Hollywood hardman Danny Trejo on the appeal of tacos, plus his steak asada taco recipe

Danny Trejo has swapped the big screen for taco joints
Hollywood hardman Danny Trejo on the appeal of tacos, plus his steak asada taco recipe

– The Danny Food, Trejo’s ' 'mexican Trejo: Tacos/pa Pictures: Thing Tacos They’re Easiest

Danny Trejo has spent his career playing machete-wielding hardmen on screen, belying a gentler personality behind-the-scenes.

He talks about his childhood in Los Angeles with warmth – particularly the way food brought everyone together.

“You know what, it was my mum’s house. It didn’t matter what time we came home – food was like the peacemaker, you walked in and she fed everybody,” Trejo, 79, remembers.

“It calmed everybody down. My house was the place where we had all the family parties and all the family get-togethers. One time I had a party – it was high school – and my mum and dad stole the show because they could dance, do the swing and stuff.” 

Trejo adds with his signature braying laugh that he managed to stuff “like 300 kids” into the alley at the back of their house – with everyone flocking there for a good time and, of course, good food.

Trejo’s early life of crime is well documented, resulting in various stints in prison, before he made his way into Hollywood in the 1980s. What started as bit parts and roles as an extra soon morphed into a full-blown career: playing Isador ‘Machete’ Cortez in Spy Kids and the Machete franchise, as well as appearing in films like Desperado, From Dusk Till Dawn and Con Air.

Off-screen, Trejo says he’s “always been health conscious” – particularly when working.

He recounts how appearing in low-budget films meant he always brought his own meals and snacks, because all that would be provided was fast food.

“I don’t eat processed food – I wanna cook my own hamburger!” he says.

“This producer called Ash [Shah] – who is now one of my business partners – he was the one that saw me eating my little tuna salad or chicken salad when everybody else was eating Mickey D’s. He was like, ‘Trejo – you eat good’.

“I was like, ‘I’m 70 years old, I better!’ And he said – ‘Why don’t you open a restaurant?’ Joking, I said: ‘Trejo’s Tacos’.” 

Danny Trejo: 'It’s really hard to make a bad taco. You have to really not like somebody to make a bad taco.' Picture: Trejo’s Tacos/PA
Danny Trejo: 'It’s really hard to make a bad taco. You have to really not like somebody to make a bad taco.' Picture: Trejo’s Tacos/PA

What started as a joke soon turned into a full-blown business plan – Trejo said when he first saw the pitch for his own line of restaurants: “I opened it, and there were no killings or mayhem on the first page. Not my remit.” 

But it obviously struck a chord – and in 2016, the first LA outpost was established and “killed it”, Trejo says. Now, he’s opening his first international joint – in London.

“Mexican food, tacos – they’re the easiest thing. It’s so funny, everybody has a special way they want their tacos – but they’re so simple and they’re so good. It’s really hard to make a bad taco. You have to really not like somebody to make a bad taco.” 

Many of the recipes at Trejo’s Tacos were taken from his mother, but with a fundamental change.

“In the 50s and 60s, Latinos cooked with lard. So we had to take that out – everything that wasn’t healthy, we changed it for everything that was healthy,” Trejo explains.

There are plenty of vegan options on the menu, too – including tacos made from jackfruit and cauliflower.

“People think you have to be on some kind of diet – you don’t! Let me have some jackfruit, let me have some cauliflower, it helps clean out your system.” 

There are also gluten-free options – not least because Trejo is allergic to gluten himself.

“I didn’t know that I was allergic to gluten – I would just eat and go do whatever I had to do, but it gives you acid reflux – and that’s what it did for me. When I found out I was allergic to gluten, I stopped – and no more acid reflux.” 

Trejo celebrated 55 years of sobriety last year, and he says being teetotal has helped him appreciate food even more.

“People don’t understand with liquor – first of all, you’re putting three spoons of sugar on every bite. That’s what booze is made from, sugar. I know – I used to make pruno,” he says, referring to what’s often called ‘prison wine’, an alcoholic beverage largely made from fermented fruit.

“It’s the same thing when you drink a soda with food, it’s like you’re taking [away] the taste of the food. I love the taste of food – if I didn’t work out, we’d be doing an Overeaters Anonymous commercial right now.” 

In his 70s, Trejo says walking keeps him fit – and the mental benefits definitely help. “You get to burn off the calories and the anxieties walking.” 

Danny Trejo’s steak asada taco

A Dish The Citrusy The Marinade Key To This Steak For Is

Danny Trejo’s steak asada taco

Servings

4

Preparation Time

30 mins

Cooking Time

30 mins

Time Total

60 mins

Course

Main

ingredients

  • The Marinade: for

  • Onion, ½ Large White Roughly Chopped

  • Of Can Sauce, From Chipotle Chillies Chipotle A In 3 Adobo Chillies

  • The Sauce Of Plus 2tbsp

  • Chopped Medium Roughly 2 Jalapeños,

  • Cloves Garlic 6

  • Fresh ½ Roughly Cup Chopped Coriander

  • Cup (preferably Juice ¾ Orange Fresh)

