Tacos al Pastor

The most complex part of making tacos al pastor (Geoff's all-time favorite type of taco) was constructing the rotisserie, like so:

photo by Madhav Pai Licenced under Creative Commons

Just Kidding!  Obviously, authentic vertically spit-roasted pork at home isn't feasible.  But slicing the meat to about 1/2 inch think and cooking it over a very hot grill did a surprisingly good job of replicating the char and still yielded juicy meat.  

The internet (source of all authentic cultural information) indicates that this particular type of taco is a Mexicanized version of the gyro that came with Lebanese immigrants.  True or not, the marinade that I found at Mexico: Food, Drinks, and More  yielded deliciously vinegary and sweet meat.  I thinly sliced the pork loin before marinading to maximize the surface area and then grilled it alongside some onions.  

The meat was pretty tasty on it's own with just the grilled onions on top but I felt that the tacos really needed some more moisture in the form of a spicy avocado salsa.  (Really, I think anything is better with avocados.)

But the best topping (it's an easy meal to put together so go a little crazy with the condiments) was the pineapple salsa I made.  Just fresh pineapple, lime, onions, jalapenos, and cilantro.  Even if you don't make the tacos, make the salsa.

I also parcooked some ears of corn in the microwave before finishing them on the grill and then brushing them with a butter-lime-chile powder mix.  You know, because vegetables are important.