
Warm the corn tortillas on a comal or nonstick skillet and place in a dishcloth to keep warm. Scrape out the pan once more and cook the pineapple until soft and charred in spots. Transfer to a cutting board and repeat with the remaining steaks, scraping the pan well to remove any burned bits between frying. Both sides should have dark-brown charred spots if they don't, raise the heat higher. Cook until the meat starts to release its juices and lighten slightly in color, 2 to 3 minutes, then flip and cook 2 to 3 minutes more. The meat should sizzle and smoke, so make sure you have a working fan and vent on your stove.


When smoking, add one piece of marinated steak. Heat a large heavy skillet to high heat and add 1 teaspoon lard. The next day, prepare the garnishes: Chop the pineapple, slice the limes into wedges, prepare the salsa, and chop the cilantro and onion. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 hours. Pour the marinade over the meat and toss to coat. Crumble the achiote paste into the blender and add the vinegar, cumin seed, peanuts and bay leaf along with the cinnamon stick, cloves and allspice. Peel the garlic and place both items in a blender jar. Cook until soft and blackened in spots, turning occasionally, about 7 minutes. Add the onion wedge and garlic, placing the garlic near the edge, away from direct heat. Heat a comal or nonstick skillet to medium-high heat. Get a recipe for tinga tacos here.The day before you plan to eat, place the pork in a large bowl and toss with the lime juice and salt.

If you're not into beef and pork tacos, this chicken option is absolutely delicious. Tinga, or braised chicken thigh, is typically made in a smoky and slightly spicy tomato-based sauce. Lengua means tongue in Spanish, so when referring to a taco, it's usually beef tongue that has been slow-cooked for hours, braised with garlic and onions, finely chopped, and served with salsa verde. Get a recipe for cochinita pibil tacos here. Historically, it's buried in a pit with a fire at the bottom. Cochinita PibilĬochinita pibil is whole suckling pig or pork shoulder that's marinated in citrus with achiote, then wrapped in banana leaves and roasted. It's eaten alone or used as a filling for tacos, tamales, tortas, and burritos. CarnitasĬarnitas is shoulder of pork that's been seasoned, braised until tender with lard and herbs (oregano, marjoram, bay leaves, garlic), pulled apart, and then oven-roasted until slightly crisp. It is essentially grilled, marinated pieces of beef (typically skirt or flank steak) served inside burritos and tacos. Carne AsadaĬarne asada translates to grilled meat. Get a recipe for slow-cooker barbacoa beef tacos here. In America today, it also refers to spicy, shredded, slow-braised beef that's been made tender, then pulled apart.

Traditionally, barbacoa is beef cheek and head that's covered in leaves from the maguey plant, then slow cooked over a wood fire in a pit in the ground. Get a recipe for spicy pork al pastor quesadillas here. Pastor means "shepherd," the name given to Lebanese merchants who immigrated to Mexico City in the early 1900s, bringing the concept of shawarma with them. Al PastorĪl pastor is crisp-thin shavings of vertical spit-roasted pork, marinated with pineapple, guajillo chiles, and achiote, then served on tortillas. Ahead, find a list of all the different Mexican meats to try in your tacos, from al pastor to cochinita pibil and everything in between. To help you out next Taco Tuesday, we've put together a list of some of the most common taco fillings out there - and don't be afraid to step outside your comfort zone the next time you order. That's part of what makes them so delicious. Each filling may be spiced, seasoned, cooked, dried, and even sliced differently. The truth is, despite appearing relatively simple, the taco - and more particularly, how the meat is prepared - can be quite complex. Both are tasty, by the way - but mixing up braised chicken (tinga) for tongue (lengua) can be a confusing experience for your taste buds. And you don't want to end up ordering lengua when you meant to ask for tinga. With a menagerie of options from carnitas and carne asada to cochinita pibil, taco-meat terminology is vast. But ordering traditional Mexican food can get a little tricky if you're not up on your taco fillings. There's nothing like a delicious taco to turn your day around.
