Pork Belly Tacos
Our head chef, Susy, was challenged to create the most crave-able, irresistible tacos imaginable. She rose to the challenge and created these pork belly tacos, which are sure to become a new favourite!
A pork belly is a boneless cut from the belly of the pig with a thick layer of fat on top and several thinner layers of fat marbled throughout. This fat gives the pork an incredible flavour and heartiness. The key to making the best pork belly is to first slow-cook it until it is tender and then crisp it up in a pan until it is caramelised. This will ensure that your pork belly is the most delicious and indulgent taco filling you’ll ever have!
This Pork Belly Taco recipe is sure to tantalise your taste buds! We start by slowly cooking the pork belly in beer and spices until it is tender and flavourful. Then, we coat it in a delicious and spicy marinade made with our Gran Luchito Chipotle Paste. Finally, we crisp it up in a hot pan until it is caramelised and carnitas-like. Serve it with warm Gran Luchito Soft Taco Wraps and enjoy!
This pork belly taco recipe is a bit of a labour of love, but it’s worth it! The slow cooking process allows the flavours to develop and the pork to become incredibly tender. So, grab a drink, put on some music, and enjoy the process. We guarantee that the results will be delicious!
If you love pork be sure to check out our Mexican Pork Recipes blog which has lots of yummy cooking inspiration, with everything from Slow Cooker Pulled Pork, and Twice Cooked Sticky Pork Belly.
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Prep time
15 mins
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Cook time
2hrs, 30mins
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Total time
2hrs, 45mins
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Ideal for
Dinner -
Make it
Mexican -
Serves
3
Nutrition: Per serving
kcal 120 fat 9.2g saturates 2.9g carbs 1.3g sugars 1.0g fibre 0.3g protein 7.6g salt 0.48g
Found in the
Mexican Section
Ingredients
- 700g / 1.6 lb of pork belly
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 can of beer (IPA or pale ale work well)
- 500ml / 2 cups of chicken stock
- 5 garlic cloves, (peeled, whole)
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 spring onions.
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 small handful of coriander
- 1 tablespoon Gran Luchito Chipotle Paste
- 3 tablespoons orange juice
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 red chilli, finely chopped
- Flaky salt for seasoning, (to taste)
How to make it
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F. With a very sharp knife cut your pork belly into smaller pieces about (½ inch width ). Then heat up a pan with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over high heat, once the oil is very hot add the pork belly and brown all the way round, when it’s ready remove your pan from the heat and set aside
- In a baking dish add half of the beer, the stock, peeled garlic cloves, bay leaves, spring onions, black peppercorns and the coriander. Place all the fried pork into the liquid, and cover the baking dish with tin foil, wrapping it tightly.
- Reduce the temperature of your oven to 160°C / 320°F and place your pork belly in the oven. Cook for 2 hours, add the rest of the beer half way through the cooking.
- In the meantime, in a medium-sized bowl add the Chipotle Paste, orange juice, lime juice, red chilli and olive oil. Mix everything with a spoon and reserve.
- Once ready, take your pork belly out of the oven. Get the prepared bowl with the chipotle mixture, remove the cooked pork pieces from the cooking liquid, place them directly into the bowl and coat them into the mixture.
- Prepare a frying pan with the remaining olive oil. Once your oil is very hot add the pork belly and juices into the pan. Turn them around from time to time until they get lovely and caramelised.
- Remove the pan from the heat. On a chopping board cut all of your pork into bite size pieces and season with a good pinch of flaky salt.
- Warm up the Soft Taco Wraps and serve with the awesome pork belly. Garnish with finely diced red onion, fresh coriander, a good amount of Tomatillo Salsa and a squeeze of lime. Enjoy!
What To Serve With Pork Belly Tacos
Serve these delicious pork tacos with sides of:
Download Our Free Guide To Tacos
Your free Taco guide will be emailed to you immediately. We think that the best way to cook pork belly for tacos it to slow cook it first, with liquid, herbs and spices, and then fry it up in a pan to get the outside nice and crispy. This will ensure your pork belly is golden and caramelised all over, with a succulent inside. Pork belly is unsalted. So what you buy will be unsalted. Some people like to make Salt Pork with their pork belly though, but this is not something that is cooked, it just means that it's cured pork. This is done by rubbing salts, spices, and sometimes even brown sugar on pork belly. This is then kept in the fridge for up to two weeks – the longer you let it stay there, the saltier it becomes. The salt also draws out any moisture from the pork belly, which makes the end result dry but flavourful. Although pork belly keeps better in the freezer when it's raw, you can freeze cooked leftovers as well. For cooked pork belly, try storing the skin and meat in separate containers so you can reheat them according to their own specifications. Subscribe now for a free copy of the Gran Luchito e-cookbook filled with delicious, authentic Mexican recipes and join our mailing list for all the latest recipes, news and blog updates.
Similar Recipes You Might Like to Try
Pork Pibil Tacos
FAQs
How to cook pork belly for tacos?
Is pork belly salty?
Can you freeze cooked pork belly?
Comments / Questions / Tips
Delicious tacos!!
So glad to hear you enjoyed them! Allison from Marketing
We loved the tacos! I used a single habañero pepper to give it a bit more heat and topped it with Oaxaca cheese and diced onion and tomato from my garden. It was amazing. We loved every bite. I will definitely make this again
Thank you so much for trying out our recipe! We are thrilled to hear that you enjoyed it and that it turned out well for you. Your satisfaction is our top priority, and we will continue to strive to deliver high-quality recipes that you and others enjoy.