- Yield: 86 tacos, 43 servings
Pulled pork tacos with pickled vegetables, avocado, pico de gallo, cilantro lime sauce and chicharrónes
Recipe courtesy of Cha Myers, Executive Chef, Dubuque (Iowa) Golf & Country Club.
Ingredients
- For Pickled Vegetables
- apple cider vinegar - 2 cups
- sugar - 2 cups
- pickling spice - 1/2 cup
- apple juice - 1/2 cup
- morita chiles - 3 dried, or a small handful of sliced jalepenos
- cauliflower - 1 head, shaved
- carrots - 2 jumbo, shaved
- red onion - 2 shaved
- For Cilantro Lime Sauce
- fresh cilantro - 2 cups
- chipotles - 2
- adobo - 4 tsp.
- lime - 1, juiced
- garlic clove - 1
- cumin - dash
- chili powder - dash
- salt - to taste
- pepper - to taste
- mayonnaise - 1/2 gal.
- buttermilk - 2 cups
- For Pico de Gallo
- tomatoes - 4, small dice
- red onion - 1/2, small dice
- fresh cilantro - 1/2 cup, small dice
- lime - 1, juiced
- garlic clove - 1, minced
- salt - to taste
- pepper - to taste
- chili powder - to taste
- jalapeno - 1 Tbsp., chopped
- For Spice Rub for Pork Butt
- star anise - 8, toasted and ground
- cinnamon sticks - 2, toasted and ground
- fennel seeds - 1 Tbsp., toasted and ground
- peppercorns - 1 Tbsp., toasted and grounded
- cumin - 4 Tbsp.
- dry mustard - 2 Tbsp.
- chili powder - 4 Tbsp.
- jerk seasoning - 2 Tbsp.
- brown sugar - 2 cups
- kosher salt - 3/4 cup
- For Pork Butt
- bone in pork butts - 2 8 to 12 lb.
- onion - 1 1/2 cups, chopped
- carrots - 3 cups, chopped
- celery - 1 1/2 cups, chopped
- fresh fennel - 1 bulb
- rosemary - 2 sprigs
- thyme - 6 sprigs
- apple juice - 1 qt.
- chicken stock - 2 qts.
- sherry wine - 1/2 bottle
- For Tacos
- tortillas - 86
- avocados - 21 1/2
- fried chicharrónes - for garnish
Instructions
For Pickled Vegetables
- In a saucepan, bring vinegar, sugar, pickling spice, apple juice and chiles to a boil.
- Simmer for 10 minutes to develop flavor.
- Have cauliflower, carrot and red onion in a bowl with ice. Pour the pickling liquid through a strainer onto the ice and vegetables. Let the vegetables sit in th epickling liquid to marinate for atleast one hour.
For Cilantro Lime Sauce
- Combine all dry ingredients with about a half cup of buttermilk to puree in a food processor.
- Once pureed, add the mayo, then add more buttermilk, until you have a silky, dressing-like consistency.
- Season to taste.
For Pico de Gallo
- Combine all ingredients.
For Spice Rub for Pork Butt
- Combine all ingredients.
For Pork Butt
- Bake the pork butt for 15 minutes to make a crust.
- Braise with all of the other ingredients for about 12 hours at 225°F.
To Assenble Tacos
- Warm 6 ozs. of pork butt and tortillas on a plancha.
- Put about 3 ozs. of pork in each tortilla, then hit the pork with some of the cilantro lime sauce.
- Place two slices (1/4) of avocado on top of pork, then two ozs. of pickled vegetables. Top with two ozs. of pico de gallo.
- Garnish with smoked sea salt dusted friend chicharrónes.
- Serve two tacos per order.