Slow Cooked Pulled Pork Tacos
I modeled these tacos after my husband's favorite local Mexican restaurant. My husband now prefers mine and requests them often.
I modeled these tacos after my husband's favorite local Mexican restaurant. My husband now prefers mine and requests them often.
- 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 2 tablespoon lime juice
- 4 teaspoons salt
- 4 pounds pork butt or shoulder (up to 6 pounds)
- 2 poblano peppers roughly chopped
- 1 large yellow onion roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic smashed
- 2 teaspoons black pepper divided
- 4 teaspoons cumin divided
- 4 teaspoons emeril's essence or similar spice mix, divided
- 1 package white corn tortillas
- 1 package queso blanco or monteray jack chees shredded
- 4 whole limes sliced in wedges, 4-6 limes
- 1 jar salsa verde
- 1 container sour cream
- Carbohydrate 16.9269559806183 g
- Cholesterol 135.024 mg
- Fat 29.7433045833342 g
- Fiber 2.46615919641278 g
- Protein 33.5784134375055 g
- Saturated Fat 12.4136562958334 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (304g)
- Sodium 359.35719590096 mg
- Sugar 14.4607967842055 g
- Trans Fat 3.12460241458374 g
- Calories 459 calories
Step-by-step
- To the slow cooker add onion, garlic, poblano peppers, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, and cilantro.
- Season each side of the pork with half the seasonings and place in slow cooker, fat side up.
- Cover and slow cook on high for 4 to 6 hours until tender.
- Before serving, remove as much fat as possible from the pork then shred with two forks.
- Warm corn tortillas in the oven, then top with pork, cheese, sour cream, and salsa.
- Serve with lime wedge to be sqeezed over the taco just before eating.
- You could also garnish with some extra chopped cilantro.
Allowing four to six hours of high-heat cooking requires equipment that maintains a steady, sealed environment without venting steam prematurely. Standard six-quart slow cookers excel here, but older models with loose lids will lose moisture rapidly, requiring an added layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil beneath the lid to trap escaping vapors.
Pork shoulder contains dense connective tissue that must reach an internal temperature of at least 205 degrees Fahrenheit for the collagen to fully dissolve into gelatin. Test this by inserting an instant-read thermometer into the thickest part of the meat; if it resists or registers below 190 degrees, return the lid and extend the cooking cycle by forty-five minutes. Skimming excess rendered fat from the slow cooker surface before shredding prevents the tortillas from becoming soggy.
Adjusting the yield upward for larger groups is straightforward because pork butt scales linearly up to the capacity of your appliance. Doubling the meat to eight pounds demands a minimum eight-quart slow cooker while keeping the aromatics and liquids at roughly 1.5 times the base measurement to prevent dilution of flavor.
