Taco Tuesday never looked so exciting with this mouthwatering gluten free combination of melt in your mouth pulled pork, crunchy red slaw and juicy grilled pineapple and avocado salsa. For me, the perfect taco is all about a perfectly balanced collision of flavours and textures – savoury, sweet, crunchy, juicy and creamy.
Grilling the honey brushed pineapple caramelizes the sugars in the fruit making it even sweeter. Paired with creamy diced avocado and fresh coriander, this delicious salsa will take your taco to the next level. You will never want the Mexican party in your mouth to end!
Pulled pork is my protein of choice in tacos because it is so succulent, meltingly tender and the kids love picking it straight from the bowl. I also love a dry spice rub on the pork as I find it imparts a much deeper, richer flavour once cooked.
I have listed stovetop and pressure cooking methods below. If you own a pressure cooker cooking time will be cut by roughly 70%. For those who don’t own a pressure cooker take my advice and BUY ONE NOW! Many home cooks are apprehensive about using one because they fear it will explode in their face or burn the food once the lid is locked. Don’t fear, the newer models feature a traffic light system to ensure your food is cooked safely and perfectly every time. I purchased the Fissler brand and I absolutely LOVE it. The red, yellow and green traffic light display on the lid indicates if the temperature is too high, too low or perfect. I use mine at least twice a week for braised meats, curries, bolognese and chicken soup. Less time cooking equals more time eating. Who’s not up for that?
- Pulled Pork
- 1.5 kg pork neck, cut into large chunks
- 1 tbs sea salt flakes
- 1 tbs brown sugar
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp cracked pepper
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 brown onion, chopped
- ½ cup chicken stock
- Juice of 1 lime
- Red Slaw
- 4 cups red cabbage, shredded
- 1 cup coriander, roughly chopped
- ½ cup shallots, sliced
- Grilled Pineapple & Avocado Salsa
- 1 tbs olive oil
- 1 tbs honey
- 1 small pineapple, peeled, cut into 1 cm rings
- 2 cups avocado, diced
- ½ cup coriander, roughly chopped
- Juice of 1 lime
- Pinch of sea salt
- Pinch of cracked pepper
- Diced red chilli (optional)
- 12 corn tortillas to serve
- Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Rub dry spice mix all over pork and refrigerate for at least 2 hrs or overnight.
- Remove pork from fridge and sit for about an hour until the meat reaches room temperature.
- Heat olive oil in a heavy based saucepan or pressure cooker on medium - high heat and sear the pork on all sides until brown. Do this in batches to prevent the pork from stewing. Remove pork from pan.
- Add onion and a little extra olive oil to pan and brown until caramelised. Add pork back in and pour over chicken stock and lime juice.
- If cooking in a pressure cooker lock the lid , stabilise the pressure and cook for 50 minutes on a low setting. Release the pressure using the natural release method and unlock the lid. Shred the pork with two forks.
- If cooking in a saucepan over the stovetop, add an extra ½ cup chicken stock and simmer on low heat for 2 hrs with lid on. After two hrs remove lid and simmer for another hour uncovered until the stock reduces to gravy. Remove from heat and shred the pork with two forks.
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and gently toss.
- Heat grill pan on high.
- Combine oil and honey in a bowl and brush over pineapple slices. Grill for a few minutes on each side or until golden. Cool. Dice pineapple.
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl and gently toss.
- Warm corn tortillas according to packet instructions. Place a portion of pork, red slaw and salsa in taco. Fold to eat.
YUM this looks awesome! Might have to wait to make pulled pork until it cools down a little around here. – 30°C is not good weather to have the oven on for ages. Was actually planning on making tacos tonight with grilled capsicum, sliced seared steak and a fresh pineapple salsa – think I will have a go at your grilled pineapple salsa with avo for extra sweetness instead (and also, any chance to use avocado, right?!).
Thanks Claudia. Tacos are so versatile the possibilities are endless. How can anyone not love them?
Good luck!!