Shredded Pork Tacos with Slaw

Colorful and easy!

There is something so appealing about contrasting flavors and textures. Piping hot chili with cool sour cream. Salty chips with a cold, crisp soda. Spicy buffalo wings dipped in creamy blue cheese. Savory salmon with fresh lemon wedges. And my all-time favorite, chocolate-covered pretzels. All these foods are good by themselves, but together... let's just say sometimes opposites attract.

Today's recipe, Orange-Glazed Pork Tacos with Purple Slaw hits this idea right over the head with sweetly-marinated pork shoulder nestled alongside a crisp, tangy vinegar slaw.

I made this for a dinner party that unexpectedly became a crowd (fine with me!). I turned to my kitchen BFF, my main squeeze, my knight in shining... chrome?... my good ol', trusty Crock-Pot. When you have a large group over and want to be budget-conscious, your choices are typically casseroles. Or sometimes casseroles. Or maybe casseroles. I have nothing against a casserole myself (I'll probably post some casserole recipes at some point), but this time I just wasn't in the mood, and a Crock-Pot is a great way to make a large, dollar-stretching meal. So what's a girl to do but buy a 10-lb cut of pork shoulder, tenderize the heck out of it and turn it into something delicious!


Sidenote: Sometimes the idea of using slaw can be confusing. Is it a side dish? A salad? A vegetable? A garnish? While there are a variety of slaws out there, today's recipe will be used as a topping inside the pork tacos. By itself this slaw is a little tart, but paired with the sweet pork, it's a match made in hog heaven :-)

Orange-Glazed Pork Tacos with Purple Slaw

Cast of Characters: Pork shoulder, orange marmalade, soy sauce, cabbage, carrot, onion, garlic, apple cider vinegar.

Rough chop onion and garlic.

Place garlic in bowl and add orange marmalade.

Splash of soy sauce (low sodium of course).

*Girl From Scratch Modification: Splash of molasses. I like it sweet!

Place onions on the bottom of Crock-Pot, then put pork skin side up, then pour marmalade mixture over top. 

Cook on high for 6 hours. Take pork out of juices and shred the meat. Ladle juices over top of shredded meat.

Shred the carrots (I cheated and bought pre-shredded!) and chop the cabbage.

Toss with apple cider vinegar.

Salt and pepper.

*Girl From Scratch Modification: Add a  pinch of sugar. The original recipe is super vinegar-y so the sugar helps take the edge off. I also added a splash of Canola oil. Cover slaw and chill while the pork cooks.

Place on a warm tortilla and enjoy!

Yum!

Actual recipe/Inspiration: FoodNetwork-Orange-Pork-Roast-Tacos.

Nail Color: Essie - Sand Tropez

My husband was skeptical about bananas with peanut-butter until I made him try it, and now he's a believer. I like Wendy's french fries dipped in a Frosty. What are some of your favorite contrasting flavor combinations? The weirder, the better.