pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo

taco week day 4: pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo
yay for crock pot meals! best thing ever to make in the crock pot is shredded pork. you can never go wrong.
the red pepper pico de gallo brings a freshness to the dish. a trick for getting more juice out of your lime- throw it in the microwave for 12 seconds before slicing.

pork tacos with red pepper pico de gallo
3 lb pork shoulder
corn tortillas
1/2 c queso fresco or queso blanco, crumbled (mexican cheese)

mexican pork rub
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

red pepper pico de gallo
2 plum tomatoes, diced
1/3 c white onion, diced
2 tbs jalapeno, minced
1/2 c red pepper, diced
3 tbs cilantro, chopped
juice of one lime

1. combine mexican spice rub ingredients in a small bowl. rub over pork shoulder.
2. cook in crock pot with a half of a cup of water for 4-6 hours. once cooled, shred and set aside.
3. combine red pepper pico de gallo ingredients in a bowl.
4. pile pork, pico de gallo and cheese on top of a warmed corn tortilla.

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southwestern pulled pork

been checking out other food blogs and realizing mine really isn't as cool as i thought. there are some amazing blogs out there. all the more motivation to keep chugging along with my new found hobby and make it just a tiny bit better than yesterday.
on my blog meandering i came across one of the better known ones- http://www.smittenkitchen.com/. she is quite the talented little lady. while i do pride myself on taking a recipe and simplifying it, she has more of a complex approach. and by complex i am referring to the number of ingredients or number of steps involved. this one has quite a few ingredients, but i can honestly taste each and every one of them. deb used brisket in her recipe. i had full intentions on trying to cook this recipe using brisket. that is until i noticed the price tag on a 3 lb slab of brisket. if i remember correctly it was around $30. yikes. well, that's not really in my weekly grocery budget so i used a pork shoulder and reinvented the recipe to be pulled pork vs. brisket. it was fabulous. feel free to serve on a corn tortilla or a soft bun. we tried both and it was great either way. 

southwestern pulled pork

3 lbs pork shoulder
2 tbs vegetable oil
5 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1 tbs chili powder
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 c apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 c water
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, with their juices
1 to 2 whole canned chipotle chiles en adobo (and this i quote straight from miss smitten kitchen herself: "1 or 2 from a can, not one or two cans, m'kay? Many misread this amount!")
2 bay leaves
1/4 c molasses

1. heat oil in a large pot. add pork shoulder and brown on each side for a total of 10 min. put pork in a crock pot.
2. add onion, garlic, cumin, chili powder and coriander to pot with remaining drippings from pork. cook for 1-2 minutes scraping bits off of the bottom of the pot. add vinegar and boil until vinegar evaporates/dissolves. pour in water and add all to crock pot
3. break apart whole tomatoes and put in crock pot with pork. add remaining juices, molasses, bay leaves and chiles.
4. cook on low for 10 hours. shred pork with two forks and serve.

adapted from adam pearson and deb perelman

black beans

black beans are by far one of the tastiest things to cook with. packed with fiber and known to lower cholesterol. wowza. not to mention a must for meatless monday recipes. i have to admit i'm somewhat of a newbie to the bean. i think it all comes down to whether or not your mom put beans in her chili. well, my mom didn't. my childhood feel cheated.
i digress.
so there's this supposed big game happening tomorrow that i thought this recipe would compliment. see for yourself.

black bean soup

1 tbl olive oil
1 large red onion, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 tsp ground cumin
1 16 oz pkg dried black beans
1 14 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 tbl chopped chipotle chiles from a can (deseed!!!)
7 c hot water
2 tbl fresh lime juice
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
handful of chopped parsley

1. heat olive oil in a skillet and add peppers and onions. saute until beginning to brown (about 8 min). add garlic and cumin. cook for one minute.

2. transfer to a slow cooker. add beans, chipotles, tomatoes and water. cook on high for 3 1/2 hours or until beans are tender.

3. transfer 2 cups of bean mixture to a blender or food processor and puree. return puree to slow cooker. stir in lime juice, parsley, salt and pepper.

4. serve with a dollop of sour cream and crusty bread on the side for dipping!

adapted from Bon Appetit