Moist, juicy, tender pork carnitas with crisp brown edges, and a fresh, colorful, fruity mango black bean salsa, topped with roasted tomatillo salsa verde on slightly toasted tortillas – these Pork Carnitas Tacos with Mango Black Bean Salsa are the definition of flavor-packed!
We often serve this with horchata (or vegan horchata for a dairy-free alternative) for a creamy, refreshing drink.
Here’s a question for you guys. Soft tacos or hard tacos?
Growing up in New Zealand, finding authentic Mexican food was like finding water on Mars. What was considered authentic was the ready made taco kits available in supermarkets, until a place called Flying Burrito Brothers came along in Christchurch that did a pretty fine job of representing Mexican cuisine.
This was a while back though, the last time I ate there was in 2009, so I’m not sure how much the scene has changed now.
The result of that dearth of choice was that I grew up eating hard tacos, out of store-bought taco kits (!). Thankfully it only happened a few times, because we could never get into hard tacos. I mean hard taco shells?? Where’s the logic in that? It defies the whole purpose. 🙂
But then I went an had a habit-forming experience when I ate soft tacos and enjoyed actual authentic Mexican recipes, and I’ve never looked back!
The amount of flavor that you can pack into these little guys surprises me every time. I know I’ve been on a mini Mexican food binge recently with this roasted tomatillo salsa verde, this roasted tomatillo enchilada sauce and these ridiculously flavorful tequila braised slow roasted pork carnitas.
But bear with me for just one more time, because today I’m going to show you how to use those slow roasted pork carnitas to make an even more unreasonably flavorful dinner or party food dish – Pork Carnitas Tacos with Mango Black Bean Salsa!
Pork carnitas
These slow roasted pork carnitas (oven roasted carnitas) are absolutely going to transform anything that you pair them with. Moist, juicy and tender with crisp brown edges, these pork carnitas are one of my favorite taco fillings ever.
And then couple that with a mango, black bean salsa and you’re in taco heaven. This fresh, colorful, fruity salsa is super versatile and has a great balance of sweet and savory.
It’s hard to even call it a recipe, it’s a simple combination of sweet mangoes, hearty black beans (not to mention good for you! – as they have plenty of health benefits), sweet corn, onions, avocado, cilantro and then dressed with lime juice.
You can serve it with anything really, or just eat it as a salad or an appetizer with some corn chips, but paired with these pork tacos – they just taste right at home. That’s really the best way to describe it. 🙂
I’ve shared tacos on the blog before – like this allspice fish tacos with roasted grape salsa, but these pork carnitas tacos are more traditional, and with the tangy, juicy, creamy pork and the fresh fruity mango black bean salsa, these tacos taste incredible.
So if you saved up some of that slow roasted pork carnitas in your freezer or you have some pulled pork, then you should definitely make these carnitas tacos.
And maybe serve them with some roasted tomatillo salsa verde on the side, and you’ve got a party in town. 🙂
Recipe
Pork Carnitas Tacos with Mango Black Bean Salsa
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
Pork Carnitas Tacos
- 16 Small corn tortillas
- Thinly sliced red cabbage optional
- 1 recipe Slow Roasted Pork Carnitas
- 1 recipe Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde (or store-bought if you prefer)
Mango Black Bean Salsa
- 1 avocado cubed
- 1 mango cubed (or frozen mango, thawed, cubed – about ¾ cup)
- ¼ cup red onion diced
- ½ can black beans rinsed and drained (from a 15 oz can)
- ½ can sweet corn can rinsed and drained (from a 15 oz can)
- 2 – 3 tbsp cilantro chopped
- 1 -2 jalapeno chopped and de-seeded
- Juice of 1 lime to taste
- Salt to taste
Instructions:
Pork Carnitas Tacos
- Prepare the pork carnitas and roasted tomatillo salsa verde by following the linked recipe instructions. This can be done the day before.1 recipe Slow Roasted Pork Carnitas, 1 recipe Roasted Tomatillo Salsa Verde
- Heat a non-stick pan or griddle on medium heat. Brush it with some oil and heat the tortillas until they are heated on both sides. I like them to be slightly toasted on both sides, but still pliable.16 Small corn tortillas
- Top the tortillas with carnitas, mango black bean salsa, salsa verde, cabbage and serve.Thinly sliced red cabbage
Mango Black Bean Salsa
- Mix the first 7 ingredients, plus juice of ½ a lime together in a bowl, being careful not to crush the avocado. Add more lime juice and salt to taste.1 avocado, 1 mango, ¼ cup red onion, ½ can black beans, ½ can sweet corn can, 2 – 3 tbsp cilantro, 1 -2 jalapeno, Juice of 1 lime, Salt to taste
- Cover and refrigerate until needed.
Recipe Notes
Food prep tips
The carnitas and the salsa verde can be made a day ahead. While the carnitas are cooking in the oven, prep the ingredients for the tomatillo verde. When the carnitas are done slow cooking, they will need to rest for 30 minutes. During this time, you can prep the ingredients for the salsa verde (roast them in the oven). While the verde ingredients are cooling down after roasting in the oven, the carnitas can be shredded and grilled under the broil setting. Both of these can be stored in the fridge in air-tight containers for up to 5 days.Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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