Tony Zentgraf
Skewered Street Food Around the World
Alambres de Pollo al Pastor
Chicken al Pastor Skewers or Alambres de Pollo al Pastor is a classic street food of Mexico. This skewered variation has been add to the Skewered Street Food series.
Make this quick and easy marinade and marinate overnight for best flavor. Slice the meat off the skewers, as they would off the vertical rotisserie. Place it is some warm tortillas and enjoy as tacos.
Vertical Rotisserie Arrives from the Middle East
In 1930s Lebanese immigrants migrated into Puebla, Mexico bringing with them the vertical rotisserie and lamb shawarma. The lebanese spit roasted lamb over a fire. The meat is then sliced from the skewers and placed into pita, in the style of shawarma.
‘Al Pastor’ meaning ‘shepard style’ was adopted by Mexican ranchers or shepards. The availability of pork became the meat of choice instead of lamb. Thus becoming becoming the Pork al Pastor Tacos as we know today.
Pork al Pastor has become a street vendor staple on the streets of Mexico. Around almost every corner there are variations interpretations of al pastor. Where exactly the pineapple came from on the tacos is a mystery.
On street a vendor’s rotisserie, a pineapple is placed at the top of the vertical rotisserie. It is sliced along with the meat is filled in the tortilla. Traditionally served with chopped cilantro and onions.
Flavors of al Pastor
The flavors that make up the al pastor marinade are dried chiles, achiote paste, garlic, cumin, a vinegar, cinnamon, Mexican oregano, coriander & pineapple juice. Some recipes may add other ingredients.
In this recipe, I wanted to simplify the ingredients. To allow the user to easily recreate the flavors without having to work with dried chiles. Quickly assembling the marinade in the blender.
I know what some of you are saying, “this isn’t authentic”. I am aware it is not authentic. The chipotle peppers impart the heat of a dried chile. The adobo sauce in the can of chiles act as the achiote paste that would be in a traditional recipe. The spices and acid remain similar to impart the acidic nature to the skewers.
To add some spice and flavor to your tacos, check out these salsas and crema to liven it up!
- Cilantro Lime Crema
- Charred Tomatillo Salsa
- Grilled Garden Vegetable Salsa
- Quick Restaurant Style Chipotle Salsa
Take a look at Taco Party Featured Recipes
Chicken al Pastor Skewers
Print RecipeEquipment
Recipe Multiplier
- 2 EA Chipotle Peppers
- ½ cup Pineapple Juice
- ⅓ cup Orange Juice
- 2 tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
- ½ ea Onion - cut into 1" pieces
- 3 ea Garlic Cloves
- ½ tsp Cumin
- 1 tsp Mexican Oregano
- ½ tsp Kosher Salt
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 2 lbs Chicken Thighs - Boneless & Skinless
Instructions
Making the al Pastor Marinade
- In a blender, combine all ingredients except the chicken.
- Puree until all ingredients are well blended.
- Pour the marinade into a container and reserve to marinate the chicken.
Preparing the Chicken for the Marinade
- Clean the chicken thighs of any unwanted fat.
- Dice the chicken into 1 ½" x 1 ½" – 2" sized pieces.
- Add the chicken to the al Pastor marinade.
- Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours.
Skewering and Grilling the Marinated Chicken
- Preheat your grill to a high heat.
- Remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Using metal skewers, skewer the chicken pieces to the skewers. If you want to serve individual skewers per person, skewer less meat per skewer than the video and pictures.
- Grill the chicken over charcoal to get the best result.
- Turning the chicken skewers as it cooks to avoid burning. The chicken will develop a char as you turn the meat.
- Baste with any unused marinade to enhance the flavor.
- Once the chicken's temperature is at least 165° remove from the grill.
Serving the Chicken al Pastor
- Serve the al Pastor skewers by slicing the meat from the skewer as you would if it were cooked in a larger batch on a rotisserie.This will give you some charred marinated exterior with the juicy meat on the inside.
- Serve as tacos with your favorite toppings.Such as Cilantro Lime Crema, Charred Tomatillo Salsa, Grilled Garden Vegetable Salsa or Quick Restaurant Style Chipotle Salsa
