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Al pastor tacos

Tacos Al Pastor featuring marinated pork shoulder roasted in the oven with fresh pineapple and chilis in your kitchen to juicy perfection. Served with onions, cilantro and hot sauce. Make this recipe for an authentic Mexican dinner! 
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time2 hours 30 minutes
Additional Time4 hours
Total Time6 hours 55 minutes
Course: Dinner
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 6
Author: the communal feast

Ingredients

  • 5 lbs pork shoulder boneless
  • Marinade:
  • 3 dried Guajillo chilies
  • 2 chili’s de arbol
  • 1 ancho chili if you don’t have authentic dried Mexican chili’s use 1/3 cup chili seasoning
  • 2 tbsp achiote paste
  • 1 white onion skin removed and halved
  • 3/4 cup pineapple juice
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • 5 cloves garlic
  • 3 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp Mexican oregano or regular oregano
  • 1/2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/8 tsp ground clove
  • Assembly
  • corn or flour tortillas
  • 1 white onion sliced or diced
  • 1 bunch cilantro chopped
  • limes quartered
  • Hot sauce we use both a red habanero and pineapple habanero to go with the tacos store bought
  • Optional garnish
  • Fresh made guacamole
  • Salsa Verde
  • Roasted Tomato Salsa
  • Pico de Gallo

Instructions

  • If Making Chile Blend: bring a pot of water to a boil and add the chili’s (ancho, guajillo and de arbol). Bring to a boil and boil for 15 mins.
  • Marinade: To a blender add the boiled chili’s, achiote paste, onion, pineapple juice, vinegar, garlic, salt, Mexican oregano, cinnamon, clove. Blend until pureed.
  • Trim fat from the pork shoulder and slice meat into 1/4 inch slices. Place pork in a plastic bag that seals or container that can be covered with a lid and pour the chile mixture over the pork. Using gloves, mix the chile marinade and pork then chill in refrigerator, covered, 4 hours or overnight. Allow meat to come to room temp prior to cooking.
  • Remove all racks except bottom one from oven. Preheat oven to 250°F.
  • Shake off excess marinade. In a cast iron skillet or baking tray place the cut pineapple bottom(s). Insert a wooden or metal skewer or long wooden chopstick in the center of the pineapple. Start layering pieces of marinated pork, repeating until meat is used, or you have 1 inch of skewer left. Leave 1 inch of skewer on top and cap it with trimmed pineapple top. Slow roast at 250°F for 2 1/2 hours or until meat is cooked (we want an internal temp of 145°F-150°F). Start basting with pan juices in last hour. Outside will be caramelized and crispy, cut with knife in downward motion.
  • To serve: Serve in small tortillas topped with chopped onion, cilantro, squeeze of lime juice, fresh made guacamole and your favorite hot sauces.