Pork Tinga

This pork tinga was a first for us. I had heard the term before though had never tried it. Rick says " In colonial Puebla, on the other side of the volcanos from mile high Mexico City, tinga is offered as a stew in restaurants, a filling for tortas (Mexican hoagies) in snack shops, and a stuffing for masa turnovers (quesadillas) from street vendor griddles." Rich and smoky, with tomatoes, chipotles, and chorizo. This dish did not disappoint. We rolled them up as soft tacos the first time we had them. The little amount leftover I had for lunch as a stew without any breads. 

Pork tinga topped with cheese and avocado.

Warm melting goodness wrapped in a tortilla.

I know this recipe looks daunting with its long list of ingredients. However it is so worth the trouble and really is simple considering it all goes into the slow cooker and doesn't require any more steps after that. You must give this a try when you can set aside some time for the prep work.

Pork Tinga with Potatoes

Adapted from rickbayless.com and  Authentic Mexican by Rick Bayless

Ingredients

1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil

1 pound lean, boneless pork shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1½-inch cubes

¼ teaspoon each, marjoram and thyme

3 bay leaves

4 ounces chorizo sausage, removed from its casing

4 to 5 medium (about ¾ pound total) red-skinned potatoes, quartered

1 large white onion, sliced ¼ inch thick

1 garlic clove, minced

1½ pounds (about 3 medium-large ripe tomatoes, roasted or boiled, peeled, cored, and diced

or 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, in juice (preferably fire-roasted)

2 to 3 canned chipotle chiles, en adobo, seeded and finely chopped

4 teaspoons chipotle canning sauce

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

½ teaspoon dried oregano, preferably Mexican

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon sugar

About ½ cup crumbled Mexican queso fresco or other fresh cheese like salted pressed farmers cheese

1 ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin and diced

1 - ¼ inch slice of onion, broken into rings

Warm corn tortillas

Directions

Bring about 1 quart of salted water to a  boilin a medium sized saucepan. Add the pork, skimming the foam that rises to the top for the first few minutes. Add the herbs and bay leaves.Partially cover and simmer over medium heat until meat is tender, about 50 minutes. When meat is tender, turn off the heat and let the meat cool down in the broth. Remove the meat, strain the broth and skim off any fat that rises to the top, reserving 1 cup of the broth. Dry off meat on paper towels and shred the cooked meat.

Heat the oil in a very large (12-inch) non-stick skillet. Once the oil is very hot, add the pork and chorizo in an single layer and cook, stirring until the meat has browned, about 6 to 8 minutes. Turn off the heat and transfer the meat and its juices into the slow cooker. Add the potatoes.

In a large bowl, combine the onions, garlic, tomatoes, chipotles, adobo sauce, Worcestershire, oregano, sugar, and salt. Pour mixture into the slow cooker and stir to mix thoroughly. Cook for 6 hours at the highest temperature.

   

After six hours, gently stir the tinga. If the sauce seems too thick, stir in a little of the reserved broth.  Scoop into a large bowl, garnish with the fresh cheese,  diced avocado, and onion rings. Serve with warm tortillas. Serves 4 - 6

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Carla

&

Michael