Tomato Salsa

February 17, 2014 By

Last Updated on February 23, 2014 by Grab Your Spork

It is no secret that I love salsa. As Brooke knows I could quite easily polish off a bag of corn chips and tomato salsa just watching TV or a movie. However I do have to admit, up until recently I was still buying the one from the shops. Why not though? It is just so convenient. The major problem with store bought tomato salsa is it is full of unnecessary sodium, sugar and artificial flavouring. Little did I know though how easy homemade tomato salsa is!

Not only can this recipe for tomato salsa be made is less than 5 minutes its fresh flavours are unbeatable. For our recipe we use one can of tinned tomatoes, red onion, coriander, chilli, garlic fresh lime juice and season with cumin, smoked paprika and salt and pepper. If you’re like me I like my salsa a bit spicier, so we used a combination of red and green chilli. However you can simply just use one jalapeno.

To mix simply blitz in the food processor or with a stick blender. I like my salsa a bit chunky so only blitz for a couple of seconds at a time until you reach a nice consistency. Your salsa may be slightly watery once blitzed. Strain some of the extra liquid leaving you with a rich flavourful salsa.

Chill your tomato salsa for a couple of hours to enhance the flavours. Serve with some oven-crisped corn chips. This recipe can also be used to accompany our simple guacamole or even as a topping for our pulled pork tacos!

Tomato Salsa Ingredients

Tomato Salsa in Blitzer

Tomato Salsa with Lime

Tomato Salsa Recipe

Tomato Salsa Recipe

5.0 from 1 reviews
Tomato Salsa
 
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Simple tomato salsa made with tinned tomatoes, red onion, coriander, chilli, garlic fresh lime juice and season with cumin, smoked paprika and salt and pepper.
Author:
Recipe type: Snacks
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 tin tinned tomatoes, diced
  • ½ red onion, roughly chopped
  • ½ cup coriander
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 green chilli, sliced
  • 1 red chilli, sliced
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1 tsp. smoked paprika
  • ½ tsp. cumin
  • ½ tsp. ground pepper
  • 1 lime, juiced
Instructions
  1. Place all ingredients in food processor.
  2. Blitz or pulse for a couple of seconds.
  3. Drain excess liquid from salsa.
  4. Chill in the refrigerator for a couple of hours.
  5. Serve with oven-crisped corn chips.

 

Filed Under: Snacks

Pulled Pork Tacos

September 2, 2013 By

Last Updated on April 8, 2016 by Grab Your Spork

After Brooke’s recent purchase of a slow cooker, she was determined to make anything that meant she got to use it. With my subtle suggestion of pulled pork, it was a done deal and we were having pulled pork tacos for a late lunch!

There are many variations to pulled pork and we may have gone down a more southern style, but it still worked in taco’s given the various spices this recipe uses.

If you are willing to wait for the meat to cook, this recipe really is one of the easiest things to make – and with the slow cooker makes it even easier! We bought all the ingredients the night before so we could make the pork first thing in the morning. To start you need to make a simple spice rub, and a BBQ sauce (both require similar ingredients). Once you have made your spice rub, simply roll the meat in the rub and place it in the cooker with half the BBQ sauce. We wanted the pork ready in time for a late lunch, so cooked the pork on a higher temperature for a shorter time (still a solid 5 hours).

The beauty of the slow cooker is you can leave the meat to cook, while you can leave the house. While the pork cooked, we headed off to the markets for some fresh ingredients to top off our pulled pork tacos.

When we returned, the house was full of of delicious aromas and the meat was perfectly cooked. All that was left to do was simply pull the pork apart (which really just fell apart it was so tender), and dress with the remaining sauce.

We served our pork with tortillas, fresh avocado, tomato, onion, coriander and sour cream. This is definitely a recipe I will be wanting again! Yummo!

If your looking for other Mexican recipes to accompany the pulled pork tacos then check out our simple guacamole recipe or tomato salsa recipe.

