Tacos al Pastor

Tacos al Pastor is one of Mexico's most beloved street foods — thinly sliced pork, marinated in a vibrant blend of dried chillies, spices and pineapple, then cooked on a vertical spit and piled into warm tortillas. Cooking it on a rotisserie gives you that same slow-roasted, caramelised crust you'd get from a traditional trompo. It takes a bit of prep, but the result is genuinely spectacular — sweet, smoky, and deeply savoury all at once.

Ingredients

For the marinade

• 1.5kg pork shoulder, sliced into 1–2cm steaks
• 3 dried ancho chillies, stems and seeds removed
• 2 dried guajillo chillies, stems and seeds removed
• 1 chipotle chilli in adobo sauce
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 small white onion, roughly chopped
• 120ml pineapple juice
• 60ml white wine vinegar
• 2 tbsp mild American-style mustard
• 1 tbsp dark soft brown sugar
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp fine salt

For the spit

• ½ fresh pineapple, cut into thick rings

To serve

• Small corn or flour tortillas, warmed
• 1 small white onion, finely diced
• Small bunch of fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• Salsa of your choice

Method

1. Soak the dried ancho and guajillo chillies in boiling water for 20–25 minutes until softened. Drain and set aside.
2. Add the softened chillies, chipotle, garlic, onion, pineapple juice, white wine vinegar, mustard, brown sugar, smoked paprika, cumin, oregano, black pepper and salt to a blender. Blitz until completely smooth.
3. Slice the pork shoulder into steaks roughly 1–2cm thick. Place in a large dish or zip-lock bag, pour over the marinade, and turn to coat thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours — overnight is even better.
4. When you're ready to cook, thread the marinated pork steaks onto the rotisserie spit, stacking them tightly and compressing into a cylinder as you go. Sandwich the pineapple rings onto the spit at the top and bottom of the pork stack.
5. Set up your rotisserie for indirect heat at around 190–200°C. Mount the spit and start the rotisserie motor. Cook for 1.5 to 2 hours, until the outer layer is deeply caramelised and the internal temperature of the pork reads 75°C on a meat thermometer.
6. As the outside crisps and chars, use a sharp knife or carving fork to shave thin slices of cooked meat directly from the rotating spit into a warm bowl or onto a board — this is the fun part. Return the spit to the heat and continue cooking while you serve the first round.
7. Serve the sliced pork in warm tortillas, topped with diced onion, fresh coriander, a squeeze of lime, and a spoonful of salsa. Add a few pieces of pineapple from the spit for the full street taco experience.

Originally published by Bull BBQ. Adapted for UK audiences by Cedar Kitchen in the Garden.