danny shares his favorite recipes for bold, fun, and versatile Mexican food by way of L.A. You'll come away with the know-how and skills for cooking slow-braised pork shoulder with bacon and chiles for unbelievably flavorful carnitas, turning spiced fried chicken or Mexi-falafel into tacos and burritos, and how to make cotija and chile mashed potatoes that will impress all your friends (especially when served with brisket!).

The book also includes stories about Danny's lifelong love of food, from the meals his mom made when he was growing up in the San Fernando Valley to a map of his favorite restaurants and hangouts in Los Angeles, how his time in prison led to his acting career and opening a restaurant, and his journey of becoming an AA/NA counselor. Like Danny's restaurants, Trejo's Tacos is generous, hospitable, and symbolic of L.A.'s vibrant Latino culture.

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