Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Pork Fajitas with Smoky Cherry
Salsa are drool-worthy

My husband and I both had the same reaction when we first read the recipe for Pork Fajitas with Smoky Cherry Salsa (click for the recipe): We practically drooled.
   Barbecued pork tenderloin topped with a salsa made of fresh cherries, all wrapped up together in a tortilla?
   Yes, please.
   Our instincts were correct, because the fajitas were marvellous – terrific flavor combinations that made for a deeply satisfying meal.
   The fajitas can be as smoky as you want them to be, depending on how much ground chipotle pepper is used. (We bought ground chipotle pepper, by the way, from a gourmet spice supplier. However, it appears that McCormick, a very common supermarket brand, has ground chipotle).
   The more ground chipotle, the smokier and spicer the fajitas will be. I used ¾ of a teaspoon total in the recipe, instead of the called-for 1 ¼ teaspoons. If even less chipotle is used, I could see children as young as 9 or 10 giving these a try.
   The fajitas were quite easy to make, but a bit labor-intensive. Two people working on this recipe will make quicker work of it.
   Salt and minced garlic are mashed together until a paste forms. Lime zest (finely-grated lime peel), lime juice and ground chipotle are added, and the resulting paste is rubbed over pork tenderloin.
   The pork, a sliced white onion and a green or red bell pepper are grilled. After the pork rests for five minutes, it is thinly sliced. The onion and bell pepper are also thinly sliced.
   The salsa is made by combining chopped fresh pitted sweet or sour cherries, lime juice and more ground chipotle. (The recipe says to also use chopped fresh cilantro, but we skipped it because we hate the stuff. We used fresh parsley instead.) One of the chopped, grilled onion slices is stirred into the salsa.
   The pork, vegetables, salsa and shredded Manchego or cheddar cheese are served on tortillas. The recipe calls for corn tortillas, but we used whole wheat flour tortillas instead, and warmed them briefly in the microwave.



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