Tacos De Canasta

Ingredients

• 50 corn tortillas, portioned into groups of 10, each wrapped well in foil
• 2 medium white onions, thinly sliced, divided
• 3 medium cloves garlic
• 6 dried guajillo chilies, stemmed, seeded, and torn into 1-inch pieces
• 2 cups canola, vegetable, or other neutral oil, divided
• Kosher salt
• Fillings as desired
• Salsa verde or other salsas, for serving

Directions

1. Heat the oven to 300 degrees F. Put the foil-wrapped tortillas in the oven and warm them for 30 minutes.
2. While they heat, place a dry cast iron skillet over high heat until you see a little smoke. Add half of the sliced onion, all of the garlic, and all of the chilies, then cook, stirring now and then, until they are charred and blackened in places. Pour in 1 cup oil and fry over medium-high heat until the onions and garlic have softened and browned, about 3 minutes. Scrape everything into a blender, add the remaining 1 cup oil and a large pinch of salt, and blend until smooth. Move the chili oil to a small saucepan and hold it hot, stirring occasionally to keep the solids from burning.
3. Line a basket with a cloth or blanket large enough to hang well over the sides. Add a clean plastic bag over the cloth, then cover the plastic with sheets of butcher paper.
4. In batches, pull a packet of tortillas from the oven. Move quickly: fill each tortilla with beans or barbacoa, fold it in half to enclose the filling, and place the tacos in the prepared basket. Once you have 1 layer of tacos, sprinkle over some of the remaining sliced onion and spoon the hot chili oil over the top. Repeat the process with the rest of the tortillas, fillings, onion, and oil, until the basket is full.
5. Fold the butcher paper over the tacos, then twist the plastic bag closed to seal it, pressing out extra air as you go. Bring the overhanging cloth up and over the tacos so the basket is neatly packed. Leave the tacos to stand for 1 hour, then uncover the basket and serve them right away, with plenty of salsa on the side.