Taco Tuesday: Kalua Carnitas Tacos

Welcome to my annual recipe crush. Each February I choose a theme, and provide one or two recipes each day for the whole month. This year the theme is Weekly Menu Planning. What are the categories, you ask? We have Sunday Special, Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday, Worldly Wednesday, Thrifty Thursday, Fishy Friday, and Celebrate Saturday.

Kalua pork, not be confused with Kahlua, is a dish that originated in Hawaii, but like most foods has morphed into a variety of recipes. The one we like best is a combo of different recipes we’ve tried. For us, this one has just the right balance of flavors—sweet, sour, salty, and umami.

Kalua Carnitas Tacos (serves 10-12)

3 ½ pound boneless pork roast

2 tablespoon liquid smoke

5 teaspoons fresh ginger (or use Gourmet Garden in produce section)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

2 large garlic cloves, minced

5 tablespoons crushed pineapple

corn or flour tortillas and/or taco shells

cilantro and lime wedges to garnish

Whisk together liquid smoke, ginger, soy sauce, garlic, and pineapple. Place pork in slow cooker and cover the surface of the pork with the soy-ginger sauce. Sprinkle seat salt over the top and put the lid on.

Set on high for one hour. Reduce heat to low and cook for 5-7 more hours, until pork shreds easily.

When the pork is done, remove to a cutting board. Using two forks, shred the meat, removing and discarding fat chunks. Put the pork back into the slow cooker and stir the pork to moisten with the sauce it cooked in.

Serve on tortillas or in taco shells with a sprinkle of cilantro and a lime wedge on the side to squeeze on if desired.

We serve this with Spicy Pineapple Coleslaw for a taco topping or as a side salad. For that you need:

Spicy Pineapple Coleslaw (serves 6-12 depending on serving size)

½ cup cole slaw dressing (store-bought or homemade)

½ cup crushed pineapple

1 tablespoon canned diced chilies

4 cups coleslaw vegetable mix (cabbage, carrots)

Blend thoroughly cole slaw dressing, pineapple, and chilies. Toss with coleslaw mix. Serve as topping for Kalua Carnitas Tacos or as a side salad.

DH’s Rating: 5 Tongues Up

“This is great! Lots of flavors on my tongue.” This is my husband talking??? What’s come over him? Then he continued, “But you know, I think I liked the Elote Lime Chicken Tacos even more. That surprises me ‘cause you know I usually go for the pork.”  I do know that.