Oven-Broiled Tacos Al Pastor

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Take an easy out with this rich, saucy, and smoky oven-broiled Tacos Al Pastor recipe in your very own kitchen. No Grill necessary!

cooked pork on a pan

Tacos are everything. There are so many options. Chicken, beef, fish, pork, veggie. Hardshell or soft. Corn or flour. Toppings? My goodness, don’t get me started! This Tacos Al Pastor recipe is one of my favorites. It’s saucy, smoky, and perfectly spicy.

What is Tacos Al Pastor?

tacos al pastor close up

Tacos al pastor is similar to shawarma in that the pork shoulder is roasted spit-grill style and sliced off to order. It’s marinaded in an amazingly rich sauce made with achiote paste, pineapple juice, varied chilies, and usually stacked with slices of fresh pineapple during roasting.

What you need to make Tacos Al Pastor and Roasted Pineapple Salsa

dried peppers

Pork shoulder
Pineapple juice– Canned pineapple juice is recommended. Fresh juice will make the meat soft and mushy.
Orange juice
Lime juice
Apple cider vinegar
Canola oil
Guajillo chili
Árbol chili– This chili is hot. If you are averse to heat, avoid this one.
Garlic cloves
Kosher salt
Spices
Baking sheet with a wire rack

This is a complete recipe over-haul. In the original, I used pork chops and baked them in the sauce. The results were good but I felt the recipe deserved better. So I amped up the seasoning, and scaled back the heat. I also changed out the chops for thinly sliced pork shoulder. The marinade is a mixture of orange juice and pineapple juice to give the tacos a nice tropical citrusy sweetness. The peppers range from mild to hot so if you want to scale back the heat, eliminate the arbol pepper.

How to prepare pork shoulder for oven al pastor

sliced pork in a bowl

The pork needs to be trimmed of any massive amounts of fat and sliced widthwise. I bought a pork shoulder weighing a little over 4 pounds and cut it half lengthwise. After trimming the fat, I was left with a little over 1 1/2 pounds of meat. This amount will feed 4-6 people with toppings. You can use a whole roast of course.

Prepare the marinade

spicy marinade poured over sliced pork

Remove stems and seeds from dried chilies and cut them into 4ths. Soak the peppers in warm water for 15 minutes to soften. Drain and place the peppers in a food processor or blender. Next, add the orange, pineapple, and lime juices. Follow with the vinegar, canola oil, garlic, and spices. Purée or blend until the sauce is a smooth bright reddish-orange color. Pour the sauce over the prepared meat to marinate for 4 hours up to overnight.

How to oven roast pork for Tacos Al Pastor

cooked chopped pork

Preheat the oven to broil. Using a baking sheet topped with a wire rack, place the slices of meat closely in a single layer. You may need to use multiple pan. Depending on the cut size of your meat, broil for 2-3 minutes before flipping. Broil for another 2 minutes then test for doneness. Add more time as necessary.

cooked chopped pork with lime wedges

Remove the meat from the oven to rest for 3-5 minutes. Finally, cut the meat into bite-sized chunks before serving. Al pastor pork is chopped into small chunks instead of shreds like carnitas.

How to serve Tacos Al pastor

hot sauce drizzled on taco al pastor

Serve on warmed Corn Tortillas with diced white onion, fresh cilantro, avocado, and the BEST Orange Taco Sauce ever. Also, try my recipes for amazing Pinto Beans and Restaurant-Style Spanish Rice for the full takeout fake-out experience.

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*This recipe was updated on 7/20/2020 for improved recipe and content. It was originally posted in August of 2018.*

hot sauce drizzled on taco al pastor
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Oven-Broiled Tacos Al Pastor

Print Recipe
No grill needed! Take an easy out with this almost authentic oven-broiled Tacos Al Pastor recipe.
Prep Time:15 mins
Cook Time:10 mins
Marinade:4 hrs
Total Time:4 hrs 25 mins

Ingredients

  • 2 lb pork shoulder sliced and trimmed of fat
  • 1/2 c orange juice
  • 1/2 pineapple juice canned
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 dried guajillo chili
  • 1 dried New Mexico chili
  • 1 arbol chili optional and
  • 5 garlic cloves
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp paprika
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp clove

Instructions

Marinade

  • Remove stems and seeds from dried chilies. Place them in a food processor or blender with the orange and pineapple juices. Follow with the ACV, canola oil, garlic, sugar, paprika, cumin, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and clove. Purée or blend until the sauce is a smooth bright reddish-orange color. Pour the sauce over the prepared meat to marinate for 4 hours up to overnight.
  • Preheat the oven to broil. Using a baking sheet topped with a wire rack, place the slices of meat closely in a single layer. You may need to use multiple pans. Depending on the cut size of your meat, broil for 2-3 minutes before flipping. Broil for another 2 minutes then test for doneness; add more time as necessary. Remove the meat from the oven to rest for 3-5 minutes before cutting into bite-sized chunks.

Nutrition

Serving: 0g | Calories: 228kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 19g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 854mg | Potassium: 524mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Iron: 2mg
Course: Entree, Main Course
Cuisine: Hispanic, Mexican
Keyword: al pastor tacos, pork tacos, tacos
Servings: 6
Calories: 228kcal
Author: Ty

One Comment

  1. Yes to oven-broiled meat! It’s so much easier than grilling. At least for me. I’ve never had these but I can’t wait to try them out. They sound so flavorful!

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