Habanero Pork Tacos with Romesco, Cilantro, and Onion

This would be an example of a pure fusion experiment, admittedly not too daring when the fuse is between Spanish and Mexican / Latin American flavors. The pork tacos with onion and cilantro is a personal classic. The basic recipe involves slow braising a pork shoulder roast in canned tomatoes, chiles, and onions, then serving with raw white onion and cilantro; minus the romesco sauce, a minimalist regional Mexican dish to be sure.



Herein, I punched up the spice by coating the top half of the roast in dried habanero chile powder (dangerous stuff to work with, use gloves and don't let the powder aerate or the whole house will have to be evacuated); more typically I'll use a combination of guajillo and ancho chile powder, which is much tamer.

For the romesco sauce, I sauteed white onion, garlic, and fresh tomatos until reduced by 75%. The mixture was then pureed with a chopped sweet red pepper, hazelnuts, sea salt, and a little Spanish olive oil.

The shoulder was cooked at 250F for 2.5 hours with 32oz of pureed canned tomatoes, a little olive oil, some wedges of yellow onions, Mexican oregano, a dash of epazote, and some coarse sea salt. Using a fork, tear the pork into small chunks after allowing to cool slightly. The tacos are always steamed white corn tortillas (use 2 as these tear easily). Top with romesco, finely diced fresh white onion, and fresh cilantro.

The bridge flavor element among the romesco and classic taco recipe is the white onion actually. Loved the addition of the romesco, which tamed and accentuated the fruitiness of the habanero ... a new personal classic is born.