Pork belly and hispi cabbage tacos with chorizo mayonnaise and chorizo quick kimchi

  • medium
  • Makes approximately 20 tacos
  • 3 hours 40 minutes
Not yet rated

The in-your-face flavours of this stunning taco recipe from Alyn Williams are well worth the time it takes to create the dish. Soft slices of pork belly are piled high on a cabbage-covered taco, before being slathered with a sharp chorizo mayonnaise and topped with a crunchy, sour and umami-rich twenty-four-hour kimchi (which contains even more chorizo!). Prepare the kimchi and pork the day before, bring everything to the table and let your guests dig in and assemble each taco to their liking.

First published in 2019

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Pork

Kimchi

Chorizo mayonnaise

  • 100g of chorizo, finely diced
  • 300g of vegetable oil
  • 50ml of water
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp of cider vinegar
  • 1 pinch of Maldon salt

Tacos

  • 250g of masa harina
  • 330ml of water, hot
  • 1 pinch of Maldon salt

To serve

Method

1
The day before you plan to serve the dish, prepare the pork. Preheat an oven to 150°C/gas mark 2. Place a large ovenproof pan over a high heat, season the pork belly all over and sear in a little vegetable oil. Once golden brown all over, set aside, then add the onion, carrot and celery into the same pan and cook until lightly browned
2
Add the fenugreek, chipotle, thyme and bay leaf, then return the pork to the pan with the vegetables. Pour in the apple juice and leave to reduce by half
3
Add the chicken stock and cider vinegar, bring to the boil then cover with a cartouche and place in the oven for 1.5–2 hours until the pork is tender
  • 750ml of chicken stock
  • 100ml of cider vinegar
4
Remove the meat, wrap tightly in cling film whilst still warm and press between two trays with weights on top. Once cool, place in the fridge for at least 6 hours
5
Meanwhile, strain the cooking liquor through a fine sieve into a clean saucepan and reduce until thickened to a sauce consistency. Place in the fridge to chill
6
Make the kimchi the day before you plan to serve the dish, too. Mix together the hispi cabbage heart (remembering to reserve the outer leaves), chicory and radishes in a large bowl, then rub in the salt and set aside for 20 minutes. After this time, drain off any excess liquid
7
Sauté the red pepper in a little oil until softened, then transfer to a food processor. Add the chorizo, yoghurt, chillies, dried shrimp, anchovies, apple, ginger, fish sauce and soy sauce and pulse until well combined but not puréed. Massage this paste into the cabbage mixture, then cover with cling film and place in the fridge for 24 hours. This will make more kimchi than you need for the tacos, but it will last a few weeks in the fridge
8
The next day, make the chorizo mayonnaise. Boil the egg for 5 minutes until soft-boiled, then chill in an ice bath and peel
9
Place the chorizo, vegetable oil and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Leave to simmer until all the water has evaporated and you are left with a strongly flavoured chorizo oil. Strain the oil and reserve the pieces of chorizo
  • 100g of chorizo, finely diced
  • 300g of vegetable oil
  • 50ml of water
10
Place the peeled egg, vinegar and salt into a narrow-sided measuring jug. Use a stick blender to blitz the mixture, slowly drizzling in the chorizo oil as you do so until it emulsifies. If the mayonnaise gets too thick, add a teaspoon of water. Add some of the reserved chorizo, taste and season if required, then set aside for serving. Any leftover mayonnaise needs to be eaten within 7 days
11
For the tacos, mix the masa harina with the salt in a bowl. Add the hot water and mix with a fork until a dough forms. Cover the bowl with cling film and set aside for 5 minutes
  • 250g of masa harina
  • 330ml of water, hot
  • 1 pinch of Maldon salt
12
Bring the dough together with your hands, then wrap in cling film and allow to cool. Once cool, roll the dough out in small amounts until 3mm thick, then cut into discs around 12cm in diameter (you can also use a tortilla press to do this if you have one). If the dough is sticking to your work surface or rolling pin, place it between two sheets of greaseproof paper. When all the tacos are made, wrap them in cling film and set aside
13
Take the reserved hispi cabbage leaves and cut them into circles the same size as the tacos. Set aside
14
You now have all the elements ready for this dish. Preheat an oven to 150°C/gas mark 2 and finely slice the pork. Place the pork slices in a baking tray and coat with the reserved sauce. Place the discs of hispi cabbage in a separate tray and transfer both trays to the oven to warm through
15
Place a non-stick pan over a medium-high heat and add a tiny amount of oil. Cook the tacos for about 30 seconds on each side, until brown spots appear. Set aside and keep warm (you can cover them with a tea towel to stop them drying out)
16
To serve, place a disc of hispi cabbage on the top of each taco. Top with slices of pork, then slather with the chorizo mayonnaise and a spoonful of the kimchi. Garnish with more chorizo (you can use the reserved pieces from making the mayo), radish slices and coriander or micro herbs (if using)

Alyn Williams has worked at some of the very best kitchens in Britain, training for many years under Marcus Wareing and Gordon Ramsay. His plates display his own unique culinary personality – brilliantly accomplished, playful and with remarkable interplay of flavours.

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