Thai Pork Tacos Food

THAI PORK AND NOODLES

Steps:

• Place the pork in the freezer about 10 minutes to make it easier to slice. Soak the noodles in very hot water until just tender, about 10 minutes; drain. Snip the noodles with scissors into shorter lengths. Cut the frozen pork crosswise into 1/4-inch-wide strips.
• Puree the cilantro, lime zest and juice, ginger, garlic, jalapenos, shallots, fish sauce, brown sugar and 1 tablespoon water in a food processor until smooth, scraping down the processor as needed.
• Heat 3 tablespoons peanut oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add half the cilantro mixture and stir-fry 1 minute. Add the pork and stir-fry until no longer pink, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer the pork with a slotted spoon to a plate. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut oil to the skillet; add the green beans and stir-fry until tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the noodles, pork and 2 tablespoons of the remaining cilantro mixture. Cook, tossing with tongs, until heated through, about 2 minutes. Stir in the remaining cilantro mixture to taste.

THAI-STYLE TACOS

Steps:

• For the slaw: In a medium bowl, combine the cabbage, green papaya and cucumber. Toss with the vinegar, sugar and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper; set aside.
• For the chicken and sauce: In a separate bowl, combine the scallions, peanut butter, soy sauce, mirin, hot sauce, ginger, lime zest and juice, garlic and about 2 tablespoons water; add more or less water depending on how thick you want the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. Toss a small amount of the sauce with the chicken to moisten.
• For serving: Top the toasted tortillas with the chicken, followed by some of the sauce and slaw. Garnish with the peanuts, cilantro, basil, chile and lime wedges.

THAI PORK RIBS (SII KHRONG MUU TAI NAAM)

Steps:

• Paste: Prepare ingredients to make the paste. Peel and thinly slice galangal and turmeric; thinly slice cilantro roots. Trim lemongrass stems, then discard tough outer layers; slice into thin coins. Slice chiles into ½-inch pieces. Peel garlic cloves, then roughly chop.
• Place the mortar and pestle on a towel to keep it sturdy. Chef Ricker advises adding ingredients from hardest to softest texture when making a paste. Place dried chiles into the mortar along with a pinch of salt; pound until chiles are flaky. Add peppercorns and continue pounding, followed by galangal, turmeric, and cilantro root. As the ingredients are added, a rough paste will begin to form. Continue by adding lemongrass, garlic, and green chiles. When all of the ingredients have broken down to a rough pulp, the paste is ready. Makes about ⅓ cup.
• Ribs: Place rack meat-side down on a cutting board. Cut into individual ribs and place in a bowl. Stack lime leaves, roll like a cigar, slice very thinly (this is called a chiffonade), and set aside. Season ribs with a pinch of salt, fish sauce, sugar, and MSG (optional); toss to coat with your hands. Add the paste and 1 teaspoon sliced lime leaf, reserving the rest for garnish, and massage the ingredients into the ribs until they're evenly coated. Let rest uncovered at room temperature, 1 hour.
• Add oil to a pot over medium-high heat; when it's smoking, add ribs meat-side down in an even layer. Turn heat to medium-low (to prevent paste from burning) and brown the ribs, 6-8 minutes.
• While ribs are browning, add 5 pounds ice cubes to the bowl, along with enough water to cover the ice. When ribs are browned, turn them over and reduce heat to low. Place the bowl with ice slurry on the pot so it completely seals off the top. The steam will rise and condense on the cold surface of the bowl, then drip back onto the ribs, creating a self-basting cooking environment.
• Garnish: While ribs are cooking, trim and thinly slice the scallion. Roughly chop cilantro. Fold sawtooth leaves in half and julienne into ⅛-inch slices. Mix together scallion, cilantro, and sawtooth and set aside, along with remaining lime leaf.
• After 15 minutes, remove bowl from pot and turn the ribs over. Pour out melted ice slurry and replenish with another 5 lbs ice cubes and water. Add a pinch of salt to the ice water to keep it cold a little longer. Place bowl over pot and continue cooking, 15 more minutes.
• After 30 minutes of total cooking, remove the bowl. Continue cooking ribs uncovered to reduce the cooking liquid in the pot, 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning by adding salt, sugar, and fish sauce; remove from heat. Place ribs on a serving platter, and spoon paste from the pot over them. Garnish with chopped herbs (scallions, cilantro, sawtooth) and lime leaves. Serve.

THAI PORK TACOS

Steps:

• PORK FILLING:.
• Heat oil in a large skillet. Add garlic and thai chilies and cook about 1 minute or until softened. Add onions and bell peppers, cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently until peppers and onions are just tender. Add ground pork. Sauté pork and vegetables until the pork is fully cooked, about 5 minutes. Add ginger, chili flakes and sugar. Stir to combine. Deglaze the pan with soy sauce, lime juice and fish sauce, stirring for another minute to combine. Remove the pan from heat and add basil. Toss to combine.
• TAMARIND TEMPURA ONIONS:.
• Soak onions slices in ice-cold water for 15 minutes. Drain on paper towels. In a deep saucepan, heat oil to about 360 degrees.
• Fill a large bowl with ice. In a medium bowl combine flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking powder. Combine ice water and tamarind sauce, then add to the flour mixture, whisk to create batter. Put the batter bowl inside the large bowl of ice. Batter onion slices shaking off excess batter and placing the onion rings into the hot oil. Fry for about 3 minutes until golden brown and crispy. Drain on paper towels.
• THAI CURRY PEANUT SLAW:.
• Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add garlic and sauté until the garlic is translucent, about 1 minute. Add curry paste, peanut butter, hoisin sauce, brown sugar, chili powder, cayenne and fish sauce. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. To finish, whisk in coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer for about 30 minutes till the sauce thickens.
• In a large bowl, combine Napa and red cabbage, green onion and ginger root. Add soy sauce, peanuts and cilantro. Add 3/4 cup of Thai Curry dressing, toss to combine. Cover and refrigerate until serving.
• FOR TACO ASSEMBLY:.
• Toast naan on a large, buttered skillet until golden brown and slightly crispy. Fold the naan to resemble a taco and add 1 large scoop of pork filling. Top with 1-2 tempura onion rings and Thai curry peanut slaw.

SLOW-COOKER PORK TACOS

Steps:

• Put the ancho and pasilla chiles and the garlic in a bowl; add 2 to 3 tablespoons water. Microwave on high until soft and pliable, 2 to 3 minutes. Stem and seed the chiles; peel the garlic. Transfer the chiles and garlic to a blender.
• Add the chipotles, onion, 2 tablespoons olive oil, honey, vinegar, 1 tablespoon salt and the oregano to the blender; puree until smooth. Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over high heat; add the chile sauce and fry, stirring, until thick and fragrant, about 8 minutes. Pour in the broth and reduce until slightly thickened.
• Season the pork all over with salt and pepper and transfer to a large slow cooker. Add the bay leaves and cinnamon stick, then pour in the sauce. Cover and cook on high until the meat is tender, about 5 hours. (Or cook the meat in a large Dutch oven, covered, for 1 hour 45 minutes at 350 degrees; uncover and cook 30 more minutes.)
• Discard the bay leaves and cinnamon stick. Shred the pork with 2 forks; season with salt and pepper. Serve the shredded pork in the tortillas, along with toppings.

GROUND PORK TACOS

Steps:

• Brown the ground pork in a large skillet.
• Add in undrained tomatoes, onion, and seasonings.
• Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is gone- about 10 minutes.
• Spoon mixture into tortillas or taco shells, garnish as desired, and enjoy!