This savory-sweet pulled pork taco recipe is sure to be a crowd-pleaser at your next taco party!
Let your slow cooker do most of the cooking and focus on making the taco assembly fun by playing around with the toppings and sides you want to serve with tacos!
Soft or Crispy: Which Taco Shells Are Best?
Taco shells are traditionally soft, but I think which one can be crowned as the best type will ultimately depend on your personal preferences.
I personally love both types of taco shells, so I just choose between the two, depending on my mood!
For this particular recipe, I recommend using soft taco shells, as their texture pairs beautifully with the tenderness of pulled pork.
However, I’ve also experimented with using crispy taco shells for this dish and achieved delicious results!
How to Prepare These Tacos Ahead of Time
This recipe can take quite a while to cook, so it’s not really ideal to start cooking this dish exactly on the day of your taco party.
Instead, I recommend prepping the dish ahead of time so you can assemble the tacos in just half an hour before the meal or event starts!
Want to do the same?
Well, good news, it’s pretty easy to prep these tacos in advance.
All you need to do is cook the pulled pork the day before!
Pulled pork can stay fresh in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days, so it’ll be perfectly fine to cook it a day before your taco party.
Just reheat the pork by microwaving or sautéing it before assembling, and your prep time for the dish before the event should take no longer than half an hour!
Extra-Simple Pulled Pork Tacos
Give your taco nights a delicious twist with these pulled pork tacos that feature fork-tender meat drenched in a sweet, thick sauce and topped with fresh and zesty toppings!
Ingredients
For the Pulled Pork:
- 4.5 lbs of pork shoulder (excess fat trimmed)
- 2 tablespoons of paprika
- 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon of cumin
- 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon of black pepper
- 4 cloves of garlic (minced)
- 1 yellow onion (diced)
- 1 cup of pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil
For Serving:
- 12 small corn or flour tortillas
- Pickled red onions (store-bought or homemade)
- 1 cup of goat cheese or crumbled feta
- Fresh cilantro (chopped)
- 1 lime (cut into wedges)
For the Charred Pineapple:
- 1 ripe pineapple (sliced into ½-inch rings)
- Drizzle of olive oil
Optional Toppings:
- Sliced avocado
- Salsa or hot sauce of choice
Instructions
- In a small bowl, create the pork seasoning mix by combining the paprika, oregano, cumin, salt, and black pepper. Mix until everything is well combined.
- Rub the seasoning mix into the pork shoulders. Make sure the seasoning covers the entire surface of the pork without any gaps.
- Place the diced onion and minced garlic at the bottom of the slow cooker. Pour the pineapple juice and drizzle the two tablespoons of olive oil.
- Add the pork shoulder to the slow cooker, making sure it’s sitting directly on the onions and garlic. Cover the slow cooker and allow it to cook on low for 8 hours until the pork is fork-tender. If you’re in a rush, you can cook on high for 5 to 6 hours instead, but doing this sometimes results in tougher meat.
- After the pork finishes cooking, transfer it to a cutting board. Allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes before shredding using two forks.
- This step is optional, but if you love having crispy meat bits in your tacos, it’s highly recommended. In a large skillet that’s over medium-high heat, add about 2 to 3 cups of the shredded pork and about 2-3 tablespoons of the pork juice from the slow cooker. Do not disturb the shredded pork as its juices evaporate. After 4 to 5 minutes, or until the pork is nicely browned, remove the toasted pulled pork from the skillet. Make sure to remove every bit of the pork from the skillet.
- Coat several pineapple rings in olive oil and add them to the skillet you used earlier. Cook them for about 3 minutes on each side or until you see slight charring. Once the pineapple rings cool down, slice them into bite-sized chunks to be used as toppings.
- Warm the tortillas for about 30 seconds on each side. You can do so in an open flame, but I prefer doing so using a dry skillet.
- Assembly time! On each warm tortilla, spoon a generous amount of the pulled pork, topped with pickled onions, goat cheese, avocado, and fresh cilantro. Add the charred pineapples on top, and squeeze some lime juice. Prepare salsa to be served on the side, and enjoy!
Notes
Image credit to ©mcaddyspubtroy.
Featured image credit to ©cremedelacrumb1.