Spice Rub and BBQ Sauce Ingredients

Pork Spice Rub

Pork Spice Rub and BBQ Sauce

Pulled Pork Tacos

Pulled Pork Tacos

Pulled pork tacos – Recipe Instructions

5.0 from 3 reviews
Pulled Pork Tacos
 
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Pulled pork tacos with fresh avocado, tomato, onion, coriander and sour cream.
Author:
Recipe type: Pork
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 6
Ingredients
BBQ Sauce
  • ½ cup ketchup
  • 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne
  • ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • Pinch salt and freshly ground black pepper
Spice Rub
  • 2 tablespoons paprika
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • 1 tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ½ teaspoon cayenne
  • 1.5 Kgs boneless pork shoulder or loin, excess fat trimmed
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
  1. For the BBQ sauce: Combine the ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire, cayenne, red pepper flakes and salt and black pepper in a small bowl.
  2. For the spice rub: Combine the paprika, oregano, black pepper, brown sugar, salt and cayenne in a medium bowl and toss with your fingers to mix. Rub the spice mixture onto the pork on all sides.
  3. Place the pork in a slow cooker insert. Add ½ cup BBQ sauce and cover the slow cooker. Cook on high until the pork is fork-tender, 4 to 5 hours, or on low, 8 to 10 hours. Transfer the pork to a carving board. Let the pork stand, about 5 minutes.
  4. Meanwhile add 2 tablespoons of the simmering pork liquids to the remaining BBQ sauce. Bring the BBQ sauce to a simmer in a small saucepan over low heat, about 10 minutes.
  5. Using two forks, shred the pork and discard any excess fat. Heap the pork onto the buns and top with extra BBQ sauce.

 

Filed Under: Pork Tagged With: , , , ,

Simple Guacamole Recipe

July 15, 2013 By

Last Updated on April 4, 2016 by Grab Your Spork

So here it is… the first ever post on Grab Your Spork. It was a tough decision what our first recipe should be, but we decided that it might be best to start with something easy. Brooke and I like many variations of guacamole, but this simple guacamole recipe is one of our favourites.

Avocados are grown in the South-West part of Western Australia where we live . It’s great when they are in season as we can get some awesome quality avocados at our local farmers markets here in Perth.

This simple guacamole recipe was made with perfectly ripe avocados mixed with fresh chilli, coriander, onion and lime. Guacamole should be made just before serving (where possible) to maintain it’s vibrant colour.

The key to the perfect guacamole recipe is ripe avocados. Check for ripeness by gently pressing the outside of the avocado. If there is no give, the avocado is not ripe yet and will not taste good. If there is a little give, the avocado is ripe. If there is a lot of give, the avocado may be overripe and not good. In this case, taste test first before using.

If your looking for something to pair with this simple guacamole recipe, then try our tomato salsa recipe.

Simple Guacamole Recipe Ingredients

Simple Guacamole Recipe Ingredients

Simple Guacamole Recipe

Simple Guacamole Recipe with Corn Chips

Simple Guacamole Recipe – Instructions

5.0 from 3 reviews
Simple Guacamole Recipe
 
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This simple guacamole was made with perfectly ripe avocados mixed with fresh chilli, coriander, onion, tomato and lime. Guacamole should be made just before serving where possible so as maintain it's vibrance.
Author:
Recipe type: Snack
Cuisine: Mexican
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 3 large ripe avocados, peeled and pitted
  • 1 lime, juiced
  • ½ jalapeño, seeded and diced
  • ½ large red onion, diced
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 3 tbs. coriander (cilantro) leaves
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • Tabasco to taste (Add as much heat as you like)
Instructions
  1. Scoop avocado into a bowl.
  2. Mash with a fork until you have a smooth, chunky texture.
  3. Add lime juice, jalapeño, onion, garlic, coriander (cilantro) leaves, salt and mix gently.
  4. Eat until your heart is content.

 

Filed Under: Snacks Tagged With: , ,