Fideo

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 coils fideo
2 tablespoons minced onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup canned tomato sauce
3 cups water
Salt
Pepper

Heat oil. Add fideo and cook until lightly browned. Add onion and cook until tender. Add garlic, tomato sauce and water and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Makes 6 servings.

Fideo

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 pound potatoes, diced
1 pound ground beef
3 cloves garlic
1/4 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano
1 pound fideo, broken into small pieces
2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1/2 teaspoon pepper

In a large Dutch oven heat the oil over moderate heat. Add potatoes and cook them until they are just beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.

Add ground beef and stir, breaking it up, until it is just browned.

Crush garlic, cumin and oregano to a paste in a molcajete or mortar and pestle and add the mixture to the potatoes and meat. Then add remaining ingredients, stirring together until well mixed. Bring the contents of the pot to a simmer and cook until the Fideo is soft, about 10 minutes.

Serves 4.