Pulled Pork Taco with Black Bean Salsa and Grilled Pineapple

Our pork tacos with salsa and grilled pineapple were inspired by our recent experiment with pulled pork. We had so much pork and just the two of us to eat it, which is usually the case since Jon and I are known for making too much food. After a few pulled pork sandwiches on rolls with barbecue sauce, we needed to come up with something a little different to keep things interesting. We decided to make a bitesized taco using a salsa that is an old favorite of mine. I’ve made the black bean, avocado and red onion salsa for summer barbecues and various get togethers with friends because it is so easy but so good. We also decided that the fresh, tangy, sweet flavor of grilled pineapple would complement the creamy salsa and savory pork well. Plus, the pineapple at the market was so fragrant and fresh looking that we couldn’t resist it, especially since we had access to the grill. This little taco was a scrumptious bite that we may have to make life-sized for dinner soon.

INGREDIENTS:
(Makes 12 bites with some leftovers)

For the Salsa:

1 8-oz can of black beans
1 avocado, diced
1 small red onion, diced
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Juice of ½ lemon
3 slices grilled pineapple, diced

Process:

1. It would be better to use fresh black beans for this salsa, but out on Fire Island we only had access to canned. The choice of bean is up to you.
2. Mix beans, onion, avocado together. Dress with olive oil, salt and pepper, and lemon juice.
3. Slice pineapple into ¼ inch slices. Grill and dice.

For the Taco:

1 cup all purpose flour, sifted
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup water
Salt and pepper

Process:

1. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Slowly whisk in the water until the dough begins to come together. Use your hands to knead the dough until the ingredients are combined, 3-5 minutes.
3. Roll dough out into a log, about 3 inches wide and 12 inches long. Wrap in plastic and allow dough to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4. When dough is rested, cut the loaf into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a round ball using your hands.
5. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into as perfect circles as possible. We then used a circle cutter to create the bitesized taco shapes.
6. In a skillet, heat a tablespoon of oil. Fry the tacos just until they are cooked through, about 1 minute per side.
7. While they are still hot, shape them into half-moons by wrapping them around something cylindrical, about ½ inch in diameter (we used the handle of a whisk). Allow taco to cool this way and they will retain their crescent shape.

For the Pork:

See Technique Post #2 for ingredients and procedure

For the Bite:

1. Fill the taco with some shredded pork and salsa. Top with grilled pineapple and serve.

© 2010 Jonathan Meter and Jessica Hertle

Tagged as: Avocado, barbecue, Black beans, corn meal, pineapple, Pulled Pork, red onions, salsa, taco