Tacos al pastor
Marinated Pork Tacos with Pineapple
Al pastor is what happens when a spit of marinated pork meets a Mexican taquería: thin slices of pork in a red chilli and achiote marinade, charred and chopped on to a small tortilla with a piece of pineapple. At home there is no spit, so the pork is sliced thin and cooked hot and fast.
Al pastor is pork marinated in guajillo chillies, achiote, vinegar and citrus, carved from a vertical spit.
The two recipes both marinate sliced pork in a purée of dried chillies, achiote and spices, then cook it quickly in a very hot pan or on a grill. One uses ancho powder and thin pork tenderloin with a tomatillo and chipotle salsa; the other uses sliced shoulder in a guajillo adobo, sears the pineapple and returns the sliced meat to the pan with the marinade.
Ingredients
For the marinade
- 8 garlic cloves, peeled
- 45 g ancho chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 3 tbsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 50 g achiote paste
- 60 ml vegetable oil
- 680 g pork tenderloin, or boneless pork shoulder in 1 cm slices
For the salsa
- 5 to 7 dried chipotle chillies (red, not smoked), stems removed
- 450 g tomatillos, husked
- 6 garlic cloves
- 120 ml orange juice
- 120 ml chicken broth
- Fine sea salt and a pinch of sugar
To finish
- 1 medium onion, in thick slices
- 1/4 pineapple, peeled and cut in 1 cm slices
- 20 small corn tortillas, warmed
- Coriander leaves, chopped onion and 3 limes, to serve
Method
- Marinate Blend the 8 garlic cloves with the ancho powder, spices, vinegar and salt, then with the achiote paste and oil until smooth. Slice the tenderloin into 1 cm slices and pound them thin, or use shoulder slices. Coat the pork in the marinade, cover and chill for at least 3 hours or overnight.
- Make the salsa Toast the chillies in a dry pan for 1 minute and soak them in hot water for 20 minutes. Grill the tomatillos for 3 to 4 minutes a side until soft and blackened. Blend them with the 6 garlic cloves and the drained chillies, and season with salt and a pinch of sugar. Simmer half of it with the orange juice and broth for 5 minutes to make the warm sauce and keep the rest as a raw-tasting table salsa.
- Char the onion and pineapple Heat a griddle pan or barbecue until very hot. Cook the onion and pineapple slices for several minutes, turning once, until charred. Chop both.
- Cook the pork Cook the pork in batches on the hot griddle for 2 to 4 minutes a side, until crusty at the edges and cooked through with no pink. Slice thinly and chop.
- Serve Warm the tortillas. Pile the pork on to them with pineapple, onion and coriander and add the warm sauce, the salsa and a squeeze of lime.
Food safety
Check that the pork is cooked through, with no pink. Wash hands and boards after handling raw meat.
Slice the pork across the grain as thinly as you can; partly freezing it helps.
Do not crowd the pan or the pork will steam.