“In northern Mexico, this taco is called a vampiro because the crunchy fried tortilla looks like a vampire bat wing,” says Rick Martinez. “Down south, it’s volcán—maybe since they see more volcanoes than bats! Either way, juicy pork al pastor and oozy quesillo are a brilliant combo.” Thinly slicing the pork and cooking it with plenty of marinade still clinging in a hot skillet yields the charred edges and deep flavor of traditional spit-roasted pastor.
Recipe information
Yield
Makes 8
Ingredients
1
7
3
4
⅓
¼
3
1
8
4
12
Ingredient Info
Need to make a substitution?
Preparation
Step 1
Place pork shoulder on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and freeze, uncovered, until almost completely frozen, about 2 hours. Using a very sharp knife, thinly slice pork (shoot for about ⅛" thick). Transfer to a large bowl.
Step 2
Meanwhile, bring guajillo and morita chiles and 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cover, remove from heat, and let sit 30 minutes to allow chiles to soften.
Step 3
Transfer chiles and soaking liquid to a blender. Add garlic, orange juice, lime juice, achiote paste, and salt; purée until smooth. Pour over pork and toss to coat. Cover and let sit at room temperature 2 hours, or chill up to 6 hours.
Step 4
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°. Evenly space out tortillas on a baking sheet and bake until lightly toasted and very crisp (edges will curl and pucker), 35–45 minutes.
Step 5
Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a large nonstick skillet over high until smoking. Spread about one-fourth of pork across skillet in a single layer; cook, undisturbed, until browned underneath, about 2 minutes. Turn over and cook, undisturbed, until browned underneath and cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a platter and wipe out skillet. Working in 3 batches, repeat process with remaining pork and 3 Tbsp. oil.
Step 6
Increase oven temperature to 500°. Divide pork among tostadas and top with quesillo; bake until cheese is melted, 8–10 minutes. Top with onion and cilantro and serve with lime wedges.