Oven Spit Pork al Pastor
- Level: Intermediate
- Yield: 8 to 10 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 10 servings
- Calories
- 359
- Total Fat
- 16
- Saturated Fat
- 4
- Carbohydrates
- 25
- Dietary Fiber
- 4
- Sugar
- 15
- Protein
- 31
- Cholesterol
- 96
- Sodium
- 716
- Total: 3 hr 15 min (includes marinating time)
- Active: 40 min
Ingredients
4 dried ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
1/4 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 canned chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
Kosher salt
3 pounds thin-cut boneless pork chops
1 large pineapple
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 3 pieces
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
1 small red onion, diced
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 habanero pepper, seeded and finely diced
Warm tortillas, for serving
Directions
Special equipment:
a long wooden skewer- Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat and add the ancho chiles. Toast, turning halfway through, until fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the orange juice, honey, tomato paste, garlic, yellow onion, chipotle, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 cup water. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the peppers and onions are soft, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a blender and blend until smooth. Cool completely.
- Combine the cooled marinade with the pork chops in a large resealable bag and massage to coat the meat. Marinate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Cut off the top of the pineapple and reserve. Cut the remaining pineapple in half crosswise. Peel both halves with a knife. Slice three 1/8-inch-thick rounds from the top half of the pineapple and set the rest aside. Place the bottom half of the pineapple in a medium cast-iron skillet and insert a long wooden skewer pointed tip up into the core of the pineapple. Thread one-quarter of the pork chops on the skewer, then slide on 1 cube of butter. Repeat with the remaining pork chops and butter, ending with the meat on top. Top with the 3 pineapple rounds and press the meat down firmly to compress the layers.
- Carefully transfer to the oven and cook until a thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the meat stack registers 160 degrees F, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, core and dice the remaining pineapple. Combine with the cilantro, red onion, lime juice, habanero and a pinch of salt in a medium bowl.
- Transfer the stack of pork and pineapple to a cutting board and thread the reserved pineapple top on the skewer. Holding the pineapple top to stabilize the stack, use a sharp carving knife or electric knife to shave off thin pieces of meat. Serve with the tortillas and pineapple salsa.