eldan
TI Forumite
Posts: 800 
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Post by eldan on Jun 22, 2016 12:18:23 GMT -5
I've gotten really into making tacos lately, the best IMO being my pork tacos. All I do is marinate chunks of pork shoulder in salt, pepper, garlic, and cumin for an hour or two, then fry them in some oil in a cast iron skillet. Then I put that on a corn tortilla with some queso fresco, crema, cilantro, and onion. Any recommendations on how to spice this up at all? A friend suggested making pickled onions for it, but I haven't tried that. Or any recommendations on different taco ideas?
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Post by ganews on Jun 22, 2016 15:09:16 GMT -5
In San Antonio the other week I went to a dive called Toro Taco one night and had sweet potato tacos (and pork and lengua). Pretty awesome. |
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jun 22, 2016 15:25:51 GMT -5
My taco approach is always pretty mundane and inauthentic, but I whole-heartedly encourage the use of pickled red onion. That turns a basic taco into an awesome taco super easily! (My formula is one small red onion, thinly sliced, submerged in a brine of 1/3 cup red wine vinegar, 1/3 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, and 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer, and you're good to go.)
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Post by songstarliner on Jun 22, 2016 21:30:42 GMT -5
In San Antonio the other week I went to a dive called Toro Taco one night and had sweet potato tacos (and pork and lengua). Pretty awesome. Haha - that's the dive-iest website I've seen in a long time. |
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Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Jun 23, 2016 8:38:34 GMT -5
Taco taco taco. I'm a big fan of "put meat in crockpot, season well, let cook till tender" and then pile that in a taco. Chicken, short ribs, pork shoulder... With your pork, eldan, adding a chile paste/marinade would amp up the flavor. Either the adobo sauce from canned chipotles, or make a simple sauce from rehydrated/toasted chiles, onion, splish of vinegar... squeeze limes on when serving. |
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tacos
Jun 23, 2016 9:19:59 GMT -5
Post by The Stuffingtacular She-Hulk on Jun 23, 2016 9:19:59 GMT -5
My taco approach is always pretty mundane and inauthentic, but I whole-heartedly encourage the use of pickled red onion. That turns a basic taco into an awesome taco super easily! (My formula is one small red onion, thinly sliced, submerged in a brine of 1/3 cup red wine vinegar, 1/3 cup of water, 1 tablespoon of kosher salt, and 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer, and you're good to go.) Seconded! I get a little fancier with mine because I don't know when to leave well enough alone.  I typically blanch the onion for a minute in boiling water and then shock the slices in ice water, just so they'll absorb the pickling liquid more. I use an apple cider vinegar base, though, with a couple of cloves and a bay leaf and some peppercorns, along with sugar and water and kosher salt. |
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Post by pairesta on Jun 23, 2016 9:33:36 GMT -5
I've gotten really into making tacos lately, the best IMO being my pork tacos. All I do is marinate chunks of pork shoulder in salt, pepper, garlic, and cumin for an hour or two, then fry them in some oil in a cast iron skillet. Then I put that on a corn tortilla with some queso fresco, crema, cilantro, and onion. Any recommendations on how to spice this up at all? A friend suggested making pickled onions for it, but I haven't tried that. Or any recommendations on different taco ideas? In this gringo with no Mexican heritage whatsoever's opinion that sounds pretty spot on. Pickled onion is always good; you can just follow what Liz n Dicksgiving says. Pedantic Editor Type stole my exact other suggestion: use the adobo sauce from a can of chipotles and marinate the pork. You can then braise it in that mix or sear it in your skillet (it'll probably smoke up though) or grill it. This is my favorite taco ever: buy a larger piece of pork shoulder, like 2-3 lbs. Season it with salt and pepper, maybe one or two bay leaves. THAT'S IT. I know it sounds weird but try it that way. Add a splash, like maybe 1/4 cup, water. Cover with a lid or foil. Put in a 300F oven for 3-4 hours, until it is fall apart-tender. Remove and shred, put back in the pot, put on the stove, and cook away the copious liquids, then browning the meat a little in the fat that remains. Serve with all the stuff you mentioned at the top. |
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Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Jun 23, 2016 9:37:47 GMT -5
In this gringo with no Mexican heritage whatsoever's opinion that sounds pretty spot on. Pickled onion is always good; you can just follow what Liz n Dicksgiving says. Pedantic Editor Type stole my exact other suggestion: use the adobo sauce from a can of chipotles and marinate the pork. You can then braise it in that mix or sear it in your skillet (it'll probably smoke up though) or grill it. This is my favorite taco ever: buy a larger piece of pork shoulder, like 2-3 lbs. Season it with salt and pepper, maybe one or two bay leaves. THAT'S IT. I know it sounds weird but try it that way. Add a splash, like maybe 1/4 cup, water. Cover with a lid or foil. Put in a 300F oven for 3-4 hours, until it is fall apart-tender. Remove and shred, put back in the pot, put on the stove, and cook away the copious liquids, then browning the meat a little in the fat that remains. Serve with all the stuff you mentioned at the top. Ooooh, yeah, this, totally! The simpler the better, I find, with tacos. Because you can add all kinds of additional flavors with salsas and cheese and sauces and whatever. But a nice basic cooked-in-its-own-fat pork shoulder? That's as good as it gets. |
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GumTurkeyles
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Post by GumTurkeyles on Jun 28, 2016 4:19:22 GMT -5
Agreed with all points on the pickled red onions. The only variation I do is use more sugar. Which is probably not necessary, so next time I'll try Liz n' Dick's version.
In place of meat, I've had good luck with queso frito (spanish frying cheese), fried plantains, or potato/sweet potato. For condiments/additions, I'll use some variation of cilantro, sour cream mixed with the chipotle/adobo sauce, the onions, refried beans, guacamole, and shredded or grated cheese (depending on what I have on hand).
Fish/shrimp tacos are great as well, but they tend to require different add ons, as I don't like using sour cream with seafood. Usually shredded cabbage and pickled carrots and/or radishes works well with them.
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I typically blanch the onion for a minute in boiling water and then shock the slices in ice water, just so they'll absorb the pickling liquid more. I use an apple cider vinegar base, though, with a couple of cloves and a bay leaf and some peppercorns, along with sugar and water and kosher salt. 
