Shredded, dry-style beef warmed through and rolled into a flour tortilla the size of a dinner plate. In Sonoran-style Arizona restaurants a burro holds little else, sometimes only beef and a few pinto beans.
Where to eat it: 2 restaurants across 1 city.
Machaca was originally dried, spiced beef rehydrated and pounded tender, a preserving method of northern Mexico's ranchers and cowboys, and Wikipedia says it is known mainly in northern Mexico and southern Arizona, California and New Mexico. In Tucson and south, it is almost always prepared dry, and carne seca is another name for it in Sonora. Roving Decanter reports that machaca burros are ubiquitous in Sonoran-style Arizona restaurants. Visit Arizona calls sun-dried machaca a nearly lost art kept alive at a few rooms.
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Common allergens: Gluten, Eggs
Tip from the editors. Dry the beef in the skillet rather than saucing it, because the dried, almost jerky-like edge is what makes it machaca.
Jalapeno Inferno on Scottsdale Road in north Scottsdale serves Sonoran Mexican food, with a take-out cantina nearby, and three tacos for $11.99 every Tuesday.
OrderThe Tuesday three-taco plate with shredded machaca beef, in a soft or hard shell.
TipThe dining room is at 23587 N Scottsdale Rd; the take-out kitchen and cantina is at 7605 E Pinnacle Peak Rd.
Los Olivos Mexican Patio in Old Town Scottsdale is a four-generation Sonoran restaurant open since 1947, known for cheese crisps and Mexican Flag Enchiladas.
OrderA cheese crisp to start, then the Mexican Flag Enchiladas with both red and green sauce.
TipTortillas and salsas are made by hand; ask for the Blue Room or the inside patio when you are seated.
Not on this list, but close by, nearest first. Every one is in our guide with its address, hours and what to order.
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