Sticky Pork & Smoky Bean Tacos with Pineapple Salsa
From Ainsley’s World Cup Flavours, ITV
I’ve taken inspiration from the exciting flavours of one of Brazil’s most famous dishes, feijoada – a rich pork and bean stew – and made these vibrant tacos that are great for sharing. Feijoada is traditionally a slow cooked stew made with the cheaper cuts of pork, including pig’s ear and feet but I’ve simplified the beans and cooked them with a smoky chorizo. The pan-fried pork is sticky and zesty with a kick from the cayenne – perfect with the fresh pineapple salsa and soft tortilla. A great sharing dish.
Method
Put the pork strips in a bowl and squeeze over half the lime juice. Add the zest, cayenne, garlic and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Cover and marinate at room temperature while you get on with the other ingredients (chill if longer).
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a saucepan over a medium heat and add the onion, coriander seeds and bay leaf and cook for 6-8 minutes until softened. Add the chorizo, paprika and garlic and cook for a further 2-3 minutes before stirring in the beans, tomato and a dash of hot sauce (if using). Season with salt and pepper and add 100ml of water. Bring to the boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and cook for a further 5 minutes or until nicely thickened. You can mash a few of the beans with the back of a fork if you like but leave plenty of texture.
Meanwhile prepare the salsa: in a bowl mix together the pineapple, pepper, onion, jalapeno and coriander. Season with salt and squeeze over lime juice to taste.
Heat a good drizzle of oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the pork and cook for a few minutes until almost cooked through. Sprinkle over the sugar and the remaining lime juice and the water, turn the heat to high and stir before leaving for 1-2 minutes to caramelise. Stir again and leave for another minute until caramelised and lightly golden.
To serve, fill warmed tortilla with a spoonful or two of smoky beans, top with strips of pork, salsa, coriander leaves and a drizzle of sour cream, if using.
Ingredients
- For the Pork
- 4-6 boneless pork loin steaks, sliced into strips
- juice and zest of 1 lime
- ¼ tsp of cayenne (more if you like things spicy)
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp water
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the Beans
- 1 tbsp of olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- ½ red onion, finely chopped
- 1 tsp coriander seeds, roughly ground
- 1-2 bay leaves
- 100g cooking chorizo, chopped
- ¼ tsp smoked paprika
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 large ripe vine tomato, finely chopped
- 2 x 400g can of black beans, drained
- dash of Brazilian hot sauce (optional)
- For the Salsa
- 200g fresh pineapple, diced
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and diced
- ½ red onion, finely diced
- 1 fresh jalapeno, deseeded and finely chopped
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander, plus extra leaves to serve
- ½ lime for squeezing
- To Serve
- 8 corn or flour soft tortilla
- sour cream (optional)