This recipe incorporates both a brine and a marinade. Any remaining marinade can be used again at your next barbecue. Just use within a week or freeze for future use. The adobo is great on just about everything including chicken, beef, pork, fish and vegetables, so feel free to experiment. Rice, beans, tortillas and your favorite salsas would be a perfect accompaniment to round out this meal. You can also experiment with grilling fruit to pair with the pork. Pineapple is classic for tacos al pastor, but I also like to use stone fruit when in season. Grilled peaches or nectarines bring an amazing sweet-and-sour taste that are also a nice complement to the pork.
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in pork chops, cut about 1½ inches thick, 3–4 pounds in total
- 1 gallon ice cold water
- 10 ounces kosher salt
- 5 ounces sugar
- 1 recipe Mexican adobo (recipe follows)
- Optional garnishes: cilantro, chopped white onion, lime wedges, grilled fruit, your favorite salsas, tortillas
- 8 ancho chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 8 guajillo chiles, stemmed and seeded
- 1 quart boiling water
- 1 can chipotle in adobo
- 3 whole garlic cloves
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 2 sticks Mexican cinnamon, broken into small pieces
- 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano or dried regular oregano
- 20 garlic cloves, skin on
- 1 cup apple cider vinegar
Preparation
METHOD
Whisk together water, salt and sugar until completely dissolved.
Place pork chops in a nonreactive container and pour brine over to cover.
Cover and brine in the fridge for 4 hours.
Remove from brine, pat dry and apply about 2 tablespoons of marinade to each chop.
Marinate for at least 1 hour, or as long as overnight.
Prepare a hot grill.
Wipe off excess marinade and lightly coat chops in olive oil.
Grill over coals until medium or to your desired doneness.
During the last few minutes of cooking, brush on more of the marinade and allow it to caramelize as it finishes cooking.
Allow the chops to rest 5–10 minutes before serving.
Slice onto a platter garnished with chopped cilantro, onion and lime wedges. Place grilled fruit, salsas and tortillas on the side to pass at the table.
About this recipe
METHOD
Tear and destem/deseed all chiles.
Place on a sheet tray and toast in a 350°F oven for about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Do not over toast or burn.
Cover and soak chiles for 30 minutes.
Toast the garlic, skin on, on a sheet pan in the oven until soft, about 10–15 minutes or until soft.
Toast all the whole spices in a pan until fragrant. Buzz in a spice mill until fine.
Once the garlic is cool, peel and discard skins.
Drain the soaking chiles. Discard liquid.
Add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth. A small amount of water can be used to help the paste turn if needed.
