Tacos Arabes (Marinated Pork Tacos)
Description
Shawarma meets taco in these flavor-packed pork tacos known as Tacos Arabes! Thin pork shoulder steaks get marinated in a shawarma-flavored marinade before getting charred in a cast-iron skillet. The pork is then thinly sliced and tossed with two kinds of charred onions and served in warm flour tortillas with a smoky tomato salsa.
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Ingredients
Marinated Pork
- 3 limes
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried Mexican oregano, dried marjoram or regular dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, crushed
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- Morton kosher salt and black pepper
- 2 boneless pork shoulder steaks, 1/2-inch thick (12–16 ounces each)
- ½ large white onion, thinly sliced
- 6 scallions, cut into 3-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons avocado oil
Chipotle Tomato Salsa
- 4 roma tomatoes
- ½ large white onion
- 2 large cloves garlic, peel intact
- ¼ cup cilantro leaves and tender stems
- 3 chipotle peppers in adobo + 1 tablespoon adobo sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoons honey, agave or granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon coriander seeds
- ½ teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
Assembly
- 16 small flour tortillas
- Thinly sliced English or mini cucumbers, optional
- Minced white onion, optional
- Lime wedges optional
- Labneh or Greek yogurt, optional
Instructions
Marinated Pork
- Zest 2 limes and juice all 3 limes. In a large bowl, stir together ⅓ cup lime juice, 2 teaspoons lime zest, garlic, bay leaves, oregano, thyme, coriander, cumin, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper. Toss the pork and onion in the lime marinade until completely coated. Cover the bowl with plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours. (This is a good time to make the salsa.)
- Heat a large skillet, preferably cast-iron, over high heat for about 2 minutes, or until very hot. Cook the scallions in the dry pan until charred on both sides, 3–5 minutes. Transfer to a plate.
- Heat 1 tablespoon oil in hot skillet over high heat, add half of pork, and cook until pork is charred bottom side, about 3 minutes. Flip pork, add half of onion mixture and half of marinade, and continue cooking until browned on second side, about 3 minutes. Transfer cooked pork and onion to a large plate and repeat with the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, pork, and onion mixture. Let cooked pork rest 10 minutes.
Chipotle Tomato Salsa
- Preheat broiler with rack set in upper-middle position. Arrange tomatoes, onion and garlic on a baking sheet; broil until charred all over, 10-15 minutes. (*remove garlic cloves if they start to burn at all.)
- Transfer charred vegetables, cilantro, chipotle, adodo, honey, coriander seeds, oregano and ½ teaspoon salt to the bowl of a food processor or blender. Pulse until minced, about 15 (1-second) pulses.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
To Assemle
- Just before serving, chop scallions and very thinly slice pork. Toss scallions, pork and cooked onion mixture together. Serve pork mixture in double-layer flour tortillas with chipotle salsa, cucumber, onion, and lime wedges for squeezing.
Equipment
Notes
This recipe is adapted from a recipe by Rick Martinez in his book Mi Cocina.
In order for the pork to cook through before smoking out your kitchen, you’ll want to use fairly thin boneless pork shoulder steaks. Look for 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch thick steaks. If they’re thicker, we recommend pounding them out a bit.
Nutrition
Serving: 1tacoCalories: 375kcalCarbohydrates: 39gProtein: 19gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 50mgSodium: 1085mgFiber: 2.5gSugar: 2.5g
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