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Cuban Pulled Pork Salad

Cuban Pulled Pork Salad


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5 from 7 reviews

  • Author: Sonja Goeden
  • Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
  • Yield: 8 1x
  • Diet: Low Calorie

Description

Lots of crunchy nutritious veggies, some made into a slaw, make this Cuban Pulled Pork Salad
A super healthy feast in its own right. I’m using part of the Slow Roasted Cuban Pork Shoulder from the day before, as a fantastic way to use up leftovers and speed up your meal prep.
The Salad is brought together by a zingy Cuban inspired Hazelnut-Orange-Lime-Dressing, using similar ingredients to the pulled pork marinade, to complement the flavours.


Ingredients

Units Scale

Sourdough Whole Wheat Tortillas

  • 1/2 cup sourdough (or discard)
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup hot water (or more, if needed)
  • 1/3 cup shortening (or vegetable oil)
  • 1 1/2 tsp salt

Hazelnut Orange Lime Dressing:

  • 1/2 cup hazelnuts (Soaked for 1h in hot water or overnight in cold. Drained.)
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 2 limes (zest, and juice)
  • 4 oranges (3 zested and juiced. Divided.)
  • 2 tbsp fresh cilantro
  • 2 cloves of garlic (minced. Divided)
  • 1 tbsp oregano (fresh, finely chopped (or 1 tsp dried))
  • 3 tbsp maple syrup (divided)

The Salad

  • 1 lb pulled pork
  • 1/4 head red cabbage (stalk removed, shredded thinly)
  • 1/4 head white cabbage (stalk removed, shredded thinly)
  • 2 carrots (roughly grated)
  • 1 fennel bulb (Inner stalk removed, finely shredded across the grain)
  • 2 cobs corn (leaves and silk removed)
  • 2 zucchinis (sliced thinly lengthwise)
  • 1 head Romaine lettuce (shredded to your preferred size)
  • 1/2 lb 1 pack steamed mini beets
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp oregano (fresh, finely chopped (or 1 tsp dried))
  • 1/2 cup hazelnuts (toasted in the oven for 8min, the roughly chopped)
  • BBQ Sauce (optional)
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Tortillas:

  1. If you are making your own tortillas, start by making the dough. Just mix all the ingredients and knead (I used a stand mixer) until you have a smooth dough. Cover with clingfilm and leave to rest in the fridge until you are ready to use it. I made mine the evening before, to let the flavours develop and the sourdough do its thing over night.
  2. Once ready to fry, divide into about 12 pieces and either shape them using a tortilla press or roll them out thinly, while stacking between sheets of cling film or baking parchment.
  3. Pre-heat a pan to medium high heat (no oil) and fry your tortillas until bubbly and golden. This should take about 30 seconds on the first side. If yours fries much faster or slower, adjust the heat.
  4. Flip and fry for another 30-40 seconds.
  5. Keep them stacked on a plate, wrapped into a towel and topped by another plate. The moisture and heat will keep them soft and pliable while you prepare them all.

Hazelnut Orange Lime Dressing:

  1. If using pre-soaked nuts, add all dressing ingredients to a high-speed blender and blend until creamy. Adjust the seasoning to taste. Set aside.

Zucchini:

  1. Mix 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp maple syrup, zest and juice of 1/2 orange, chopped oregano (or dried), and minced garlic for the zucchini marinade. Season with salt and pepper. Add zucchini slices to a container with a tight-fitting lid or a freezer bag and pour the marinade over them. Close the lid or bag and shake to coat the slices. Set aside.
  2. When ready, heat a pan on medium-high heat, add the zucchini slices in one layer, and fry until browned on the edges. Turn and fry for another few minutes until both sides have some colour. These can be served warm or cold.

Coleslaw:

  1. Use a food processor with a slicing blade for red and white cabbage and fennel, and a grater for the carrot.
  2. Alternatively, thinly slice and grate by hand. In a large bowl, combine the shredded red cabbage, white cabbage, grated carrots, and finely shredded fennel.
  3. Add ¾ of the hazelnut dressing to the bowl and massage the coleslaw with your hands until the cabbage softens and absorbs the flavour. Refrigerate the coleslaw to allow the flavours to meld.

Sweetcorn:

  1. Rub the corn cobs with a little olive oil. Heat a pan over fairly high heat, add the corn cobs, and cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides. Let them cool.
  2. Once cool enough to handle, slice the kernels from the cob into a larger bowl.

Beets:

  1. Use pre-steamed mini beets or marinate them by mixing 1 tbsp maple syrup, juice and zest of ½ orange, salt, and pepper.
  2. Let them sit to enhance the flavours.

Oranges:

  1. Cut off the top and bottom of your last 2 oranges. Then, following the curve, slice off the skin and pith, leaving you just with the juicy insides.
  2. Cut them into slices across.

Pork:

  1. If using Slow Roasted Cuban Pork Shoulder, slice off the crackling and fat, and re-crisp them in the air fryer, oven, or a pan.
  2. Pull apart the rest of the pork using two forks.

Assembly:

  1. In a large serving bowl or on individual plates, create a bed of shredded Romaine lettuce. Top the lettuce with the coleslaw and drizzle with some of the remaining hazelnut dressing.
  2. Arrange the zucchini, sweetcorn kernels, beets, and orange slices around the coleslaw. Place the pulled pork on top and sprinkle with the toasted, chopped hazelnuts.
  3. Optionally, drizzle a little BBQ sauce over the pork.
  4. Serve and enjoy your Cuban Pulled Pork Salad!

Notes

The equipment section may contain affiliate links to products I know and love.

  • Prep Time: 1 hour
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Category: Dinner, Dressing, Main Course, Salad
  • Method: Chop
  • Cuisine: American, Fusion

Nutrition

  • Calories: 613
  • Sugar: 28
  • Sodium: 858
  • Fat: 27
  • Saturated Fat: 5
  • Carbohydrates: 81
  • Fiber: 12
  • Protein: 19
  • Cholesterol: 24