My husband and I LOVE mexican food and therefore ADORE Cinco De Mayo! This year we decided to do something more authentic and do some "new school" tacos. We found a great blog that adapted one of Rick Bayless's (heart) recipes so we decided to give it a go. I'll give you some of my hints of what to do (and not do) below and then the delicious recipe follows. I will say that this is by far the best Mexican recipe I have to offer and anyone I have made this for always raves about how delicious they are. They're worth the work.
Happy CInco De Mayo All - and don't forget the margarita! (read on for the recipe!)
Happy CInco De Mayo All - and don't forget the margarita! (read on for the recipe!)
Chili Braised Pork Tacos
(adapted from Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen and thefoodpeoplewant.com)
INGREDIENTS:
enjoy! and let me know what you think!
*Knowgirl Scarlett
(adapted from Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen and thefoodpeoplewant.com)
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 medium dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 5 (5 came in our package so we used 5) medium dried guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 1 dried chipotle chile, stemmed and seeded
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
- 1/2 small white onion, roughly chopped (plus a few thinly sliced rings for garnish)
- 2 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- Pinch of ground cloves
- 1 1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1/2 teaspoon table salt (plus more to taste)
- 3 pounds, boneless pork shoulder (we used Pork Loin - we thought it would be dry but it was DELICIOUS)
- Warm corn tortillas
- Sour cream, hot sauce, thinly sliced radishes and cilantro, onion, and lime for garnish
- Place the chiles in a small bowl, cover with very warm water and let stand for 30 minutes. Drain, reserving 2/3 cup of the soaking liquid, then transfer the rehydrated chiles and the reserved liquid to a blender.
- Pulverize the bay leaves in a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and add them to the blender along with the vinegar, onion, garlic, oregano, allspice and cloves. Process to a smooth puree, adding water if needed to keep the mixture moving through the blades. Press through a medium mesh strainer into a bowl.
- Set a large, 6-quart pot with a lid over medium-high heat and add the oil. When very hot and almost smoking, pour in the puree and stir constantly until it sears, concentrates and darkens into a spicy-smelling paste, about 5 minutes. Remove the pot from heat and season the sauce with salt.
- Preheat the oven to 325°. Cut the pork shoulder into slabs about 3-inches thick. Lay the meat into the pot with the chile paste, then flip it over to cover evenly, spooning on more sauce over the top to coat the pork well. Pour 1/2 cup water around the meat, cover tightly and place in the oven. Roast for 2 1/2 hours, basting the meat every 30 minutes with the liquid and rendered fat that accumulates. If all of the moisture evaporates, feel free to add more water to the plan to allow you to continue basting. Let the pork rest for 20-30 minutes before serving.
- Shred or pull the meat apart into-bite size pieces using two forks (Ours fell apart with just tongs!). Toss the meat to incorporate any of the leftover chile braising liquid, check for seasoning and add more salt to taste.
- Place the chile pork in a warm bowl and serve alongside the warm corn tortillas. Have your guests assemble their own tacos, adding their own garnishes to taste.
enjoy! and let me know what you think!
*Knowgirl Scarlett