Lemongrass guajillo pork tacos

Fire up the barbecue to make these sweet and smoky lemongrass and guajillo pork tacos with grilled pineapple.

Credit: All Up In My Grill

• serves

  10

• prep

  30 minutes

• cook

  2:15 hours

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

Lemongrass guajillo pork tacos

• 900 g (2 lb) thin cut pork shoulder
• 450 g (1 lb) chorizo sausage
• 1 large white onion, thinly sliced into rings
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1 pineapple
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• salt
• 1 medium white onion, chopped
• 1 bunch coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
• 350 g (12 oz) can pickled jalapeños
• 20 corn tortillas, lightly grilled
• 1 bunch radishes, thinly sliced
• Avocado and jicama salad, to serve, optional

Red curry salsa

• 2 tbsp + 1 tsp (45 ml) red curry paste (Dale uses Mae Ploy Thai)
• 6 large guajillo chillis, toasted
• 1 large tomato, diced
• 1 medium white onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 cup water
• ¼ cup vegetable oil
• 2 limes, juiced
• 1½ tbsp (30 ml) fish sauce

Avocado and jicama salad

• 3 avocados, diced
• 1 large jicama, peeled and cut into 1.5-inch sticks
• 1 medium red onion, julienned
• ¼ cup pickled jalapeños, roughly chopped
• 2 limes, juiced
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ cup mint leaves, torn
• salt

Marinating time: 2 hours.

Resting time: 15 minutes.

Instructions

1. For the red curry salsa, add vegetable oil to a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Add red curry paste, and toast for 3-4 minutes. Then add tomato, onions, garlic and guajillo chillis, and sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. Add water and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the onions and tomato are soft.
2. Puree with immersion blender until smooth. Finish with fish sauce and lime juice. Let cool to room temperature. Reserve half of salsa to top tacos and use the other half to marinate pork.
3. For the tacos, in a large aluminium pan, coat pork shoulder with half red curry salsa. Place in fridge and marinate for 2 hours.
4. Cut off the top and bottom of the pineapple. Peel, being careful to remove all skin, then cut in half crossways (so you have two roughly bowl-shaped pieces).
5. Using a long 2.5 cm (1 in) wide kebab (kabob) skewer, carefully pierce one half of the pineapple with the pointed end. Move the pineapple half all the way to the other end of the skewer, so it creates a flat base. Layer on a few slices of marinated pork shoulder, then a handful of chorizo, then a layer of white onion rings. Repeat with the remaining pork, chorizo, and onions, being careful to maintain an even, cylindrical shape as you add more layers. Finish with the other pineapple half, then rub vegetable oil on the entire assembled skewer and season with salt.
6. Heat a gas grill to medium. Place the pointed end of the skewer vertically into the grates, and gently let it lean toward the centre of the grill. The skewer should lean at about a 45-degree angle, enough so that the grill lid can still close. Cook with lid open for about an hour, basting with red curry salsa every 15 minutes or so, until edges of the pork facing the grill start to become crispy and caramelised. Flip skewer so the side that was facing away is now turned toward the grill. Close lid and continue to cook for about another hour, until the internal temperature of the pork reaches 65 °C (150° F). Remove from heat and let rest for 15 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, for the jicama salad, soak julienned red onion in ice water for 20 minutes. Drain and dry. Add avocados, jicama, red onion, and jalapeños to a medium bowl. Slap mint to release the oils, then add to bowl. Dress salad with olive oil, lime juice, and salt.
8. Use an electric knife to carve thin strips of pork, chorizo and pineapple from the skewer. Place in lightly grilled corn tortilla, and top with white onion, cilantro, radish slices and some of the reserved red curry salsa. Serve with avocado and jicama salad.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.