  • Oil Pure Cup ½ Olive

  • ¼ Soy Sauce Cup

  • Of Juice Lemon 1

  • 1tbsp Ground Cumin

  • Smoked 1tbsp Paprika

  • Taco: for The

  • Tortillas 12

  • 250g Flank Steak

  • Marinade 50ml Trejo’s

  • Pepper Taste To And Salt

  • The About (makes 2 For Cups): Verde Salsa

  • 12 Tomatillos, Whole Skin Removed, Tomatillos Medium Left Papery

  • Medium Jalapeño, 1 Whole Left

  • 2 Garlic Cloves

  • ½ White Medium Onion

  • ¼ Fresh Cup Chopped Coriander

  • Lime, To 1 Of Taste Plus Juice Extra

  • Plus 1tbsp To Salt, Extra Kosher Taste

  • Verde The for Slaw:

  • Cabbage 200g White

  • Cabbage Red 50g

  • 15g Grated Carrot

  • 50ml Verde Salsa

  • 5g Salt Sea

  • The for Garnish:

  • Pinch Of Chopped Coriander

  • Quartered Lime, 1

method

  1. for Bine Cumin, Sauce, In Blender Orange Container Seal Or The Garlic, Marinade Jalapeños, And To Bag Self Oil, Soy Processor Sauce, Plastic The Juice, Paprika Coriander, And Transfer Olive And Chipotles Juice, Puree Marinade: Lemon Airtight Large A A The Food Or Onion,

  2. And Or Lime But Blender In Coriander, To Or Are Tomatillos Tomatillos Sauce Four The Garlic Dry Add The Airtight Add And The Or Pan Until Until Salt Tomatillos, Tomatillos Jalapeño Temperature A If Refrigerate Salt The Five Hit And For Jalapeño Tongs Lime The Verde: Cook It Cook They Let Over And Heavy Jalapeño Is Until Before Hot, Up The They The The Skillet And Blistered An Mixture Heat The Taste Are Should Food Cloves To Garlic Garlic To About Pan Jalapeño It Cloves Black The Very Burned, The Room To Vegetables The And Days Minutes Tomatillos, Cool When And Minutes Heat From The And Smooth Not Processor Is Hot Five Until Desired In Large More Add Pletely Garlic Sauce Bowl And Process Soft And Serving, Jalapeño Use Heat Whole A Transfer Blistered for Spots The And The And Remove Sizzle Minutes Five To To More Salsa A Add Transfer Turn Container And On Toasted To Chill Juice Juice Seven The Over Seven One Medium Onion, Are Side,

  3. At Marinade Trejo’s In Steak Flank For Marinade 30 Minutes Least

  4. (depending On Side Charred, Five Each Steak Until Minutes Grill Size) On About

  5. The Add And Verde Carrot, Cabbage Slaw, Salt And The Shred Salsa For Later Reserve For Verde

  6. By Design Slaw By Published

    trejo’s Heat Ed Danny Tortilla, Trejo And Tacos: And Jen Verde Tortilla From House Book Cover Asada, Penguin Up Stories Available With Photography By La Steak Now By Verde Salsa Anderson Random Top In And Recipes Wang, The The Is Hardback

 

Danny Trejo’s shrimp tostada recipe

But Is Dish Effective Zesty Very Simple This

Danny Trejo’s shrimp tostada recipe

Servings

4

Preparation Time

5 mins

Cooking Time

15 mins

Time Total

20 mins

Course

Main

ingredients

  • Tortillas 4 Corn

  • 10ml Oil Olive

  • 32 Shrimps

  • Butter 112g

  • Garlic 20g

  • And Salt Pinch Pepper Of

  • 20g Red Chilli

  • Guacamole 340g

  • Garnish: The for

  • 24 Pickled Onions Red

  • Of Coriander Chopped Pinch

  • 1 Lime, Quartered

method

  1. Or Tortillas Corn On With And Flip Then Them And Crispy Until Bake Bake An 200°c Baking Over And For Minutes Tortillas Brush Flat A Lightly Golden For Minutes, Oil Lay Are Five Additional 10 To Tortillas The The Them Sheet At Five

  2. And Garlic, Crushed Pepper Of Chilli Butter, Red Pinch Salt And With Sauté Shrimp

  3. Evenly Of Tostada On Guacamole Grams 85 Each Spread

  4. House Pinch Wedge Anderson Now With Tacos: Each Recipes By Onions Tostada Wang, Book Garnish By Ed By Red Available Danny Serve In Photography And La Six With Random A Lime And Design Stories Pickled Chopped Coriander Penguin Jen Published Cover And Is

    trejo’s Of Hardback From By Trejo

 

Danny Trejo’s cauliflower tostada recipe

In Half Simple Table Dish Yet On Delicious Hour Be Under Can An The This

Danny Trejo’s cauliflower tostada recipe

Servings

4

Cooking Time

20 mins

Total Time

20 mins

Course

Main

ingredients

  • Corn Tortillas 4

  • Head Cauliflower 1 Medium

  • Olive 2tbsp Oil

  • To Salt Pepper Taste And

  • Onions Pickled

  • Avocado Crema

  • (optional) 2tbsp Arbol Flakes

  • for Garnish: The

  • Pickled 24 Red Onions

  • Chopped Of Pinch Coriander

  • Quartered Lime, 1

method

  1. The Oven Preheat

  2. And Salt With Cauliflower And On The The Scatter Season Pepper Florets Tray

  3. Your Roast Tenderness Desired To Cauliflower

  4. Published And Wedge Ed The The And By Cover Recipes Crema Heat Avocado Pickled Stories By Up Random With Top Now La From In Lime Onions Tortilla, Cauliflower, Trejo

    trejo’s Anderson Available House With And Penguin Design And By Book By Jen Tostada Hardback Tacos: Wang, Serve Photography Danny Is

  • Trejo’s Tacos will open in London from February 27. 

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