pork taco recipe

Juicy pork is seasoned with citrus and spices to create ultra-flavorful Mexican inspired Pork Carnitas!

Quick Pork Carnitas Tacos

pork

salt, (to taste)

black pepper, (to taste)

avocado oil, (or olive oil)

yellow onion, (finely diced)

garlic, (minced)

brown sugar

oregano

ancho chili powder

cumin

orange juice

lime, (juiced)

flour tortillas, (for tacos)

avocado

pico de gallo

cilantro, (for garnish)

Cut up the pork tenderloin into small bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Heat oil in a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add diced onions to the heated oil and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 15 seconds or just until fragrant.

Add the pork to the skillet; season with brown sugar, oregano, chili powder, and cumin. Cook, stirring frequently, for about 10 minutes or until pork is cooked through.

Stir in orange juice; continue to stir and scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add lime juice and continue to cook for 2 more minutes.

Remove from heat. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust accordingly.

Serve in tacos, burritos, over rice, and/or on salads.

Impress your friends with this recipe for carnitas which is as simple as it is delicious.&amp;nbsp;

Simple, Perfect Carnitas

lbs pork loin

lbs pork shoulder

lard

tbsp salt

water

Combine lard, water, pork, and salt in a Dutch oven or heavy bottom bot with a lid. Bring&amp;nbsp;to a simmer, then cook on medium-low heat&amp;nbsp;until the water dissolves and the meat is tender, 2-3 hours.

Bring the temperature up to high in order to get the meat to crisp up as it browns in the residual lard. Stir frequently, keeping the meat cooking evenly, about 15 minutes.&amp;nbsp;

Remove carnitas with tongs or a strainer and chop coarsely. Season with additional salt if needed. Serve with tortillas, salsa verde, and the garnishes of your choice. We love chiles en vinagre, guacamole, and chicharrón.&amp;nbsp;

A 100% delicious and authentic (award-winning) Tacos al Pastor recipe right from the heart of Mexico. If you've never made your own at home, now is the time.  For this recipe, we marinate boneless pork butt (or shoulder) in a tangy, spicy, traditional al Pastor sauce of guajillo peppers, achiote paste, vinegar, pineapple juice, and spices. The pork is layered with onions and fresh pineapple slices and cooked until its edges are crispy. Plus, we share a few ways you can cook this recipe at home without a trompo (vertical spit) and share with you everything we learned so you can make the very best Tacos al Pastor at home

How to Make Delicious Tacos al Pastor at Home

onion,

pineapple

fresh cilantro, washed and chopped

corn tortillas

recipe of al Pastor Sauce (below)

achiote paste (30 grams)

white vinegar

garlic

Mexican oregano (use Italian if you don’t have Mexican)

kosher salt

black pepper (about 25 turns on a pepper mill)

cloves

garlic powder (optional but recommended)

onion powder (optional but recommended)

Reconstitute the dried peppers. Add the peppers to a saucepot and cover them with water and bring the heat to a boil, reduce and simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until soft. Strain them and allow them to cool while you measure out the al Pastor sauce ingredients.

Make the al Pastor sauce. Add all of the al Pastor sauce ingredients and the slightly cooled peppers to the bowl of a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Pour the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer (placed over a large mixing bowl or casserole dish) to create a smooth cohesive sauce. Add salt to taste (if needed) and set aside while you prep the pork. 

Prep the pork. Sprinkle the pork butt slices with salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Add the slices of meat directly to the al Pastor sauce and turn them over to coat each piece of meat well. Marinate the meat for at least four hours (or up to overnight which is always tastier).

Cook the pork. Here are 4 good and easy options we recommend (plus one bad option) for cooking al Pastor pork at home:

Pan-sear the pork in a preheated cast-iron skillet. Remove excess marinade from the pork (otherwise the meat will stick to the pan when you cook it). Slice the meat and pineapple into thin slices. Heat a couple of tablespoons of oil in a heavy-gauged skillet or wok. Just as it starts to smoke, working in batches, add the pork along with a little onion and pineapple and cook for a total of about 12-15 minutes, tossing occasionally to keep the meat from sticking to the skillet and to allow for even crisping. Remove from the skillet and serve immediately. Repeat with remaining pork, onions, and pineapple. *Do not overcrowd the skillet and do not move the meat after it first hits the pan. Allow the mixture to sear for about 4 minutes on medium-high heat before tossing the meat cooking until golden brown and crispy.

Grill the pork. Place the pork steaks, onions, and pineapple slices directly onto a preheated grill and allow them to cook until the meat is crispy and sizzling and the onions and pineapple are caramelized. Remove them from the grill and allow them to rest for 4 to 5 minutes, slice them into thin strips, and serve immediately.

Cook the pork in a countertop rotisserie. Stake the meat, pineapples, and onions. Start with a slice of pineapple, add 3 to 4 slices of meat, a layer of onions, more meat, and a slice of pineapple and repeat all of the layers until no meat remains, ending with a slice of pineapple on top. Allow any excess marinade to drip off for about 20 minutes before starting the timer and cooking. Shave the meat off in thin slices and add them directly to a preheated skillet to crisp up even more to your liking and serve immediately.

Cook the pork steaks under a preheated broiler. Cut the meat into kebab-sized pieces, alternate the meat, pineapple, and onion slices on metal or (soaked) wooden skewers, and place them onto an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Bake the kebabs under a preheated broiler for about 20 minutes rotating them 2 to 4 times while cooking to get even crisping on all sides. Remove from the oven and serve immediately, or remove from the skewers and slice the meat into smaller strips before serving. 

Roast the pork in a vertical stack in your oven (NOT RECOMMENDED). Stake the meat, pineapples, and onions. Start with a slice of pineapple, add 3 to 4 slices of meat, a layer of onions, more meat, and a slice of pineapple and repeat all of the layers until no meat remains, ending with a slice of pineapple on top. Get ready for the mountain of al Pastor pork to start leaning like the Tower of Pisa. You can avoid this by making 2 smaller (shorter) stacks and roasting them side-by-side on a sheet pan. However, you will still have to shave the meat and pan-sear it after it roasts. So, although it looks really delicious and fun, it&#8217;s not a practical way to cook tacos al Pastor at home in our opinion. Roast in a preheated oven 350°F/180C for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until the meat in the middle is cooked through.

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Quick Pork Carnitas Tacos

Simple, Perfect Carnitas

How to Make Delicious Tacos al Past...

Top 3 pork taco recipe recipes from across the web

The most viewed pork taco recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Quick Pork Carnitas Tacos

Simple, Perfect Carnitas

How to Make Delicious Tacos al Past...

The most viewed pork taco recipe recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine