Treat your taste buds to the taste of authentic taqueria-style tacos al pastor! Chef Tom's recipe guarantees a delicious pork belly filling with all the flavors of the traditional recipe, right in your own backyard.
WHAT YOU'LL LOVE
- Grilling with the lid open instead of closed keeps the watermelon from steaming and breaking down completely, so it picks up char and color while still holding its shape enough to slice and dice afterward
- Blending the watermelon flesh on low speed purees the fruit while leaving the seeds mostly intact, so straining removes them cleanly instead of blending them into grit
- Muddling the mint into the simple syrup while it's still warm, then pulverizing it in a blender, extracts more flavor than simply steeping whole leaves would
- Scraping the mixture with a fork every hour as it freezes builds the granita's signature light, flaky texture, rather than letting it freeze solid into one block
Pork Belly Tacos Al Pastor
Tom Jackson
Rated 4.7 stars by 7 users
Category
Entree
Cuisine
Mexican
Servings
12
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
24 minutes
Calories
606
Chef Tom fires up the Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill for Pork Belly Tacos Al Pastor. As good as the taqueria, but made right at home!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs pork belly, skin off, sliced into 2” X 1” X 1/8” pieces
-
Cattleman’s Grill Carne Asada 8 Second Ride
- Al Pastor marinade (recipe below)
- 2-3 cups pineapple, diced
- 1 white onion, minced
- 1 bunch cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 cup cotija cheese, crumbled
- 12 corn or flour tortillas
- 1 oz (3-4) dried chipotle chiles, stems and seeds removed
- 1 oz (3-4) dried guajillo chiles, stems and seeds removed
- 7 oz (1 1/3 cup) Achiote paste
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 6 tbsp pineapple juice
- 6 tbsp apple cider vinegar
-
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup white onion, diced
- 1/2 oz piloncillo (or brown or cane sugar)
- 1 clove garlic, smashed
-
2 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Mexicano Seasoning
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
-
1 tbsp Heat Maverick’s Where Did the Mango Hot Sauce (optional)
For the marinade:
Directions
- Place 8 flat bamboo skewers in a container large enough to allow them to lay flat and cover with water. Let soak while preparing the recipe.
- To make the marinade, toast the dried chiles in a Finex 12” Cast Iron Skillet on both sides until fragrant and slightly softened, about 30-60 seconds per side. Add hot water to the skillet to cover the chiles. Bring the water to a boil. Cover with a lid. Turn off the heat. Let soak for 15 minutes. Remove from the water and transfer the chiles to the pitcher of the Vitamix blender. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust salt level as desired.
- Combine the marinade and pork in a zip top bag or plastic container. Rub the marinade into the meat, making sure that there is marinade on all surfaces. Marinate in the refrigerator for an hour.
- Preheat your Yoder Smokers YS640s Pellet Grill to 495ºF, set up for direct grilling with GrillGrates on top of the standard grates on the right side of the grill. Remove the standard grates from the left side of the grill. When the grill comes up to temperature, side the GrillGrate panels over the to the left side of the grill.
- Remove the meat from the marinade, wiping off excess marinade. Thread the pork onto flat bamboo skewers. Season the pork with the Cattleman’s Grill 8 Second Ride Carne Asada Seasoning.
Turn the heat up to 500ºF to allow it to feed pellets constantly.
- Place the skewered pork on the GrillGrates and grill, flipping to char all sides. The pork is done when it is tender and can be torn off the skewer. Internal temperature will be over 170ºF. You can move the pork off of the GrillGrates to the right side of the grill to finish cooking over indirect heat after achieving the char you want on the surface.
- Remove the pork from the grill and dice into small pieces.
- Serve the pork wrapped in warm tortillas, with diced pineapple, red onions, cilantro and cotija cheese.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
Why grill the watermelon with the lid open instead of closed?
Leaving the door open prevents the watermelon from steaming and completely breaking down under trapped heat. It still picks up grill marks and a little char while holding together enough to slice and dice afterward.
Why blend the watermelon flesh on low speed instead of high?
Blending low purees the flesh while leaving the seeds mostly whole, so straining afterward removes them cleanly. Blending on high would grind the seeds into the juice along with the flesh.
Why muddle the mint into the syrup while it's still warm, then blend it again?
Muddling releases the mint's oils into the warm syrup, and pulverizing it afterward in a blender extracts even more flavor than steeping whole leaves would on their own.
Why scrape the granita with a fork every hour instead of letting it freeze solid?
Repeated scraping breaks up ice crystals as they form, building the light, flaky texture a granita is known for. Left undisturbed, the mixture would freeze into one solid block instead.
How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
3 out of 5 the syrup, blending, and freezing steps all happen in a regular kitchen; a hot cast iron grill pan or broiler can char the watermelon in place of the outdoor grill, though you'll lose some smoky char flavor.
Recipe Highlights
Open-lid grilling: Chars the watermelon without steaming it into mush.
Low-speed blending: Purees the flesh while keeping seeds intact for easy straining.
Double-processed mint syrup: Muddling and blending extract more flavor than steeping alone.
Hourly fork-scraping: Builds the granita's signature light, flaky texture.
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Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 6.13 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 606
- Carbs
- 18 grams
- Protein
- 11 grams
- Fat
- 54 grams
- Sodium
- 188 milligrams
