Food Recipes Dinner Meat Dishes Crispy Pork Belly Tacos with Pico de Gallo 1 Review Chef Enrique Olvera stuffs tacos with crispy pork belly, confited in fat, and serves them with a tangy salsa spiked with Mexican beer. Slideshow: More Taco Recipes By Enrique Olvera Enrique Olvera Enrique Olvera is the prominent Mexican chef behind Pujol in Mexico City, which was No. 5 on the World's 50 Best Restaurants list in 2022, which made it The Best Restaurant in North America. Other restaurants in his Casamata hospitality group include Cosme and Atla in New York City, Criollo in Oaxaca, and Damian in Los Angeles. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on September 1, 2015 Rate PRINT Share Trending Videos Close this video player Photo: © Con Poulos Active Time: 1 hr Total Time: 4 hrs Yield: 4 Ingredients Braised pork belly One 2-pound piece of meaty pork belly 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 cup melted lard or shortening 3 garlic cloves, crushed 1 white onion, coarsely chopped 2 morita chiles or dried chipotle chiles 2 teaspoons kosher salt Pico de Gallo 1/2 pound cherry tomatoes, finely chopped 4 ounces tomatillos—husked, rinsed and finely chopped (about 3/4 cup) 1/2 small red onion, finely chopped 1 chile de árbol, crumbled 1/4 cup Mexican beer 1/4 cup fresh lime juice Kosher salt Tacos 1 tablespoon canola oil Twelve 5-inch Corn Tortillas or fresh corn tortillas, warm Lime wedges, for serving Directions Braise the pork belly Preheat the oven to 250°. In a large ovenproof saucepan, combine all of the ingredients and bring to a simmer over moderate heat. Cover, transfer to the oven and braise the pork until very tender, about 3 hours. Transfer the pork to a plate to cool slightly; discard the braising liquid. Make the pico de gallo In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the salt. Season with salt and mix well. Make the tacos In a large cast-iron skillet, heat the canola oil. Add the pork belly, skin side down, and weigh it down with another heavy skillet. Cook over moderately low heat until golden and crisp, about 10 minutes. Transfer the pork, skin side up, to a cutting board and let cool slightly. Slice across the grain 1/4 inch thick, then halve the slices crosswise. Top each tortilla with a few pieces of pork belly and a little pico de gallo and serve warm. Make Ahead The braised pork belly can be refrigerated overnight; return to room temperature before frying. The pico de gallo can be refrigerated for 6 hours. Notes Morita chiles are small, dried smoked chiles; they’re a little spicier than chipotles. Suggested Pairing Nothing will ever go as well with tacos as an ice-cold Mexican lager. Originally appeared: September 2015 Rate It Print