Asian Shredded Pork Tacos is a fun and delicious twist on taco night. Tender pork shoulder braised in a garlicky soy broth to fork tender. Served with crunchy sesame marinated cucumbers, shredded cabbage, a drizzle of sriracha aioli, and a sprinkle of queso just for good measure. The perfect combination of textures and flavors of umami, salty, tangy, and savory.
This is such a simple dish to serve a crowd. It’s the perfect recipe for your Super Bowl party. You can cook the pork in your crock-pot and create a fun taco bar for easy serving. After all, half the fun of having taco night is the assembly process.
I’m all about the toppings when it comes to tacos. I love tangy almost pickled veggies like cucumbers or onions. This cucumber is a quick pickling that requires very little ingredients but totally maximizes flavor. Something cold and crunchy is always a welcomed bite with tacos. Red cabbage adds to the fresh crunch of everything. The crumbled queso and sriracha aioli gives this taco a creamy finish.
I also love to warm my tortillas up before serving. I place 4-5 tortillas wrapped in foil in a preheated 325 degree oven and warm them for 15 minutes. They almost steam themselves in the foil and create a super soft wrapper for the tacos. Just don’t forget about your tortillas because they can get super crispy if you let them go too long.
Wine Pairing Recommendation: These umami bomb tacos are asking to be served with a crisp dry Rosé.
Asian Shredded Pork Tacos
You can cook the pork in your slow cooker. Sear the pork first and place in the crock pot with soy broth on high for 4 hours until fork tender. You can find sriracha aioli in your Asian aisle of your grocery store or in the condiments aisle. I like the Lee Kum Kee brand. If you'd like to make your home mix 2 tablespoons Sriracha, 1/4 cup Mayonnaise and 1/2 of a lemon, juiced.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 3 pounds Boneless Pork Shoulder, sliced into 4 chunks
- Kosher Salt and Ground Black Pepper, for seasoning
- 6 cloves Garlic, smashed and skins removed
- 2 cups Chicken Stock
- 1/2 cup Soy Sauce
- 1/3 cup Mirin Cooking Wine
- 2 tablespoons Hoisin Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Sambal Chili Garlic Paste
- 2 whole Japanese Cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons Rice Wine Vinegar
- 1 tablespoon Sesame Oil
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- 2 teaspoons Soy Sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt
- 1 teaspoon Toasted Sesame Seeds
- 1 package {20 small} Flour Tortillas
- 1 small Red Cabbage, halved and thinly sliced
- Sriracha Aioli {store bought or homemade}, for serving
- Queso Fresco, crumbled for serving
- Green Onion or Cilantro, chopped for garnish
Directions
- Step 1 In a heavy bottomed pot or pan fitted with a lid heat olive oil over medium high heat. Season pork with kosher salt and ground black pepper. Sear pork 2 minutes per side.
- Step 2 Add smashed garlic, chicken stock, soy sauce, mirin, hoisin sauce, and sambal to the pan. Stir to combine all ingredients. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Cover and cook on a low simmer for 3 hours until fork tender.
- Step 3 Turn heat off and shred pork using forks or tongs.
- Step 4 In a large bowl whisk together rice wine vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, soy sauce, kosher salt, and toasted sesame seeds. Add sliced cucumbers and toss to coat.
- Step 5 To assemble tacos:
- Step 6 Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Make 4 foil packets with 5 tortillas stacked in each. Cover and place in the oven to warm for 15 minutes. Remove and assemble tacos with sliced red cabbage, cucumbers, shredded pork, drizzled sriracha aioli, crumbed queso and garnish with chopped green onion. Serve immediately and enjoy!
Savor and Enjoy!
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