{"id":43409,"date":"2024-05-19T22:28:25","date_gmt":"2024-05-19T22:28:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/familiakitchen.com\/?p=43409"},"modified":"2025-08-13T17:43:05","modified_gmt":"2025-08-13T17:43:05","slug":"al-pastor-tacos-you-can-actually-make-at-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/familiakitchen.com\/es\/al-pastor-tacos-you-can-actually-make-at-home\/","title":{"rendered":"Tacos de Al Pastor que realmente puedes hacer en casa: \u00a1Genio del bricolaje!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Al pastor tacos are the only type of taco we thought we\u2019d never<\/em> be able to make at home. Those who love this classic pork and pineapple combo know you can typically only buy this kind of taco at street stands and restaurants that have a trompo, that huge vertical metal rotating spit fired by charcoal or gas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speared on the trompo is a fiery-red, triangle-shaped chunk of pork shoulder that spins around and around, slow-charring to juicy deliciosoness. The pork is first marinated in a paste with several kinds of chiles plus achiote<\/a>, a spice with a subtle peppery flavor. After cooking for hours, the street vendor slices the pork, places the thin cuts in a warm tortilla, and adds chunks of pineapple, chopped cilantro, and raw onion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The result is al pastor, a sweet-and-savory wonder and one of the most popular tacos in el universo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But unlike carne asada<\/a>, chicken<\/a> or fish<\/a>, this taco doesn\u2019t go back to early days of Spanish-influenced Mexican cuisine<\/a>. Al pastor means \u201cshepherd style,\u201d signaling the dish\u2019s Middle Eastern roots. Slow-cooking meat outdoors on a rotisserie is familiar to fans of shawarma and gyros. This Ottoman-era technique<\/a> traveled to Mexico with Lebanese immigrants in the 19th<\/sup> and early 20th<\/sup> centuries.<\/a>  As they settled into Mexican locales like Puebla, Veracruz, parts of Yucatan, and Mexico City,<\/a> they switched to using easily accessible pork instead of the traditional lamb. They also added achiote and chiles to the marinade, and corn tacos instead of pita bread.<\/p>\n\n\n

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A popular street food in Mexico, al pastor is typically made using a trompo, a rotating metal spit that slow cooks the marinated pork shoulder. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

How to Make Al Pastor at Home \u2014 No Trompo Needed<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We asked one of our favorite Mexican food cooks, Vivi Abeja<\/a>, to help us find a way to make this beloved taco in our home kitchens so that we could eat it year round. (We didn\u2019t want to wait until Chicago\u2019s summer festival season to get our al pastor fix.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vivi was happy to take on this comida challenge. \u201cI have always been fascinated with al pastor tacos because of the way they are made and the flavors they carry,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vivi landed on an ingenious way to DIY the slow-cooking, piled-high effect of the rotating trompo. She starts with two wooden skewers and pokes them into a thick chunk of pineapple for ballast. She then spears thin slices of the marinated pork shoulder onto the skewers, in layers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But how does Vivi get the fire-charred flavor from the rotating spit using her regular oven?<\/p>\n\n\n

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As important as the slow-cooked, marinated pork slices are chunks of pineapple to the sweet-savory flavor of al pastor tacos.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

By making her own DIY trompo, of course! \u201cI found this recipe online after doing some research and found it to be the closest to what I was looking for. You can make your own little trompo at home using wooden skewers to hold up the pork into its shape, and roast the meat slow and low. I recommend broiling the meat at the end for 2 to 5 last minutes to give the pork some extra color. I love that we are able to recreate these delicious tacos at home without the big trompo that is used to cook the meat,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start by Marinating the Al Pastor Pork for at Least 4 Hours<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Vivi first marinates the pork for 4 to 8 hours (and preferably overnight). She then slow roasts the meat on her makeshift trompo on low heat in a 275\u00b0 oven. In about 3 hours, the pork is ready, and it\u2019s time to garnish with chopped onions and cilantro. Vivi goes a step further. \u201cI love spices and layers of flavor, so adding salsa<\/a> to the already marinated meat is something that makes my tastebuds have a party.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On what types of occasions will she serve al pastor, now that she can make this tricky taco at home?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is a special recipe because it is cooked slow and low and the total time (if you include marinating the meat) is over the course of 2 days. These types of meals require a special occasion with family and friends.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more of Vivi\u2019s top Mexican recipes you can make at home, check out her amazing fried quesadillas<\/a>, air fryer fish tacos,<\/a> enchiladas suizas<\/a> and gorditas with beans and queso<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ready to Make Al Pastor Tacos in Your Kitchen?<\/h2>\n\n\n
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\u200b\u200bAl Pastor Tacos You Can Actually Make at Home!<\/h2>\n\n
\n \t\t \t\t\tRecipe by Vivi Vianey<\/span>\n \t\t\n
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