Taco of the Month: Crispy Pork Belly Tacos

With the end of the year comes our last Taco of the Month. And we have made sure to save the best for last with our crispy pork belly tacos! These are uncomplicated tacos that focus on fresh and flavorful homemade ingredients. 

As with many authentic Mexican tacos, the goal is for the pork belly (or whatever other meat you might use) to shine. And to complement the meat with fresh flavors of avocado and lime, all wrapped up in a homemade corn tortilla.

If you’re looking for an alternative to basic chicken or ground beef tacos, these crispy fried pork belly tacos with homemade tortillas are perfect for a fun family dinner or a special date night at home. 

Mexican Pork Belly Tacos Ingredients

Sometimes the best tacos are the extremely simple ones filled with high quality ingredients. That’s exactly what these are, as you can make these easy pork belly tacos with just 5 simple yet flavorful ingredients:

• Roasted pork belly
• Quick pickled cabbage
• Avocado mash seasoned with lime juice and salt
• Corn tortillas
• Lime wedges

If you don’t know how to cook pork belly for tacos, we recommend following Pinch and Swirl’s roasted pork belly recipe. We use this recipe every time we need pork belly since it’s easy to follow and gives crispy yet melt-in-your-mouth results every time. 

If you already have a favorite recipe or method for roasting pork belly, you can absolutely use that instead! Just make sure to cut the pork belly into bite sized pieces afterwards for use in this recipe – a necessary detail for making tacos.

We personally prefer to make homemade corn tortillas from scratch as we find them far more flavorful and fresh than store bought tortillas. But there is nothing wrong with using your favorite store bought corn tortillas. If you want to make homemade corn tortillas like we do, try the recipe from the Mi Cocina cookbook for Tortillas de Harina de Maíz. It’s our go to for delicious homemade yellow corn tortillas.  

How To Make Crispy Fried Pork Belly Tacos

Since this recipe for crispy pork belly tacos calls for roasted pork belly, you’ll need to prepare the meat well in advance and have it ready to go. Once you’ve roasted the pork belly, let it rest in the fridge, and sliced it into bite-size pieces, you can easily make these tacos in under 30 minutes.

Here’s how:

1. Make the quick pickled cabbage first, since it needs time to sit. Combine cabbage, lime juice, and salt in a large bowl and toss with your hands until it’s thoroughly mixed. Set aside, and let it sit for at least 10 minutes.
2. Next, make the avocado mash. Combine mashed avocado, lime juice, and salt in a bowl and mix until it has a smooth consistency. Set aside.
3. Then, fry the pork belly. Preheat a large frying pan over medium-high heat, then add the pork belly and fry until crispy, stirring occasionally to prevent it from sticking. If you want to infuse the pork belly with extra flavor, drop some of the excess fat left over from roasting it earlier into the frying pan while it’s preheating.
4. In the meantime, warm up the tortillas for about 30 seconds per side on a cast iron griddle. (Note that if you choose to make tortillas from scratch, you’ll want to cook them before frying the pork belly. They will stay warm wrapped up in a towel or tortilla warmer while you finish cooking.)
5. Finally, assemble the tacos. Add a spoonful of avocado mash to the tortillas, fill with 4 to 5 pieces of fried pork belly, and top with a bit of the quick pickled cabbage. Serve immediately with fresh lime wedges.

Serving Suggestions

Tacos are one of the most customizable dishes, which means that everyone can have it their preferred way. You can even have everyone assemble their own dinner at the table! Here are some recommendations for how we enjoy these easy Mexican pork belly tacos:

• Serve fresh lime wedges with these tacos so you can squeeze a little extra acid over the tacos before eating. It helps tie together all the delicious flavors and counteract some of the saltiness of the pork belly.
• Sides like chips, salsa, guacamole, and sour cream or plain Greek yogurt go great with these simple pork belly tacos.
• Make sure to assemble these tacos with a scoop of avocado mash spread on the corn tortilla, a helping of pork belly nestled into the avocado, and topped with pickled cabbage. This will ensure you have a combination of all flavors in each and every bite.

But remember, these are just our preferences and how we choose to serve these tacos. Recipes are a suggestion, and you are free to assemble and add whatever flavors and ingredients you enjoy most!

Storing And Reheating Leftovers

As is almost always true with tacos, you can store each ingredient separately in airtight containers. Store any leftover pork belly in the fridge for up to 4 days. When you are ready to enjoy it again, reheat it in a frying pan over medium-low heat until warm, about 5 to 10 minutes.

You can also store leftover quick pickled cabbage in the fridge for up to 4 days, but note that the longer it sits, the more “pickled” it will become. It’ll lose some of its crunch and start to taste more acidic, which is still delicious on these tacos!

As for the leftover avocado mash, you can also store it in a separate container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days. It may start to brown on top, but you can easily scrape off any parts you don’t want to eat before serving.

If you have homemade tortillas, they can be stored in plastic wrap or a zip-top bag for up to 5 days and do not need to be refrigerated. It’s best to reheat them on a cast iron skillet over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes per side, or until warmed through.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

These fried pork belly tacos are the perfect blend of crispy, crunchy texture and melt-in-your-mouth tenderness. They’re super savory and bursting with bright flavor, thanks to some acidity from the quick pickled cabbage and avocado mash. If you appreciate the simple yet unmatched flavor of authentic Mexican tacos made with high quality ingredients, you’re going to love this recipe.

Try our crispy pork belly tacos recipe for your next date night at home or an extra-special Taco Tuesday! Don’t forget to rate, comment, and share below to let us know what you think.

Love this recipe? You may enjoy these recipes, too:

• Asian Inspired Fried Chicken Tacos
• Sweet Potato Tacos
• Easy Cheeseburger Tacos
• Pork Dumplings