(This vendor hasn't appeared lately, that I've seen, in the location noted below.) They're slim: Each of these three, variously filled with beans, potatoes, or pork (shown), could have been slipped into a letter-sized envelope. They're not made to order: Except for spoonfuls of green hot sauce, applied by me, all of the preparation was completed long before I arrived. They're also cheap ($1 each), unique in New York (to the best of my knowledge), and delicious.
Tacos de canasta, also known as tacos al vapor and tacos sudados, are steamed ("al vapor") and traditionally held in a basket ("canasta"), where their collective warmth gives them a sweaty ("sudado") texture. Ideally, keeping close company with several hundred of their fellows also helps them develop an enticing juices-soaked-into-the-tortillas texture, as evidenced here.
At Viva La Comida!, where these tacos were pointed out by festival organizer Jeff Orlick, the basket simply sat on a checked-cloth tabletop. If you visit the vendor on his regular street corner, Jeff noted, look for the basket on the back of a bicycle.
Tacos de canasta vendor
Junction Blvd. at Roosevelt Ave., Corona, Queens
Early evenings
