These tacos are stuffed with super-tasty and easy as heck to whip up vegan pulled pork. What's it made from? Something you can get at just about any supermarket and might just already have hanging out in the pantry.
It's not jackfruit! I love jackfruit and it makes some pretty amazing vegan pulled pork, but whenever I share a recipe involving it, or simply mention jackfruit, I get a million questions about where to find it, and the answer is at an Aisian market, but I know not everybody has one of those nearby. I also get questions about what the stuff is and I find myself often comparing it to artichoke hearts and, more accurately, hearts of palm. You can guess what comes next!
I'll be totally honest: I tried artichoke heart vegan pulled pork first. No good. It tasted like artichokes. It was green. It was full of those tough little bits that you inevitably find in canned artichoke hearts. I was pretty bummed. But I'd seen a few heart of palm-based vegan pulled pork recipes lurking around the internet, so I figured that might work out better. I gave it a go, and to make it extra summery and delicious, I added some pineapple salsa. It was great!
This recipe couldn't be easier, and the best part was that I had to drive all of half a mile to the supermarket down the street to find the main ingredient. After that, throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and let it simmer. Make a big batch and keep it on the stovetop for your summer gatherings.
Vegan Pulled Pork Tacos with Pineapple Salsa
Ingredients
For the Vegan Pulled Pork
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- ¼ cup maple syrup
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup pineapple juice, or more water, though you may need to add a touch more maple syrup
- 3 tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp. sriracha, or your favorite hot sauce, or to taste
- 1 tsp. liquid smoke
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2-14 oz. cans heart of palm, drained
For the Pineapple Salsa
- 1 cup finely diced pineapple
- ½ cup finely diced tomato, about 1 small tomato
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and minced
- 1 ½ tsp. lime juice
- salt and pepper to taste
For the Tacos
- 6 corn tortillas or taco shells
- a few handfuls of shredded lettuce
Instructions
Make the Vegan Pulled Pork
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Place tomato paste, maple syrup, water, pineapple juice, soy sauce, apple cider vinegar, sriracha, liquid smoke and garlic into a small saucepan and whisk until everything is blended. Drain hearts of palm and pull apart by hand. Add to sauce mixture and stir until incorporated. Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Allow to cook about 20 minutes, until sauce has thickened a bit and hearts of palm are very tender. Continue pulling apart hearts of palm while cooking, using a fork.
Make the Pineapple Salsa
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Stir all ingredients together in a small bowl.
Make the Tacos
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If using corn tortillas, lightly oil them and place into a hot skillet or 400° oven for a few minutes to heat and crisp up. Stuff tortillas or taco shells with shredded lettuce and vegan pulled pork. Top with pineapple salsa. Serve.
Love this idea, would NEVER have thought to make "pulled pork" from heart of palm. YUM!
What an awesome idea! I love hearts of palm but never would have thought to use them this way. Can't wait to make this.
I'm so happy you have done something like this, and not use check, because I do not have Asian markets near by where I live, but I do where I work. However, I feel like some of the preservative in the cans of chick that I see make me a little nervous. I've looked them up, and they're almost equal to being neurological disruptors.
Thanks for mentioning that - I'll definitely have a look next time I pick up a can!