Asian Tacos

Jade District Night Market, Portland, OR (Saturday, August 30)

Asian Food Cart

Asian Tacos (Chicken)

Anticipating exciting new Asian “street food” carts, I walked briskly with my husband, from my house in Foster-Powell to the nearby “Jade District Night Market” in the Fubonn parking lot on 82nd Avenue in Southeast Portland. Still, I wasn’t quite sure if I would be able to find something to eat there. It might be too crowded or too expensive. But as soon as I saw the words “Best Asian Tacos” I knew I had to squeeze myself into the line forming in front of the “Asian Food” cart. I had read about some kind of Asian tacos, probably in my friend Cecelia’s Korean Food blog. These fabled tacos were in LA of course—probably they were “Korean” rather than “Asian”—and I wished they might travel north to my town so I could sample some. Apparently the culinary gods had heard my plea.

I knew I just wanted the tacos, but as I waited in line, I noticed there were other choices. One of them involved squid. I think I tried squid once, in a weak moment, coaxed into trying something nobody else was recoiling from. It was chewy and had a nasty flavor, as I had originally thought it would. My status as a picky eater, with no hopes of culinary sophistication were once again confirmed. But that was back in the 1980s. Now, well past midlife, I knew what I liked, and even more importantly, I knew what I didn’t like.  

Finally I found myself face-to-face with the roundish, affable Asian fellow in the Asian Food Cart, asking about Asian tacos. I knew there was a choice between chicken or pork, and I wanted to try both, so I opted for the two tacos for five dollars deal. But alas. Asian cook guy who could be seen slaving over a smoky grill in the back, was out of pork. A slight setback. Chicken? Pork? I didn’t much care. They were grilled and they were inside an Asian Taco. I ordered my two, handed over my five-dollar bill. My name was affixed to my food order slip, held down by a rock, in line behind three previous food order slips. I got ready to wait.

But tonight, it seems, the culinary gods were on my side, and in just a few minutes, my tacos appeared in a little rectangular box as Asian food truck guy uttered my name.

Now there was a slight panic. I wanted to find a table where I might park my dinner while it was still hot. I urgently pushed my way over to my waiting husband, but had no problem finding a stand-up style table nearby. I gazed at my dinner. The tacos looked just like any other tacos: grilled meat and shredded vegetables, topped with a sauce, stuffed into a folded corn tortilla. Ah, but the taste!

Having no qualifications as either foodie or a restaurant critic, I really have no idea what flavors or ingredients were in this dish. They tasted Asian, perhaps, even Korean. The sauce was whitish and creamy. The vegetables were cabbage-like. There may have been a hint of cilantro (which I normally hate) in the sauce. Whatever it was, it had easily left my plate and entered my digestive system in less than five minutes.

Best tacos I’ve had in years. I will be going back next week. Will I get the Asian Tacos again? Or will I try something new? Stay tuned.