Brooklyn Chef TJ Steele Took Over Our Instagram And Now We're Craving Tacos

TJ Steele, executive chef of Brooklyn Mexican restaurant Claro and founding partner of El Buho Mezcal, recently traveled to Oaxaca, Mexico. There, he visited the restaurant's corn grower, El Buho's mezcal makers and ate plenty of tacos. Luckily for Food Republic (and our followers), he graciously shared the highlights of his trip in an Instagram takeover.

Of his favorite part of the trip, Steele said: "In all my time spent in Oaxaca I'd never seen how tejate was made, so I took an early morning trip to the town molino in Zaachila to see how it's done. An extended member of our El Buho family runs that molino and they grind literally everything. Townspeople come in, mostly in the morning, with their ingredients; chocolate, nixtamal, garbanzos, etc. It was really interesting to see how every family has their own recipe and the slightest variation in ingredients can completely change the final product."

Check out some of his snaps below and be sure to follow Food Republic and the hashtag #FRTakeover on Instagram.

I'm meeting up with the restaurant's corn farmer to check out our next shipment. He grows Oaxacan landrace organic criollo corn. Swipe through to see some of the varieties we use @claro.bk. 🌽 #FRTakeover by @tjsteele #FRavorites #travel #mexico

A post shared by Food Republic (@foodrepublic) on

I can't say no to a roadside taco so I'm stopping for a costillas en salsa rojo on my way home. They're basically a red chile pork stew in a taco 🐽🌮👅 #FRTakeover by @tjsteele #FRavorites #tacos #travel #mexico

A post shared by Food Republic (@foodrepublic) on

Signing off with one of my favorite bites. Tlayudas are a Oaxacan specialty and this one has everything...chorizo, cecina, tasajo and chapulines. Thanks for following along on my #FRTakeover, follow me @tjsteele for more Oaxacan food adventures. #FRavorites #travel #mexico #oaxaca

A post shared by Food Republic (@foodrepublic) on